Lomography

Skogskyrkogården: The Woodland Cemetery
written by minicooper on April 27th, 2008 , one comment (2 votes)

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Two young architects: Erik Gunnar Asplund and Sigurd Lewerentz converted in 1917 a forest on the outskirts of Stockholm in a place really sacred. You don’t need to be a believer. You just have to walk around the cemetery to feel the magic of the place.

As soon as you reach the entrance you will notice that this is not one more scary cemetery. It looks like more a park to go for a walk rather that a place to rest eternally. Once inside you will feel the Meditation Groove at your feet: you can choose to walk through the path that leads you to black granite cross or walk between the graves on the left. Under the big granite cross you will realize it wasn’t as big as you imagined when first saw it from the entrance: it welcomes you. The Crematorium and some chapels are the first buildings you will see. On the top of the hill there is the Chapel of Resurrection, were a bronze sculpture is standing under an opening in the roof. Take your time to watch the pond. Now is time to look for the Woodland Chapel. Although you have seen it before on pictures you will probably feel a shiver down your back. White columns in its front, white-washed walls and black roof is what you expect less in a wood. Look above to contemplate the golden ‘Angel of Death’. Behind the chapel lots and lots of graves rest forever, in the middle of nature. More than 50.000 souls will come with you during your stay. Even Asplund rests there, under a simple epitaph: “his work lives”.

We visited The Woodland Cemetery on January 1st. We almost met nobody there. Some people say that the best day to visit the site is on November 1st, All Saints Day, when most graves are lit up by a candle. For us, going to Skogskyrkogården when you visit Stockholm is a must. To go there, just take the underground, green line towards Farsta strand and leave it on Skogskyrkogården. Get out of the station and turn right.

http://www.kyf.stockholm.se/show.asp?Id=12
http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/558/