Shah-i-Zinda, Samarkand

Shah-i-Zinda, Samarkand, Uzbekistan

Visited September 2008

The Shah-i-Zinda (literally "The living king") necropolis in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, includes mausoleums and other buildings from the 11th to 19th centuries CE.  Legend says that a cousin of the prophet Muhammad was buried there, although there's no trace of anything relating to him now. 

There are three sets of buildings, all on a steep hill on the outskirts of Samarkand, connected by arched and domed passages. Over 20 buildings form the complex, with a number decorated with wonderful blue and green tiles on the walls, interiors and the domed roofs. Most of the buildings date from the 14th-15th centuries, with only bases and some headstones of the earlier buildings remaining.

Should you find yourself here, make sure you've got at least half a day free for exploring - each building is decorated in a different way, and you'll need a good guidebook or tour guide to at least introduce you to the site. It costs about $10 to get in (maybe a little more now) but if you've traveled all the way to Central Asia you won't want to miss this place!

 

 

St Martin's Gardens, Camden, London

St Martin's Gardens, Camden, London
Visited January 2016

This quiet garden, less than 10 minutes walk from the busy area around Camden Town tube station, was the burial ground for parishioners of the church of St Martin In the Fields (at Trafalgar Square) from 1802 to 1856. It was subsequently cleared and opened as a garden in 1889.

A few table tombs survive in various states, along with some gravestones along two walls (one set is in the nature conservation area and subsequently inaccessible). Most of the inscriptions are illegible. On an overcast winter day it wasn't very busy, but there's not much to see and the landscaping isn't all that exciting, so I wouldn't go out of my way to visit again. But if you do go, look out in one corner for the tree roots which have gravestones so intertwined that they're inseparable. 

And I have no idea why there's a cactus in a pot on one of the stones...

Gairloch Old Burial Ground, Scotland

Gairloch Old Burial Ground, Wester Ross, Scotland

visited September 2012

Just south of the village (or is it a town?) of Gairloch in Wester Ross is the old burial ground. It's between the road and the beach, and indeed there's a path to the beach through it (which is how I got there). It's been in use for a number of centuries, but sadly I didn't have time to poke around it - I was headed for a walk on the beach with elderly parents so no stopping! Most of the grave markers seem to date from the 19th and 20th centuries, although no doubt there are older ones to be found if you've got time to go looking.

It's a bit of a remote place to just bump into (see the photo below taken from Gairloch itself to get an idea of the surroundings), but should you be on the west coast of Scotland, maybe on your way to Ullapool or Inverewe Gardens, then do stop here for a wander round the graveyard and a walk on the unspoilt beach too.

View from Gairloch

Newmachar Kirkyard in the snow

Newmachar Kirkyard, Aberdeenshire

Visited December 2009

I've previously blogged about this churchyard in the village I grew up in, here.  But as it's winter, I thought I'd share this photo of it in the snow, which I took a few years ago, with the churchyard looking lovely in the winter light and snow.

The Glasgow Necropolis

Glasgow Necropolis

Visited September 2012

The Glasgow Necropolis is the rather glorious name given to the main Victorian cemetery in Glasgow, located right by Glasgow Cathedral. It was opened in 1832 as a garden cemetery, although the statue of John Knox which looks over the cemetery was already in place then. The cemetery is on a shallow hill, with the main mausoleums to the great and the good at the top. Parts of the cemetery seem rather modern and, in that Scots way, a bit dour, but there are some splendid carvings and monuments to be seen. Many of Glasgow's great and good from the Victorian and Edwardian periods are here, and it's easy to spend a few hours wandering around the site - even on a sunny summer's day it wasn't very busy. Parts of it are rather landscaped - at the top of the hill it's all mown lawns and fancy tombs, while at the bottom it's more overgrown (although not nearly as much as in some cemeteries I've visited, not by a long shot).

The Friends of Glasgow Necropolis run regular tours of the site, and there's also a heritage trail, available on this site https://www.glasgow.gov.uk/index.aspx?articleid=8104, which is well worth following.

Team up a visit to the cemetery with a visit to the Cathedral and to St Mungo's Museum of Religious Life for a full day out and a spot of spiritual awakening too!

 

 

Tomb of the Mahdi, Sudan

Tomb of the Mahdi, Omdurman

Visited November 2007 and January 2009

In 2007 and 2009 I was lucky enough to spend time working in Khartoum, Sudan. Across the river from Khartoum is Omdurman, the largest city in Sudan, and the site of the tomb of the Mahdi, and of the Battle of Omdurman (1898) where Kitchener beat the local forces and gave Britain control over the Sudan.

This tomb is a rebuilt version of that built for the Mahdi, Muhammad Ahmad, who died in 1885, who was a religious leader and military campaigner. I'm not going to go into all the political details of who the Mahdi was, and the whole capture of Khartoum - read more about it here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Muhammad_Ahmad

The original of this tomb was destroyed on the orders of Kitchener, and the Mahdi's ashes were thrown into the Nile (his skull was saved by Kitchener).  The tomb was later rebuilt into the one that survives today, although it is generally closed to visitors. I only saw it from the outside (you get a great view from the Omdurman Museum, close by).

 

Hili 'Grand Tomb', Al Ain (UAE)

Hili 'Grand Tomb', Al Ain (Abu Dhabi Emirate, UAE)

Visited November 2012

In the Oasis town of Al Ain (meaning 'The Well'), about 2 hours drive south of Abu Dhabi city, is the Hili Archaeological Park. Here are some of the best preserved Bronze Age remains in the area, including the remains of buildings, in particular a tower, and tombs. I only had a brief visit here, as the light was fading, so the main tomb I was able to see and photograph is the Grand Tomb (also known as the Great Tomb). It's fenced off, so visitors are unable to enter the tomb - sad for those of us with an interest in history/archaeology, but good for the preservation of the tomb itself.

The tomb has been reconstructed, mostly using original blocks. It dates from around 2000BCE, and was excavated in the 1970s by Danish archaeologists. It measures about 12m diameter and 4m high, and above the door is a carving of two human figures and two Arabian oryx. It would have been used for communal burials, rather than one high ranking individual.

The park itself seems to be interesting, with a number of archaeological sites dotted around. If you find yourself in the area (maybe on a stopover in Abu Dhabi and desperate to get out of the city?), it's worth coming here, as well as visiting the Al Ain National Museum and the palm orchards in the oasis beside the Museum.