Interested in the macabre? Like a good haunted house? Maybe you are looking for someplace to travel with a Halloween theme. If so, then the Sedlec Ossuary, or Bone Church, located near the UNESCO city of Kutna Hora in the Czech Republic is the place to go. This church displays the remains of over 40,000 individuals! Call it scary, grotesque, or just plain interesting, chances are you have never seen anything like this.
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The Sedlec Bone Church – A Ghostly Destination Not Far From Prague
The Czech Republic is full of quirky things to do like taking the waters in Karlovy Vary, drinking beer and relaxing in it at the same time, or even watching a young boy dress like a queen during one of the best festivals I’ve ever been to, but nothing can compare to this spooky church in Kutna Hora.
History of Sedlec Bone Church
In the mid-twelfth century, the abbot of Sedlec was sent on a diplomatic mission to Jerusalem. Before coming home, he scooped up some of the holy soil and then sprinkled it on the ground of the monastery after his return. Immediately everyone wanted to be buried on this holiest consecrated ground. It is said that there are over 40,000 people who were buried there, with two historical periods accounting for most of them. One was at the end of the 14th century when plague ravaged Europe, and the second was during the Hussite wars only fifty years later talk about good ghost material!
The re-arrangement of the bones to decorate the Gothic-style chapel began with František Rint, a woodcarver, in 1870. He started arranging the bones in a decorative manner. There is a coat of arms, a few pillars, piles of bones, bones used in many different sculptures. Why did he start doing this? The burial ground has been through a number of renovations in which the graves are emptied and then given over to new occupants. Something had to be done with the homeless bones so a room was built to accommodate them, but soon there were too many for just one room.
When we were there, we saw this process in action. There is a stone stairway leading to an entry, and as we approached everyone on the stairs was watching something below. When we got there, we realized that because of the current renovations, graves were still being exhumed. There were two men emptying a grave of its remains as people watched. Isn’t that eerie?
Walking around the church was a bit surreal. Using human remains as art and decoration kind of gave me the chills, but it also ignited a sense of morbid fascination. Here are some of the photos of the arrangements.
Practical Information:
We know that Prague’s attractions can keep you busy, but Sedlec is only an hour’s drive from Prague and you can easily get there by car. It’s a little harder to get there by bus, and takes three times as long. First take any public transporation to the Prague East (Cerny Most) and then take any bus heading to Sídliště Petrovice (number 224) and then take the number 381. It will take you to the center of Kutna Hora, and from there it is a 2 kilometer but easy walk to the ossuary.
Address of the Sedlec Bone Church is Zámecká, 284 03 Kutná Hora.
Restaurant Recommendation: Not far away, in Kutna Hora town center, is a restaurant called U Kata. I would make reservations so that you can enjoy your meal in the medieval dining hall. While there, try some Czech specialties like roast duck with red cabbage and dumplings:
There is plenty to do in Kutna Hora. You can easily spend the whole day there. Just remember, walking in Kutna Hora is slightly hilly, but you can easily use a stroller.
The cost of the ossuary is 90 Kruna or around $4.00.
Are you looking for more off-the-wall sights? Here are 12 Quirky Things to Do in Prague, you might love.
Would you like to visit the Sedlec Ossuary? Are you scared of a few ghosts?
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Miranda, I went because I’d heard so much about it, and I have to say I wasn’t disappointed.
This place looks very spooky! I would love to visit one day as it seems like a great day trip from Prague, especially as Halloween is just around the corner!
Nic, I would say Halloween would be a great time to visit!
It’s way creepy to think that all those bones used to be living people. But it’s also really neat to see the remains used in this way. I’d like to see one of Europe’s bone churches some time.
Brianna, There are a couple in Europe. I have been to the one in Evora, Portugal and this one in Czech. I liked this one better, because it is so decorative.
We may be travelling through Prague next year. With our own transport this seems like the perfect little detour. I love quirky attractions like this and would love to visit!
Sarah, There is plenty to do in Czech other than Prague if you have a car. It’s a great country to travel in. You will love it.
We had planned to see the kutna hora church when we visited praha in December last year but we had only 2 days and had traveled by car from Austria and on the way our heating system stopped working (it was freezing!), so we had to forcefully skip the travel to this amazing church. Fro some crazy reason, when ever I see Kutna Hora i keep on thinking of the practice in Ladakh India where they give the dead bodies of monks to the vultures to eat.
Helene, Oh, I’ve never heard that about Ladakh before. Wow. It’s too bad you missed the Bone Church. Maybe next time.
It would take a special type of person to build that! I appreciate that artistic value, but I really would not want to visit in person. Your photos will have to suffice.
Elaine, I hear you. I usually am not interested in these kinds of attractions, but it was interesting. That’s for sure.
Wow! That is a lot of bones! I would love to see this. I’ve been wanting to go to Prague forever and on my travels I like to explore small towns, so a trip here would be perfect.
Lara, I hope you get to Prague. Let me know…we’re only two hours away!
Bones! I’d love to see this church by myself. I’m sure i’ll creep out a bit but this is really interesting! Do you have directions on how to get there by bus? If i’m gonna be seeing this church in my dreams, i’m gonna freak out because of the colorless dreams but seeing it using my own eyes, is now a dream I need to fulfill!
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There are several trains that leave from Prague central station with stops in Kutna Hora. From there it’s a short walk to the church. There are several buses as well leaving from Prague’s Florenc or Černý Most bus stations, but it is a longer walk and the cost is about the same as the train so I’d recommend train over bus.
40,000 people?! Wow that’s too many people. I’m not sure if I can arrange these skulls and bones in a decorative manner myself but František sure did a great job doing it. It is creepy but beautiful at the same time. I would love to visit this church myself and check out the bone displays.
Marge, It is a bit creepy, but it captures that morbid curiosity we seem to all have. I hope you get to go one day.
I wanted to visit this place from Prague but we only had one day to get out of the city and we chose Cesky Krumlov. Have to say the all those bones look spooky. And, then, remains of 40,000? That is something else!
Ruth, I think you made the right choice. Sedlev is cool, but Cesky Krumlov is just gorgeous. Next time!
Creepy and fascinating, isn’t it? Unique, to say the least. Thanks for sharing!
Stephen, The bone church was a bit chilling…and totally interesting.
There are a number of these “bone” churches in Europe. I visited the one in Evora, Portugal but it only had bones from 5,000 people. 40,000 brings it to another level!
Rhonda, I’ve been to the Evora one as well. I thought they were very similar actually.
Soooo creepy but oddly fascinating at the same time.
Rachael, It is, isn’t it?
Somehow this seems like a terrible invasion of people’s privacy. I understand the fascination but imagine if one of those skulls belonged to someone you knew.
Lyn, I know what you mean, but at least they’ve been gone for centuries.
Is it wrong that I find this as equally stunning as I do creepy? What a fantastic place to visit and as you say if you could time this right a trip during Halloween could be quite spooky. I love seeking out new, different places like this. Will have to keep this one on my radar.
Tam, It’s a pretty cool site…hope you make it someday!
Very macabre! I don’t think I would like to visit the Bone Church! It is way too confronting for me. The exterior of the abbey looks appealing though.
Kathy, It is a bit chilling! My daughters loved it!