Bispebjerg
Cemetery’s
Columbarium
Photo: Katrine Rimer
Site
Frederiksborgvej 125
2400 Copenhagen NV
Open
Sunday 10-17
Accessibility
- Hoist / ramp / level access to the front door
- Level access in the building / site (no stairs)
- Level access to outdoor areas
- Lift
- Accessible restroom
- Locked doors can be opened from the outside in case of emergency
- Chairs or benches to rest on
- Possible to eat / drink
- Disabled parking
- Teleloop
- Member of Solsikkesnoren
- Member of God adgang
Experience a very special section of Bispebjerg Cemetery when it opens the doors to the cemetery’s columbarium during Open House. Take a closer look at the lovely building that is home to countless meticulously decorated urns that bear witness to the burial rituals of the past.
Inside Bispebjerg Cemetery’s columbarium, you can experience a beautiful structure that is home to a less traditional type of gravesite by contemporary Danish standards. A columbarium comprises a series of niches in which urns containing the cremated remains of the deceased are displayed. This burial tradition dates back to Roman times and was introduced in Denmark when cremation was legalized in 1893.
Bispebjerg Cemetery’s first columbarium was located in the basement under what is now a center for dance, called Dansekapellet (Chapel of Dance). The second columbarium, designed by architect Holger Jacobsen, opened in 1920. By then, cremation had gained in popularity.
The Golden Age of Urns
In the 1920s, nearly 40 percent of those who were cremated in Copenhagen chose to have their ashes displayed in urns. Bispebjerg Cemetery’s columbarium therefore was expanded in the 1920s and again in the 1940s to ultimately comprise three wings. After several decades of declining popularity, the two oldest wings have been closed, and now only around 10-15 niches are sold each year.
Much More than Cherry Blossoms
In recent years, Bispebjerg Cemetery has become famed for its beautiful, Insta-worthy cherry trees, which blossom in early spring. However, the lush cemetery, nestled between the beautiful boglands of Utterslev Mose and the monumental Grundtvig’s Church, is also home to many other secrets –including this columbarium, which you have a unique opportunity to experiencewhen Bispebjerg Cemetery invites you in during Open House. Visit the lovely structure and admire the many urns on display, often meticulously decorated and aesthetic experiences in their own right. You will also see urns of such great cultural-historical value that they have been listed as worthy of preservation.
