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Paris has many beautiful and interesting cemeteries.
Pere Lachaise, the largest and most famous, is located in the 20th arrondissement of Paris. Established in 1804, by Napoleon, the cemetery is notorious for its famous inhabitants, including Irish novelist, poet and playwright, Oscar Wilde, French singer, Edith Pilaf, Italian painter and sculptor, Amedeo Modigliani, Polish composer, Frederic Chopin, French playwright, Moliere, Opera singer, Maria Callas, and American singer and songwriter, Jim Morrison.
Known as the first big cemetery outside the city walls of Paris, it is one that many visitors to Paris seek out.
Making my way from Montparnasse, it was a bit of a hike to Pere Lachaise, however, I was anxious to visit this cemetery that had been on my Paris To Do list for some time.
Arriving at the metro stop, Pere Lachaise, I found a secondary gate located just across the street. Just inside the doorway was a large map detailing the 118 acre cemetery and locations of its most famous burial sites.
Wandering along the avenues and pathways within the cemetery and its moss-covered tombs, I soon passed the main gate. Checking the posted map again, I began my search for Jim Morrison’s grave. Walking uphill and minding my steps on the cobblestones in the misty afternoon, I found the masses of gravesites and lack of signage quite confusing. Noticing the number of other people seemingly heading the same direction, I continued my quest. Finally, spotting a large group and their tour guide, one pathway over, I realized that I had found my destination.
Surrounded by a fence, The Doors’ lead singer’s grave was a bit of an anticlimax. Pere Lachaise cemetery is filled with many elaborate, large-scale mausoleums and crypts. Jim Morrison’s was very minimal though covered with flowers. A constant stream of visitors came and went as I stood there. Noticing a tree, next to the fenced area, covered in bamboo, I approached it and began reading the many notes inscribed on each of the bamboo slats and inspecting the mementos slipped between the slats. Forty-five years after his death, it’s obvious that Mr. Morrison has left a lasting impression on the world and still has many fans to this day.
Leaving the grave and making my way uphill toward the rear of Pere Lachaise, my next destination was the burial site of Oscar Wilde. Not very difficult to find, but requiring a bit of stamina, Mr. Wilde’s tomb is a modern structure designed by sculptor Jacob Epstein.
Surrounded by Plexiglas, I was surprised to see many bright red lipstick marks on the barrier. A sign on the barrier states that anyone caught defacing the tomb or the barrier is subject to a fine. Not sure about the marks, I did some research and found that since the 1990’s, female fans began leaving lipstick marks on the tomb…so many, in fact, that the outward appearance of the sculpture had a red appearance. Many cleanings were required, each rendering the stone more porous and thus requiring more in-depth cleanings which further damaged the tomb. After the Plexiglas barrier was erected, fans have continued to leave “kisses” for the creator of The Importance of Being Earnest.
As the close of the cemetery approached, I wandered throughout the cemetery, admiring the old crumbling tombstones, the grandiose chapels and intricate sculptures. Passing the Communard’s Wall, where one hundred forty-seven combatants of the Paris Commune were shot and thrown into an open trench a the foot of the wall in 1871, the Crematorium, Mausoleum and the Monument Eleve Par Etats, which contains the bones of 2500 soldiers, killed in action during the Siege of Paris from 1870-1871, I retraced my steps to the exit.
With the misty rain gaining momentum and the closing hour near, it was time to leave the peaceful graveyard. Knowing that I had concentrated on two of the major burial sites, a mental note was made of the ones that I was unable to locate on this visit.
Another tidbit I discovered while researching the cemetery after my visit…take the metro to Gambetta and enter the cemetery’s gate northeast of the Crematorium, making your walk through the cemetery a downhill one.
With so much to discover, whichever way you enter to historic memorial park, you won’t be disappointed.
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Pere Lachaise Cemetery
- http://www.perelachaisecemetery.com/
- Address: 16 rue du Repos, 75020 Paris, France (Belleville / Père Lachaise)
- Hours: November 6-March 15, Monday-Saturday, 0800-1730, Sundays and Holidays, 0900-1730. March 16-November 5, 0800-1800, Sundays and Holidays, 0900-1800.
- Admission: free
- Getting There: Metro stops, Pere Lachaise, Gambetta