The grave diggers’ house

Traces of a former ritual

The now abandoned grave diggers’ house stands in the middle of Hallstatt cemetery. Here, until 1987, live the men responsible not only for burials but for the exhuming, cleaning and painting of skulls to be placed in the bonehouse.

When the tradition of skull painting begins in around 1720, the grave diggers take care of everything. After 10-15 years in the grave the bones and skulls are dug out, cleaned by hand and then left out in the sun and moonlight for weeks on end. This is supposed to bleach the skull and get rid of all traces of decay. The skull cannot be painted until this is done.

There are no longer grave diggers in Hallstatt. The rare burials that still do take place at the small cemetery are managed by the employees of a funeral parlour in Bad Ischl.