Tuesday 11 October 2011

An afternoon in Nunhead Cemetery


No, this place with the wonderful tomb is not Highgate Cemetery.  Highgate is one of the supposed "hidden gems" of London, and it's certainly amazing, but "hidden" it is not - in my book, anyway.  It's so famous that it's besieged by people wanting to make movies, run events and do photo shoots, and so on, and you can only visit at certain times, on guided tours.

For the true atmospheric Victorian cemeterry experience, my vote goes to Nunhead Cemetery,  fifteen minutes on the train from London Bridge station.  Nunhead, consecrated in 1840, was one of the seven big cemeteries opened by the London Cemetery Company in Victorian times.  Many famous and distinguished people were buried there in massive, often highly decorated tombs.  


We all took a walk there on Sunday afternoon.


Unfortunately, the company went bust in the mid-20th century and simply abandoned Nunhead.. Trees and brambles grew up and the huge monuments and elaborate headstones vanished into the undergrowth. Can you spot the tombstone here?


Some are a little creepy, as this very large monument, caught by a stray ray of sun



 

There is some really beautiful sculpture, like this graceful angel






At the gate were two lodges. One is inhabited, and it has a climbing frame and toys in its well tended garden, so I conclude that a family lives there with their kids. Apparently the house was originally leased by Southwark Council (which put in a caretaker) but it was later bought under right-to-buy legislation and is now a private home.

The other lodge is in ruins, just compare! You can see a bit of its pediment poking out amidst the bushes and beneath the protective covering erected by the Friends of the Cemetery.


The Friends of Nunhead Cemetery have done great things, and turned the cemetery into a thriving nature reserve, offering guided walks, historical walks and local events.  On the rather chilly and damp day that we visited, they were sitting bravely outside a ramshackle shed offering leaflets, books, a rather stylish calendar and all kinds of information to visitors.

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They're hoping to find a lottery grant to restore the other lodge, to use instead of their shed, and run a visitor information centre.  Click the link to visit their site, for more information.
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Although it's sad to see the graves so neglected, it's good that the cemetery is no longer open house for vandals and arsonists.   The latter burned down the splendid Gothic revival chapel in the 1960s, leaving only a shell. Inside it, is now some artwork, which you see here being examined by a visitor - the dog really isn't that interested.




Here's a closeup - I think it's very interesting, and was part of a series of sculptures organised by the Friends. . It's by Mike Hoath and Sara Scott. .



And as well as the care taken with woodland conservation, there are also pleasant signs of life all round the cemetery.  It's a favourite spot with local families,


there are beehives in the grounds of the abandoned lodge,


and fine distant views of Greenwich through the trees....

although some people just sleep happily through it all!



30 comments:

  1. Gorgeous photos, Jenny. And I want an angel just like that one on my grave!

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  2. Wonderful pictures. Would love to see it in person.

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  3. Great images - and great writing which makes me want to jump on a train and head south. I can't at the moment but that is definitely on my list of must visit places.

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  4. It may be neglected, but it is a peaceful, beautiful spot to visit. That angel is still stunning! I'm glad there are people who want to tend it again. :)

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  5. Such an interesting place I would not have ever heard of, if not for your visit and lovely post. The monuments are so grand, especially when compared to a small cemetery of the same period, that I live next to.

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  6. I used to pass by in the 80's but was unable to go in. Very interesting place and great photos.

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  7. Oh how I would love to walk around there. So interesting! Lovely photos, Jenny!

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  8. You've been a wonderful guide through this cemetery in disrepair, painting some beautiful verbal pictures such as “caught by a stray ray of sun”. This truly would be a fascinating place to visit … similar to a trip through the gate of the Secret Garden. Thank heavens for Friends of the Cemetery. Lovely how you concluded this post with a brand new life!

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  9. I love walking through cemeteries and this one sure is a beauty - full of history and atmosphere. Thank you for presenting it so well.

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  10. Like Alan, I feel like paying this place a visit. I liked (liked?) the sculpture of body parts and the creepy monument demands that I write another creepy story.

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  11. A beautiful story, I love the first picture is beautiful. Curious history of this cemetery, nature finally slowly recovering his own sculptures and mixed with the branches of trees. Regards, I liked it.

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  12. I would love to wander around a place like this in person. Thank you so much for the virtual tour.

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  13. Until I've read this, I had not known at all about Nunhead Cemetery. Come to think of it, I've never been to any cemetery in or around London. And I had no idea that one can't visit Highgate without a guided tour at a set time.

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  14. I find cemeteries so interesting and love reading the old inscriptions when they are still legible...
    This cemetery obviously needs some tlc but Nature is reclaiming what is hers...ash to ash, dust to dust...

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  15. Thanks for that Jenny. That was a great post! Excellent excellent photos too. There's something about old Victorian cemeteries isn't there? The heavy stone and the ornate sculptures. Skills that have been almost lost.

    Used to meet friends in an old cemetery. Think it was a Goth thing. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z68V77LzcOQ&feature=related

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  16. Hi Jenny! How super to see you'd visited my blog this evening. I am so impressed with what you have to share here. I have thoroughly enjoyed your informative and interesting tour of this rather lovely old cemetery. Your photographs are great and I especially like the little amusing comments you make. I will definitely be popping by again when time permits!

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  17. This looks like a wonderful place to explore. You really do find interesting sites off the beaten path and give excellent tours, Jenny. I've left comments on previous posts in the past several days but apparently Blogger saw fit to ban them. Fingers crossed that this one makes it through the ether to the other side.

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  18. a little creepy it is! But the picture of the little baby in the stroller is great!

    Big hugs
    Leontien

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  19. What an interesting place to explore. Thanks for taking us for a trip through the cemetery. :)

    But even during the day, the place feels creepy (as it should be, seeing that the place is a cemetery. heh)

    And yeah, love the photo of the baby. ^^

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  20. Thanks for the lovely tour - nice time I'm in London (weather permitting) I might try to find it.

    Isabel x

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  21. It's good to know there're always devoted and praiseworthy peope who are working hard on restoring abondoned sites and turning them into interesting places to explore.
    By the way, do you have a special feeling about the cemetery?

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  22. I like old cemetaries but have never visited one on the scale of this one. Wonderful tour. It is nice to know that people are trying to preserve the area.

    Darla

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  23. Amazing places and so sad they become abandoned when they were once created with a hope for long posterity.

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  24. I had one friend who was born in England. Going to cemeteries was her favourite place for a walk. I always wondered why. However, looking at your post, I would love to walk in such an interesting place myself.

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  25. "another sunny day, so i'll meet you at the cemetery gate"?

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  26. Jenny,
    It is interesting cemeteries are so different from Japanese ones! Being embraced by Mother Nature, the souls of the deceased seem to sleep peacefully. Usually We go to see ancestors on the autumn or spring equinox days. When do you go to cemeteries?
    Once I want to visit this type of cemeteries. Great photos!
    Best wishes,
    keiko
    .

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  27. It's interesting to hear peoples' different reactions to the cemetery. In some ways, it's a strange idea to go there for pleasure, and I don't know if it is a bit of an English thing, because I also like country churchyards and often see other people there who like to go too and sit in the sun and look at the gravestones and think about the people who lie there. It makes me sad to see trashed tombstones, and vandalism, because most of the people commemorated were well loved by someone.

    The creepy thing is a bit of a cliche for me. @snowwhite, there isn't an organised or special time to go to cemeteries, although many people go to visit the grave of a loved one regularly. @cosmos, it's an interesting question, I don't know anyone buried there, but its history is interesting, people care about it and also it is green space in the city, which is kept wild, and mysterious, and full of nature, for people to enjoy.

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  28. so glad i found your blog. it is interesting and inspiring.

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