Glasgow Necropolis

The Glasgow Necropolis is a Victorian cemetery in Glasgow, Scotland. It is on a hill above, and to the east of, Glasgow Cathedral (St. Mungo's Cathedral). Fifty thousand individuals have been buried in approximately 3500 tombs.

It was conceived as a Père Lachaise for Glasgow, and subsequently established by the Merchants' House of Glasgow in 1831. Alexander Thomson designed a number of its tombs, and John Bryce and David Hamilton designed other architecture for the grounds.

The main entrance is approached by a bridge over what was then the Molendinar Burn. The bridge, which was designed by James Hamilton, was completed in 1833. It became known as the "Bridge of Sighs" because it was part of the route of funeral processions (the name is an allusion to the Bridge of Sighs in Venice).

The cemetery's paths meander uphill towards the summit, where a dominating statue of John Knox was erected in 1825. The Glasgow Necropolis was described by James Stevens Curl as "literally a city of the dead". Glasgow native Billy Connolly has said: "Glasgow's a bit like Nashville, Tennessee: it doesn't care much for the living, but it really looks after the dead." ["Billy Connolly's World Tour of Scotland" (1994)]

Notable statues and sculptures

References

External links

* [http://www.inglasgow.com/inglaig/gallery.asp?categoryid=169 Glasgow Necropolis Photographs]
* [http://www.glasgow.gov.uk/en/Residents/Parks_Outdoors/HeritageTrails/GlasgowNecropolis/ Glasgow Necropolis Heritage Trail]