In the 12th century, the Austrian city of Hallstatt faced a serious problem. Like everyone else in the 12th century, they were running out of room to bury their dead, so they came up with a genius solution: They started renting out graves. Bodies over there were only laid to earth for 10 to 15 years, after which time the bones were exhumed, bleached and displayed in the ossuary.
The tradition of skull painting began in 1790, when members of the deceased’s family started painting crowns of flowers and crosses because they didn’t have a grave to memorialize. Some of the skulls also have the name of the deceased painted on them, the dates of birth and death, and/or some kind of symbol depicting the cause of death.
Presently, Hallstatt has less than 1000 inhabitants and each one could keep their place in the cemetery if they wanted to. However, since 1960, cremation is mostly preferred. The last time a skull was placed in the ossuary was in 1997, but if anyone wants to have their skull hosted by this unusual tourist attraction, all they have to do is make a special request and it will be done.
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