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Cemetery of the Insane, Belgium
Cemetery of the Insane is the graveyard of an old psychiatric hospital in Belgium. There are thousands of gravestones of former mental asylum patients. The graveyard is surrounded by forest, the walkway shaded by pine trees.
The former psychiatric hospital & The Cemetery of the Insane
There is a castle nearby. The castle became a psychiatric hospital in the 1920s. Specifically, this was an insitution for male patients only. In these arcaic medical times, those with psychiatric disirders faced a life shunned by society. These hospitals mainly served as places to lock them away; out of sight, out of mind for the general public. The vast majority would have no relatives, or they had been cut off and were similarly without family ties. Once sent to the hospital, most patients never left and died in that depressing place. Because the patients had no one to bury them, the hospital had to take care of these final arrangements.
Around 1,700 patients died in the decades the hospital operated (1920s to 1980s). Those unfortunate souls were buried in Cemetery of the Insane, located in the forest nearby. The main walkway is lined with trees, which casts a pleasant shade in the hot afternoon soon when we visterd. Most of the grave are simple crosses, they are cast concrete with metal rods inside. Other are metal cruifixes, and are slightly more ornate. The crosses are arranged in neat, and orderly rows. The aisles of the Cemetery of the Insane are organised by death date. Each bares a simple black metal plaque. This features the name, date of birth and date of death of the person buried.
Cemetery of the Insane has one empty plot of graves, in addition to the five with graves. Perhaps this is due to the closure of the hospital, meaning the additional plots were no longer required.
Dark Tourism, more than traditional Urbex
Cemetery of the Insane is a classic urbex site. However, the grounds a still maintained to some degree so it can’t really be argued this site is “abandoned”. Additionally, the site is freely acessible albeit we had to hop over a fence.
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These are beautiful images. To me death is a place you go to rest and think as you decide what to do next. I cant think of a more amazing place to lie and think in repose.
The crosses appear solid and made to last. As if to warn others of madness and its shame.
The setting is a place of pure nature and appears to have flourished with its meals of protein and bodily decay. I think we worry too much about where we end up and pay far too much to be placed in houses above ground. I say give back the nutrients to nature.
Sorry not to have been around hubbie very poorly and working hard to ease his pain.
Mandy/ Amanda xxx
Thank you for your amazing pictures. Such beauty and tragedy captured at the same time.