The 10 Unusual Cemeteries In The Philippines, Check Them Out!

BY: CHESKA

Burials of more recent times have been conscripted to preserve and mark for time to come the remains of our loved ones. For some, this is comforting. For others, it bears superstition and fear.

In the light of the upcoming “All Saints’ Day” which most of us will visit cemeteries to honor our departed loved ones, light some candles, offer flowers at their graves and remember. Let me show you the 10 unique cemeteries in the Philippines and learned some historical facts about them.

#1 Sunken Cemetery of Camiguin Island:

During the volcanic birth of Mt. Vulcan that lasted from 1871 to about 1875, some areas in the town of Bonbon subsided, sinking the cemetery of the town to below sea level. The place is commemorated by a huge cross erected in 1982. Since then the municipality of Bonbon transferred to now the town of Catarman.

#2 Manila Chinese Cemetery:

The cemetery was built through the efforts of Don Carlos Palanca (Tan, Quien Sien), a Chinese Filipino leader and businessman during the 19th century. Since non-Catholics weren’t allowed to buried in the city cemeteries during the Spanish colonial period, the need for the non-Christian Chinese to have their own cemetery.

#3 The hanging coffins of Sagada

In Sagada, Mountain Province, the ancient funeral norm of hanging coffins from mountain cliffs is still practiced by some minority groups, The purpose of suspending the casket from the mountain rocks is to bring the deceased closer to heaven. In ancient times, coffins were made from carved and hollowed-out wood. They are “hung” in place through the use of projecting beams.

#4 Familia Luzuriaga Cemetery.

It is a cemetery in the middle of the street, it has been tagged as “the only cemetery in the world at the intersection of two highways”. According to history, the cemetery is owned by the Ruiz de Luzuriaga family, a rich political clan who became well-known in the Negros province during the Spanish era.  The said land where the cemetery now stands was Luzuriaga’s former hacienda. The family voluntarily cease to keep their properties as long as the cemetery must remain standing. That’s how the Familia Luzuriaga Cemetery started.

#5 Malabon Cemetery

Malabon cemetery is just an ordinary cemetery, except for the unusual gravestone of a life size sculpture of a battle between the devil and Archangel Michael. However, what’s unusual with the said sculpture is that Archangel Michael was defeated by the devil.

The person buried in the tomb is Don Simeon Bernardo of Barangay Concepcion, he was imprisoned in Fort Santiago and was tortured by the Spaniards at that time, because of that he came to believe that God never existed and the world has yielded to darkness. Don Simeon died of a heart attack in 1934.

#6 Paco Park Cemetery

Paco Park is now a recreational garden but was once Manila’s municipal cemetery built by the Dominicans during the Spanish colonial period. It has also become a very popular venue for weddings and receptions for couples who prefer garden-like settings. Notable interments were Dr. Jose Rizal who was secretly interred at Paco Park after his execution at Bagumbayan and the three martyred priest Mariano Gomez, Jose Burgos, and Jacinto Zamora(also known as Gomburza).

#7 Badjao Cemetery:

It is the old Badjao Burial Grounds located in Sta. Cruz Island, Zamboanga City. Their graves have miniature wooden boats and human effigy which they called “sea gypsies”. The miniature wooden boats is a sign of their deep connection to the sea in the form of grave markers.

#8 Nagcarlan Underground Cemetery

The cemetery was built in 1845 under the supervision of Franciscan priest, Fr. Vicente Velloc as a public burial site and its underground crypt exclusively for Spanish friars, prominent town citizens and members of elite Catholic families. It is dubbed as the only underground in the country. It is also a national historical landmark and museum in Barangay Bambang, Nagcarlan Laguna which supervised by the National Historical Commission of the Philippines.

#9 Paws Pet Memorial

The Philippines Animal Welfare Society(PAWS) put up a Memorial Wall at their Animal Rehabilitation Center (PARC) in Loyola Heights, Quezon City. The memorial wall is also a project to fund a shelter and allows pet owners to grieve and remember their beloved pets through pictures and dedications. The contract lasted for five years with the option for renewal. They also offers burial services in a mass grave.

#10 The Cemetery of Negativism:

The cemetery of negativism is in Camp John Hay which  also known as the Lost Cemetery is part of camp’s Historical Core. It was established by the base’s commanding general John Hightower in the early 1980s, it is a symbolic site for the burying of negativities-thoughts, emotions, attitude or as we usually call them today at bad vibes.

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Source: CNN