Daniel Verner: Ashes to Ashes, or The Architecture of Crematoria

The topic of this lecture may at first glance seem bizarre or even inappropriate, yet it is firmly rooted in the history of art and in humanity itself: the tradition of bidding farewell to a deceased loved one is eternal, as is the question of how they will be buried. Many civilisations preferred, for various reasons, to preserve the body intact; others favoured cremation and placement in a designated vessel — whether called a pot, an amphora or an urn.

In the 19th century, after long centuries during which Christians buried their dead whole, voices calling for cremation began to emerge across Europe. Arguments for and against were medical, political and religious alike. In the final third of the century, the first modern crematoria appeared in Italy, Germany and Britain, while in other countries they were firmly opposed.

One of the states where crematoria were decidedly unwelcome was Austria-Hungary, which never legalised cremation despite growing demand. With the founding of Czechoslovakia this obstacle fell away, and in the early years of the young republic a range of remarkable buildings arose that illustrate the search for a distinctly modern architecture — would it be a national style, purism, functionalism, or something entirely different? The lecture will attempt to answer this question too.