City of London Cemetery

Manor Park, London

The City of London ran out of burial space in the 19th century and created a new 200 acre cemetery at Manor Park in 1856. This cemetery is now almost full. The brief was to design a new way of burying people for the 21st century which solves problems of space and carbon consumption and creates a landscape of beauty and emotion.

The design is inspired by ancient British long barrows, where bodies are placed in tiers above ground and covered with a mound of soil. A series of 3m high ridges of wildflowers, containing catacombs, colombaria and crypts recede into the landscape, between arms of rising grass ramparts. Within the ramparts there are vaults marked by standing stones. It is a place for contemplation and memory.