Trips Places Foods Stories Newsletters

Take your next trip with Atlas Obscura!

Our small-group adventures are inspired by our Atlas of the world's most fascinating places, the stories behind them, and the people who bring them to life.

Visit Adventures
Trips Highlight
Puglia Italy - Matera
Italy • 8 days, 7 nights
Southern Italy: Castles, Caves & Coastal Treasures in Puglia
from
Turkmenistan Gates of Hell Darvaza crater
Turkmenistan • 10 days, 9 nights
Turkmenistan & the Gates of Hell
from
View all trips
Top Destinations
Latest Places
Most Popular Places Random Place Lists Itineraries
Add a Place
Download the App
Top Destinations
View All Destinations »

Countries

  • Australia
  • Canada
  • China
  • France
  • Germany
  • India
  • Italy
  • Japan

Cities

  • Amsterdam
  • Barcelona
  • Beijing
  • Berlin
  • Boston
  • Budapest
  • Chicago
  • London
  • Los Angeles
  • Mexico City
  • Montreal
  • Moscow
  • New Orleans
  • New York City
  • Paris
  • Philadelphia
  • Rome
  • San Francisco
  • Seattle
  • Stockholm
  • Tokyo
  • Toronto
  • Vienna
  • Washington, D.C.
Latest Places
View All Places »
Pinal Airpark
Note the chrysanthemum crests.
Hachiman Bridge
Clarendon War Memorial.
Clarendon War Memorial
This fried chicken is one of Bangkok’s most famous.
Gai Tord Jae Kee
Latest Places to Eat & Drink
View All Places to Eat »
Everything at Li’l Dizzy’s Cafe is served in takeout containers.
Li’l Dizzy’s Cafe
The fried green tomato sandwich comes on jalapeño cornbread toast.
Café Reconcile
BBQ shrimp braised in beer are a popular menu item.
High Hat Cafe
The pastries at Lagniappe Bakehouse are worth waking up for.
Lagniappe Bakehouse
Peter Vazquez has been quietly making a name for himself for years.
The Appetite Repair Shop
Recent Stories
All Stories Video Podcast
Most Recent Stories
View All Stories »
Haleakalā National Park’s summit region, shrouded in the pre-dawn fog.
Beware the Legends Behind These National Park Souvenirs
14 days ago
For Aguilar-Carrasco, nature is a powerful reminder of the interconnectedness of all life.
How Can National Parks Be Made Accessible to All? AO Wants to Know.
15 days ago
Podcast: Finding ‘The Great Gatsby’ in Louisville
16 days ago
Here’s which treats you can safely lug home without risking a fine.
Dear Atlas: What International Food Can I Legally Bring Into the U.S.?
17 days ago

No search results found for
“”

Make sure words are spelled correctly.

Try searching for a travel destination.

Places near me Random place

Popular Destinations

  • Paris
  • London
  • New York
  • Berlin
  • Rome
  • Los Angeles
Trips Places Foods Stories Newsletters
Sign In Join
Places near me Random place
All the Netherlands Roermond The Linked Headstones of Het Oude Kerkhof

The Linked Headstones of Het Oude Kerkhof

Two gravestones clasp hands over the religious divide.

Roermond, Netherlands

Added By
Oliver Hong
Email
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list
Het Oude Kerkhof   Wikimedia
Het Oude Kerkhof   Wikimedia
Het Oude Kerkhof   Wikimedia
Het Oude Kerkhof   Brentjes.com
Het Oude Kerkhof   Brentjes.com
on her side an alliance arms   Grave with a view Marjolein / Atlas Obscura User
At his side the arms of the Van Gorkum family   Grave with a view Marjolein / Atlas Obscura User
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list

About

Despite the religious divide of the lives and cemeteries, the gravestones of Colonel J.C.P.H. of Aeffderson and noblewoman J.W.C. Van Gorkum clasp hands across the divide. 

In the 19th century, the Dutch lived with Pillarisation, a policy which seperated public establishments by religious and political affiliations. Yet Colonel Aeffderson was a Protestant, and Van Gorkum was a Catholic. They were married for 40 years, a union that likely caused some scandal in the 19th-century Netherlands. 

The Protestant husband died first, and then Van Gorkum. They wanted to be buried alongside each other, but the policies of Pillarisation made that impossible. Instead, two stone hands were added to the back of their gravestones, clasping across the wall that separates them.

Related Tags

Memento Mori Catacombs And Crypts

Community Contributors

Added By

Oliver Hong

Edited By

hrnick, Grave with a view Marjolein, ddudink

  • hrnick
  • Grave with a view Marjolein
  • ddudink

Published

April 8, 2013

Edit this listing

Make an Edit
Add Photos
Sources
  • http://www.brentjes.com/van%20meurs.htm
  • http://unusualplaces.org/listing/graves-of-a-catholic-woman-and-her-protestant-husband/
The Linked Headstones of Het Oude Kerkhof
1 C Weg langs het Kerkhof
Postbus 2396
Roermond, 6045 AL
Netherlands
51.18167, 5.999961
Visit Website
Get Directions

Nearby Places

Mission Museum Steyl

Steyl, Netherlands

miles away

Wasserturmhochhaus Großheide

Mönchengladbach, Germany

miles away

Museum Romeinse Katakomben (Roman Catacombs Museum)

Valkenburg, Netherlands

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Netherlands

Netherlands

Europe

Places 354
Stories 20

Nearby Places

Mission Museum Steyl

Steyl, Netherlands

miles away

Wasserturmhochhaus Großheide

Mönchengladbach, Germany

miles away

Museum Romeinse Katakomben (Roman Catacombs Museum)

Valkenburg, Netherlands

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Netherlands

Netherlands

Europe

Places 354
Stories 20

Related Stories and Lists

Atlas Obscura's 20 Most Astonishing Discoveries of 2013

By Atlas Obscura

The Linked Headstones of Two Lovers Who Refused to Let Go, Even in Death

By Oliver Hong

Related Places

  • Skulls and bones on display.

    San Martino della Battaglia, Italy

    Ossario di San Martino

    The skulls and bones of thousands of soldiers line the walls of this small Italian chapel.

  • Some of the skulls beneath St. Stephan’s.

    Leuk, Switzerland

    Leuk Charnel House

    For centuries no one knew there were hundreds of bones and precious artwork hidden beneath this Swiss church.

  • Rome, Italy

    Santa Maria dell'Orazione e Morte

    At the crypt of St. Mary of Eulogies and the Dead you are left alone to ponder mortality among piles of skulls.

  • Exeter, Rhode Island

    Grave of Mercy Brown

    The final resting place of New England's last "vampire."

  • Nazca culture mummies and skulls cemetry in Peru

    Nazca, Peru

    Chauchilla Cemetery

    Plundered and left asunder by grave robbers, this ancient necropolis has been painstakingly pieced back together.

  • Dargavs

    Dargavs, Russia

    Dargavs Village

    This ancient village and its adjoining cemetery have a beautiful history of death and remembrance.

  • “Ecce mors” (“Behold death”) in bones

    Melnik, Czechia

    Melník Chapel of Bones

    Underneath this small church are 15,000 bones, arranged by an obsessive academic.

  • Mural at the lot where the mass grave is located

    Brooklyn, New York

    First Maryland Regiment Mass Grave

    The mass grave of a heroic Revolutionary War regiment sits below an empty lot near the Gowanus Canal.

Aerial image of Vietnam, displaying the picturesque rice terraces, characterized by their layered, verdant fields.
Atlas Obscura Membership

Become an Atlas Obscura Member


Join our community of curious explorers.

Become a Member

Get Our Email Newsletter

Follow Us

Facebook YouTube TikTok Instagram Pinterest RSS Feed

Get the app

Download the App
Download on the Apple App Store Get it on Google Play
  • All Places
  • Latest Places
  • Most Popular
  • Places to Eat
  • Random
  • Nearby
  • Add a Place
  • Stories
  • Food & Drink
  • Itineraries
  • Lists
  • Video
  • Podcast
  • Newsletters
  • All Trips
  • Family Trip
  • Food & Drink
  • History & Culture
  • Wildlife & Nature
  • FAQ
  • Membership
  • Feedback & Ideas
  • Community Guidelines
  • Product Blog
  • Unique Gifts
  • Work With Us
  • About
  • FAQ
  • Advertise With Us
  • Advertising Guidelines
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookie Policy
  • Terms of Use
Atlas Obscura

© 2025 Atlas Obscura. All Rights Reserved.