The Fiumei Road Cemetery contains one of Hungary’s largest collections of statues and a fascinating arboretum-like landscaped area that has avenues harbouring 10 species of trees and 110 different birds.
About the cemetery
The Fiumei Road Cemetery was opened on the 1st of April, 1849 as a new public cemetery and by the turn of the century it became a national pantheon. Since the cemetery functioned as a public cemetery for a long time, the composition of those who rest here is extremely mixed, both nationally and religiously.
The cemetery lies next to the Salgótarjáni Street Jewish Cemetery and is separated from it only by a stone wall. The two of them represent the most prestigious cemeteries in Hungary where important personalities of the public, political and economic life, scientists, artists and athletes are buried. People who defined the history of Hungary in the 19th and 20th century. Both cemeteries are also very unique for their architectural elements and tomb sculptures. The 56-hectare green area of the Fiumei Road Cemetery in the centre of Budapest also serves as a recreational place for those living in the area.
Cemetery highlights
Wall tombs (after 1849)
The wall tombs were established after the opening of the cemetery, as most prestigious burial places for the citizens of the capital city. Its significance lies in the fact that this is a part of the cemetery that has been an unchanged, unified, cohesive part of the Fiumei Road Cemetery since its opening in 1849.
Arcade buildings (earley 20th century)
Once these spots for representative tombs were sold out, a complex of arcade buildings was established in the early 20th century with the aim of serving as the most representative burial site of the cemetery. The row of arcades, built in Art Nouveau style on the basis of the Italian example, consists of the richest tombstones of the capital, designed by the most famous sculptors of the period. The domes are decorated with mosaics covered in 23.5 carat gold leaf.
Apponyi mourning carriage (between 1928 and 1932)
At the entrance of the cemetery the "Apponyi mourning carriage" is presented. The nearly four-meter-high, five-and-a-half-meter-long carriage is considered to be one of the largest mourning carriages in the world. It was manufactured in Budapest between 1928 and 1932 and was used only four times for highly prestigious, protocol burials of famous statesman.
Important graves and monuments
Batthyány Mausoleum (1872-1874)
The mausoleum was designed by Albert Schikedanz and it is a highly prestigious building in its simple, terraced design. The decorative elements of the building are stone lions on both sides of the staircase, as well as reliefs on the walls: a portrait of Lajos Batthyány, the family coat of arms, and the Hungarian national coat of arms. A staircase leads down inside of the mausoleum. The special feature of the building is that it is only large mausoleum in the cemetery where free-standing coffins can be seen.
Deák Mausoleum (1887)
The mausoleum was designed by Kálmán Gerster. The dome of the 26-meter-high Neo-Renaissance mausoleum is covered with ornamental tiles from the famous Zsolnay porcelain factory. There is a 6 meter high bronze angel statue on the dome. The symbolic sarcophagus of Ferenc Deák can be seen inside the building. (This is the second sarcophagus as the original was destroyed during World War II.) The interior walls of the mausoleum are decorated with frescoes (covered with glass mosaics) of the allegorical figures of the four main virtues.
Kossuth Mausoleum (1902-1909)
The designers of this mausoleum were Kálmán Gerster and Alajos Stróbl. It is the largest funeral building in Hungary. The structure of the upper level evokes the Parthenon in Athens. At the top of the tomb a group of statues represent the revolution and the war of independence. Above the entrance, the female figure of Hungária, the symbol of the nation griefs the deceased on her throne. Two stone panthers on both sides of the staircase guard the entrance. The centrepiece of the mausoleum in form of a Greek Cross is a elaborately decorated sarcophagus made of green onyx. The interior walls are covered with mosaics of Murano glass gilded with 23.5 carat gold. The family members of Lajos Kossuth rest in the side of the mausoleum.The tomb of József Antall
(1999)
The grave memorial around the actual tomb was designed by Miklós Melocco. József Antall was the first democratically elected prime minister of the Hungarian Government after the regime change of 1989. The artwork depicts shrouded horseman figures pulling in four different directions, displaying both ancient Hungarian and Christian motifs at the same time.
The grave of Imre Kertész
(2019)
Designers are Rita Czakó and Máté Takács. In 2002, writer Imre Kertész won the Nobel Prize for Literature for “Fatelessness”, his autobiographically inspired novel about Holocaust. The tombstone is a bronze column with an open door. The door leads to immortality, eternity, infinity. On the back of the tomb you can read a quote from Imre Kertész's note "love redeems".
Address
Fiumei Road Cemetery16-18 Fiumei Street,
Budapest, 1086
Hungary
Tourist information
The cemetery is opened every day of the year and offers free of charge guided tours for visitors.It is located just a few minutes’ walk from the Keleti railway station where metro lines 2 and 4 stop.
More info on the website https://fiumeiutisirkert.nori.gov.hu