History of Death

Each epoch has risen to the challenge anew, trying to find an answer. This series introduces us to famous cemeteries in Europe, one epoch at a time. The cemeteries are analysed and described as the most distinct testimonials of their epochs. At the same time, other cemeteries and other manifestations of death are introduced, in order to show the dynamic and sometimes dramatic struggle that took place in each epoch to establish the cultural form of “memoria” in turn reflecting how the relationship between death and man changes in each period.

In each episode and for each epoch the dramatic basic question is posed: how to tame the terrible discontinuity of death? Death is the one thing that challenges our continuity, our perpetuity, our sense of existence and our transcendental imaginings and each epoch has approached it in different ways, trying to find answers. The series creates a dramatized cultural-historical view of how western civilisation has in the past faced death and which images, symbols and forms were utilised in order to retain the idea of "eternal life".