Hólavallagarður Cemetery

Reykjavík · Iceland · Cemetery

Hólavallagarður Cemetery — Reykjavík · Iceland · Cemetery

Guðrún Oddsdóttir, the first person buried here in 1838, is said to serve as the cemetery's guardian, receiving every soul that follows.

Hólavallagarður is Reykjavík's oldest preserved cemetery, consecrated in 1838 and today a leafy grove of iron crosses, birches and weathered headstones in the middle of the city. Icelandic folk belief holds that the first person buried in a new graveyard becomes its 'guardian', never decaying but receiving all who follow – here the official's wife Guðrún Oddsdóttir, whose role as the cemetery's watcher is one of the city's best-known traditions. Over the years visitors have told of sudden chills, flickering lights and a woman in dark clothing glimpsed between the graves. Often called Reykjavík's most atmospheric spot, the cemetery is a fixture on the city's ghost walks.

FAQ

Where is Hólavallagarður Cemetery located?

Hólavallagarður Cemetery is in Reykjavík, Iceland.

More haunted places in Reykjavík

Accounts are drawn from local folklore and visitor reports.

Image: Christian Bickel fingalo · CC BY-SA 2.0 de · Wikimedia Commons