Paris Cemetery Offers Lottery for Graves Near Famous Figures
Some people are eager to be buried close to legendary figures like Jim Morrison, Oscar Wilde, and Frédéric Chopin. The Père Lachaise cemetery in Paris, known for housing many iconic personalities, is now providing an unusual opportunity for burial plots near these celebrities.
Historic Cemeteries Included
Aside from Père Lachaise, other notable Paris cemeteries involved in this offer are Montparnasse and Montmartre. Montparnasse is the final resting place of Jean-Paul Sartre and Jacques Chirac, while Montmartre contains the graves of impressionist painter Edgar Degas and Charles-Henri Sanson, the executioner of Louis XVI.
Grave Restoration and Purchase Conditions
The cemetery management has identified 30 gravestones in poor condition available for purchase at €4,000 each (approximately $4,500). Buyers are required to restore the monuments and then acquire the adjacent burial plot.
Lottery Due to High Demand
Given the large interest, officials will hold a lottery to allocate these burial spots. The drawing is scheduled for January.
“Offering eternal rest next to the stars is a compromise that both respects the dead and allows residents to be buried within the city, where space is scarce.” — Paris city officials
Author's Summary
The lottery for burial plots near renowned figures in Paris cemeteries balances honoring famous legacies with solving limited grave space challenges.