The Hostivař Cemetery in Prague will be expanded according to the architects' design

Prague - The capacity of the Hostivař cemetery in Prague is insufficient and needs to be expanded. The layout of the new part of the cemetery will be determined by an international architectural competition organized by the Prague cemeteries and the Institute of Planning and Development (IPR). The competition is attracting interest from architects worldwide. Interested parties have responded from Italy, Spain, and even India. Martin Červený, director of the Administration of Prague Cemeteries, told ČTK. The results are expected to be known at the beginning of this year.

Architects are to propose an expansion of the cemetery beyond its current boundaries and find a suitable solution for the main entrance, including the area along K Jezeru street. A partial task for the competitors will be to design a connection between the old cemetery and the new section. "The competing teams will be tasked with coming up with a solution that effectively and sensitively utilizes the designated land and considers the already designed cemetery facilities," said IPR director Petr Hlaváček.

The only condition of the architectural competition is a requirement that only cremated human remains will be interred in the cemetery; there will be no traditional skeletal graves. The competitors will determine what method of ash interment they consider appropriate. Options for consideration include urn graves, a columbarium, an urn grove, and a scattering or interment glade.

According to experts, the architectural competition for the cemetery expansion is exceptional in the context of Prague. The winning designs could revive a disrupted tradition of funerary architecture, which exceptional individuals in the Czech environment have previously engaged in.