Beneath the unassuming Cemetery Church of All Saints in Kutna Hora lies one of Europe’s most hauntingly unforgettable sights. The Sedlec Ossuary, known colloquially as the Bone Church, contains the artistically arranged remains of an estimated 40,000 to 70,000 people whose bones have been fashioned into elaborate decorations, including a massive chandelier containing at least one of every bone in the human body.

The ossuary’s origins trace back to 1278, when the abbot of the Sedlec monastery returned from the Holy Land with a handful of earth from Golgotha and scattered it over the cemetery grounds. The site became a desirable burial location across Central Europe, and after centuries of plague and war filled the cemetery beyond capacity, a half-blind monk was tasked in 1870 with organizing the exhumed bones into the breathtaking and eerie arrangements visitors see today.

Pro tip: Combine your visit with the stunning Cathedral of the Assumption of Our Lady nearby and the medieval silver mining town of Kutna Hora itself, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The train from Prague takes about an hour and costs a fraction of what organized tour buses charge.