Gatehouse and Chapels, Highgate Cemetery by Julian Osley from geograph.org
In the 1830’s, London created seven large modern cemeteries that later became known as the Magnificent Seven. Each cemetery was given personality, with gardens and Gothic architecture to showcase beauty as well as religious beliefs about death.
Opened in 1839, Highgate Cemetery became the final resting place of many famous thinkers, such as Karl Marx. Other notable figures buried in the cemetery include author Douglas Adams and the wife and parents of Charles Dickens.
The West Cemetery is the most striking area, with Victorian style structures and gothic gravestones. One tomb has a large stone piano resting atop, while another bears the sculpture of a life-sized canine keeping watch over its master’s grave.