Lantern for the Dead
The photo above shows the Oradour-sur-Glane
cemetery; in the foreground is an ancient Lantern for the Dead
which probably dates back at least to the 12th century. It is
the tall stone column on the left. In the background on the right
is the Ossuary which contains the ashes of the vicitms of the
massacre in Oradur-sur-Glane on 10 June 1944. On the side of
the Lantern you can see an opening which looks like a place for
something to be burned.
According to Sarah Farmer, who wrote
a book called "Martyred Village," the name Oradour
comes from the Latin word oratorium which means "place of
prayer." Oradours were "rudimentary square chapels
at the intersection of important roads." The Official Publication
of the survivors says that the Lantern for the Dead in the cemetery
dates back to Roman times when it was the custom to bury people
at an intersection. The church in Oradour-sur-Glane was originally
built in the 12th century according to Sarah Farmer.
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