The Morphology of Cemeteries of Abandoned Villages in the Polish Part of Former East Prussia: Boundaries and Spatial Forms of Burial Grounds

Abstract

The article discusses selected issues concerning the morphology of cemeteries of completely depopulated rural settlement units located in the part of East Prussia that was incorporated into Poland in 1945. The boundaries and spatial forms of the cemeteries were analysed and interpreted. These are actually the best-preserved components of the landscape of these historical burial places. The basic source material used in the study for the identification and preliminary analysis of the boundaries and shapes of the cemeteries were the sheets of the Topographische Karte Messtischblatt map from the 1920s–1940s and orthophotomaps showing the current land cover. Detailed analyses were performed using altitude measurement data from airborne laser scanning (resource of the Central Office of Geodesy and Cartography). The research results show clear differences in the size and shape of cemeteries belonging to specific types of settlement units. The preserved relics testify to the different ways of organising burial places at single-manor estates, where family cemeteries functioned, and those established in villages. The results of the analysis also indicate the characteristic features of the contemporary landscape of former Evangelical cemeteries, facilitating their field identification.

Keywords

• landscape memory
• masuria
• deserted villages
• cultural heritage
• landscape studies
• historical geography