Buñol cemetery

Buñol Cemetery is a small municipal burial ground in the town of Buñol, in Spain's Valencia province, notable well beyond the region for its unusual history and layout. It was established in 1886 on the initiative of the town's then mayor, Joaquín Ballester Vellés, a republican, in direct response to a cholera epidemic that had swept Spain the previous year and claimed the lives of more than 200 residents of Buñol. The urgent need to bury the epidemic's victims accelerated plans for a new, larger cemetery outside the town's older boundaries.

What makes this cemetery unusual?

From the outset, the Buñol necropolis had a layout that was uncommon for late 19th-century Spain. The grounds were split into two separate sections: a larger Catholic area and a smaller civil one, intended for non-believers or those rejected by the Church. An interior wall with two independent entrance gates separated the sections, so that burials on either side proceeded entirely independently of one another. At a time when non-Catholics in most Spanish towns were buried outside parish cemeteries or in unmarked ground, Buñol stood out because a number of non-believing residents deliberately chose to be buried in the designated civil section.

What is the cemetery's connection to Freemasonry?

The cemetery's founding at the end of the 19th century coincided with the growth of the Freemasonry movement in the region and the later establishment in Buñol of the Masonic lodge "Los Once Hermanos" (The Eleven Brothers). This historical context turned the civil section into the resting place of numerous individuals connected to Freemasonry, which still draws local historians and visitors interested in the Masonic symbolism found on the gravestones and funerary monuments of this part of the cemetery.

What changed after the return of democracy?

A significant change to the cemetery's appearance and symbolism came after Spain's return to democracy, under communist mayor Joaquín Masmano, who held office in 1979-1980. During his term, the wall separating the Catholic and civil sections was torn down, symbolically and physically merging both parts into the single, official Municipal Cemetery of Buñol (Cementerio Municipal de Buñol) that exists today.

What can visitors see on site?

The cemetery is located at coordinates 39.425553, -0.775341, directly adjacent to Buñol's urban area. Visitors can see a varied collection of funerary architecture from the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries, including decorative elements referencing Masonic symbolism, characteristic of the former civil section. Together, these features create an unusual blend of local history, religious diversity, and secular tradition rarely found in this form in the cemeteries of provincial Spanish towns.

Frequently asked questions

When was Buñol cemetery built? The cemetery was founded in 1886, in direct response to a cholera epidemic that had struck the town the previous year.

Why was the cemetery divided into two sections? The split between the Catholic and civil sections reflected the religious and ideological differences among residents at the time — some, including individuals linked to Freemasonry, chose burial outside Catholic rites.

When was the division removed? The wall separating the two sections was demolished in 1979-1980, during the term of mayor Joaquín Masmano, unifying the cemetery into a single grounds.

Is the cemetery open to visitors? As an active municipal cemetery, it is publicly accessible during typical opening hours for such sites, and its historic civil section draws visitors interested in local history and Masonic symbolism.