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Heritage classified

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Origin and history

The building, located in Val-de-Moder in the East, is a former ossuary of the 2nd quarter of the 16th century, often confused with a mortuary chapel. The building, with a massive plan and covered with a hipped roof, preserves a central, molded door bearing the 1587 vintage, as well as two Gothic-style geminous bays. These elements, vestiges or reuses, would come from the chapel of the cemetery established in 1563, mentioned in historical documents such as the Fleckenbuch (1598) under the name dotten kirch (mortuary chapel).

The present ossuary, rebuilt or rebuilt between the 18th and early 19th centuries, differs from the original chapel, which appears on a 17th century view with a long-paned roof and a campanile. Although modified, the building still houses a funeral slab inside. Inscribed for historical monuments by order of 8 October 1984, it now belongs to the commune and is located at the southwest corner of the cemetery, rue des Tanneurs.

The available sources, including Monumentum and Wikipedia, point to a historical confusion between this building and an ossuary, whereas it would rather be the remains of a funeral chapel. The exact location, although documented (11 Rue de Haguenau), is considered to be of poor accuracy (level 5/10). The monument illustrates the evolution of funeral practices in Alsace, between Reformation and modern times, where chapels and ossuaryes played a central role in the management of burials.

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