Among the tourist attractions of Paris The city's cemeteries are located, headed by thePere Lachaise (Pere Lachaise). However, just outside of Paris, in the western suburb of Ansières-sur-Seine, lies a little-known but fascinating cemetery, where man’s best friends – their pets – rest forever.
In my opinion, this is the saddest cemetery in the world and I will tell you why right away. People, whether they are completely righteous or wicked, will receive a grave and a tombstone in any case. Therefore, when you walk among the graves in one of the cemeteries in Paris, you will not always know whether the person under the tombstone was loved by his family or friends or not.
On the other hand, most animals do not get to be buried like humans. Their bodies are taken to the backyard of the veterinary clinic, at best, or to the landfill at worst. In order to bury an animal in the Anier cemetery, the owner must invest a lot of money to buy a grave plot and build a tombstone. From this, we can say with 100% certainty that every animal buried there was very loved by its owner and family.
In this article, I will take you on a short and exciting tour of some of the most famous graves in this cemetery, and I promise you that at the end of it, you won't have a single dry eye left.
Anyer Cemetery – Useful Information
How do you get to Eniyir?
The easiest way to get to this cemetery is to take line 13 towards Les Courtilles. Get off at the Gabriel Peri stop. It is very important to note this, as line 13 splits, and while one part of it goes to Asnieres, the other part goes to Saint-Denis.
After getting off at this station, you will have to walk about ten minutes towards the Seine River until you see the cemetery.
Opening days and hours
The pet cemetery is open every day except Mondays. The gates open at 10:00 AM and close at 18:00 PM from March to October or 16:30 PM from October to March.
Tickets to the Anier Cemetery
Although it is a cemetery, there is a fee to enter. The price is not high: 3.5 euros for an adult and 1.5 for a child, and the money is invested in the preservation and care of the cemetery.
Tour of the Anier Cemetery
How was the Anier cemetery created?
Before we get to some of the famous graves of the Anier cemetery, a few words about its history.
It all began in 1898, when a municipal by-law was passed in Paris that banned the dumping of dog and cat carcasses into the Seine and required hygienic burial. Following the law, lawyer Georges Harmois and journalist Marguerite Durand decided to establish a pet cemetery in a northwestern suburb of Paris. Work began right next to the Seine, and the cemetery opened for use in 1899.
Since then, more than 40,000 animals of all kinds and species have been buried there, including cats, dogs, fish, songbirds, and even racehorses and monkeys. The cemetery continues to operate today, and there is definitely a chance that you will come across a pet funeral during your visit. In such a case, you will be asked to respect the occasion and stay away from the area where the funeral is taking place.
Barry's Grave: The World-Famous Saint Bernard Dog
The statue that welcomes visitors to the cemetery was created in memory of Barry (1800-1814), the famous dog from the Saint Bernard Monastery (after whom this dog breed is named).
Barry always carried a small keg of the warming alcoholic beverage around, and saved 40 people stuck in the snow in the mountains. According to legend, Barry was actually killed by the 41st man he tried to rescue. The body itself is stuffed and in a museum in Bern, Switzerland, but this moving statue of Barry rescuing a girl reminds us why a dog is man's best friend.
Rin Tin Tin
The cemetery also features “war heroes.” For example, if you look carefully, you’ll find a plaque commemorating the exploits of the dog Moustache, who fought in almost all of Napoleon’s wars until he was killed in Spain in 1811. There are also many dogs who have had stage careers, including the “Prince of Wales,” whose tombstone states that he appeared on stage 406 times.
Without a doubt, the most famous dog buried in the Anier cemetery is Rin Tin Tin (1918-1932). This dog was rescued as a puppy by an American soldier on the battlefields of World War I. He soon became one of Hollywood's biggest stars, appearing in quite a few films. In fact, he became such a big star that the Academy Award rules had to be amended to allow only humans to win, after Rin Tin Tin won the most votes in 1929.
Because Rin Tin Tin was a German Shepherd, this breed of dog became the most popular breed in the United States and held the top spot for many decades. After the original Rin Tin Tin died, other German Shepherds replaced him, but the original Rin Tin Tin is buried in Anyer.
Graves of “unknown” animals
Alongside the “celebrities”, tens of thousands of anonymous pets are buried here, including dogs, cats, pet birds, fish, horses and even one monkey. Some have interesting headstones, while others have simple plaques. If you look carefully, you’ll find, for example, Lulu’s headstone, which was built by a mother whose son was saved from drowning in a river by her dog in 1895.
The cats have their own area, called “The Cat House.” Among other things, Kroumir, the cat of politician Henri Rochefort, who, according to legend, died of grief 4 days after his owner, is buried here.
And finally, the most anonymous grave belongs to a dog, who died in front of the cemetery gates in 1958, and since he was the 40,000th animal buried there, the management decided to erect a special tombstone for him.
So if you love animals and happen to be in the area, don't miss this special place and pay tribute to our best friends.
Want to visit more cemeteries in Paris?
If this tour has “whet your appetite” and you want to visit more cemeteries in Paris, you are welcome to read the article. The Cemeteries of Paris: If only the graves could talk