I have visited Pery, Vauffelin, Plagne and some other villages around that area in the Canton of Bern. The cemetery in Pery was reconstructed in the late 1970s and double in size. Before this was done, the graves was reused about every 60-70 years. The oldest death date now is about 60 years ago and the cemetery is only half full. There were only three full size graves all the rest were two foot by two foot and the remains had been cremated. Now with the cemetery larger, it could be 100 years before a grave is reused. If there are any living relatives, the remains are given to them, so I understand. When they reconstructed the cemetery they took some of the old-old headstones and placed them in the wall surrounding the cemetery. Now, in Vauffelin, the cemetery is older, and the oldest death there was about 90 years ago, but I understand that some of the older graves will be used when the cemetery gets full. Roy

I have also found this very interesting. My cousin wondered why her father had pictures of the gravestones of his sister and mother (who lived and died in Switzerland.) My mother had told me about the 25 year rule, so I explained that to her. And it does make sense to me -- who is left after that time to even visit your gravesite -- unless it is a young person or child who has passed, then family would go there for a long time. I have not noticed an abandoned grave in Switzerland at any of the cemetaries that I visited. They all had flowers and some had oil lanterns. I was not aware that there was no embalming in Switzerland. We had this discussion on a German site that I belonged to and it seems that there are caves in Germany with the bones and some bones are even decorated with wreaths painted on the skulls. When I was in Lucerne I thought it interesting, that at one particular church gravestones were lining a walkway that surrounded the courtyard (lying flat and some mounted on the walls) People had placed candles and flowers on the gravestones. I do not recall the dates -- but I will make it a point to look next time I go back. This was not a cemetary but the church courtyard -- I am assuming that maybe wealthy patrons of the church were honored here. I also saw stones mounted on churches. Claire