Amsterdam & The Netherlands

Stone tombs inside Grote of Saint Bavokerk

As a form of church revenue, graves were permitted inside the church until 1831. Members paid large sums of money and built family graves inside. Family shields are still visible on diamond shaped plaques hanging on the walls.
As one would imagine, the rotting corpses beneath the stone floor produced a foul odor - from which came the phrase "stinking rich.”

the netherlandsHaarlemhollandchurch