Holly Barrow Interments

A place of Interment & Remembrance

Nesting comfortably, practically imperceptibly in the hillside of an almost deserted valley in an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty in the North Downs of Kent Holly Barrow is a place of silence, of reflection, a place where the ashes of you and your loved ones may rest peacefully for eternity. Holly Barrow at Dode offers a beautiful and meaningful alternative approach to established crematoria, grave yards and natural burial grounds for your loved ones cremated ashes.

Believed unique in the UK in that it is subterranean, and comprising a modern interpretation of the ancient long barrows which after some 5000 years are still a revered feature of our landscape today it contains almost four hundred handcrafted niches for the interment of ashes.

The sacred space that Holly Barrow occupies in a meadow below an ancient Norman Church is like no other, once forming part of a deserted medieval village it is a place of stories, a place of focus and reflection, a tiny place but one that is precious to the history of these islands.

Each of us is unique, precious, each has a story to tell - it is here in the silence and beauty of nature that the story can be told, the memory revered. Here we may return from whence we came, to the good earth that our distant ancestors knew, that same earth that sustained, nourished and loved both them and us. Time is simply immaterial here.

It is a place where people of all races, creeds and beliefs are welcome, a special place of understanding, tolerance and healing, it is already a place of literally thousands of individual stories.

We're here for you....get in touch to find out more about booking a niche for you or your loved ones ashes.

Find a Humanist Celebrant
If required, a wake may be arranged, either in the grounds or within the ancient, sacred walls of Dode Church itself.

Traditionally, niches are left open but as an additional and personal touch each niche may either be sealed with an engraved stone memorial tablet, an individual hand made iron grill or a stained glass window, individually prepared with love and care by sympathetic local craftspersons to reflect the life of the deceased.

British Law states dictates a length of 99 years for the duration of interments but here at Dode we believe that the departed should be at rest forever and so after a respectful period of 10 years following the last interment Holly Barrow will be permanently sealed and the external entrance passageway backfilled, leaving only a grassy mound, a simple fitting memorial to past lives well lived.

The simplicity of the barrow together with the silence of its setting and the beauty of encircling nature makes it a place to which you will wish to return, a place to remember, to reflect upon your loved ones, their lives and their legacy.

The Barrow and grounds will be open to loved ones to visit on seven specified days each year, or alternatively private (charged) access may be arranged if required.  The dates to visit for 2024 at present are (*subject to change):

*21st March, 1st May, 20th June, 2nd August, 22nd September, 1st November, 21st December

We're here for you.

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