Tucked beside the village church of Hainewalde in Saxony, this Baroque burial vault is a curious little detour for anyone exploring the foothills of the Lusatian Mountains. Locals once nicknamed it 'Unrest' or 'Impatience' - fitting names for a structure so richly decorated with statues, coats of arms and unsettling allegories.

The setting is quiet and rural, with the vault standing right by the churchyard, surrounded by the gentle hills typical of this border region between Saxony and the Czech Republic. It makes a good stop to break up a longer countryside walk rather than a destination in itself - peaceful in summer greenery, and quite atmospheric under grey autumn or winter skies, when the weathered sandstone figures seem even more solemn.

How to get there

• Hainewalde, near the parish church - short walk from the village centre, a few minutes, easy

Practical information

• The exterior features 17 Baroque sandstone statues depicting earthly suffering paired with heavenly bliss
• Inside stands a marble memorial to the von Kanitz couple with life-size stucco statues of both
• In 2006 and 2007, sealed burial chambers were rediscovered, containing coffins older than the vault itself

Interestingly, some of the people named in the vault's inscriptions, such as Dorothea Schlechtowa von Kevytkau, have never had their coffins found.