Maqbaratoshoara is also known as the “Poets Tomb,” and the mausoleum honors over 400 writers. Located in Tabriz, Iran, the memorial dates back as far as the 11th century. Many celebrated writers were buried there before earthquakes destroyed the original structure, but it was rebuilt in 1350. The main building has intersecting vaults and a central tomb surrounded by glass, in which the poet Shariar is buried.

In 1919, Sara Braun, a wealthy businesswoman from the Patagonia region of southern Chile, donated a massive stone gate to the Punta Arenas Cemetery. When she donated the gate, she made one request — that she be the only person to go through the gate when she passed. Since then, the gate has remained locked, and visitors must go around it to enter the cemetery.

The American Cemetery in Colleville-Sur-Mer, Normandy, France, is where Matt Damon’s character goes in “Saving Private Ryan” to pay tribute to the men who saved him. Fritz Niland was a real soldier who was one of the inspirations for the film, and both his brothers are buried in the cemetery. The American Cemetery overlooks the Red Sector of Omaha Beach, one of the landing areas on D-Day during World War II.

Okunoin Cemetery at Mount Koya is Japan’s oldest and largest cemetery, and it is filled with several unconventional monuments for an eternal resting site. There is a spaceship statue, a series of cement coffee cups, and even a memorial to termites paid for by a pesticide company, remembering all the wood-chewing bugs they sent to the great beyond.

When people are laid to rest at the Merry Cemetery in the small town of Sapanta, Romania, they are honored with humor, honesty, and a little light roasting. More than 800 brightly colored gravestones tell stories of each individual, often including dark humor and amusing limericks about their lives. The cemetery was turned into an open-air museum and has become a popular tourist attraction.

Published in 1820, “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow” by Washington Irving is an enduring short story that has led to feature films, spin-offs, and — in the town of Sleepy Hollow, New York, just outside NYC — a very profitable tourist season around Halloween. Irving is buried at the Sleepy Hollow Cemetery, which is located next to the burial ground featured in the story, the Old Dutch Church of Sleepy Hollow.

In 2010, Nicolas Cage purchased the last two plots in New Orleans’ oldest and most famous cemetery, St. Louis No. 1. The actor installed an above-ground white stone pyramid as his future tomb, located next to the tomb of famed “queen of Voodoo” Marie Laveau. Graves in New Orleans must be above ground because the city, hit by Hurricane Katrina and other storms, is below sea level.

The Cementerio de la Recoleta in Buenos Aires is home to 4,500 vaults, including 26 Argentine Presidents, the first Latin American Nobel Peace Prize winner (Carlos Saavedra Lamas) and the first Spanish-speaking Nobel winner in Chemistry (Luis Federico Leloir). However, the memorial for Former First Lady of Argentina Eva “Evita” Péron is the cemetery’s most notable gravesite.

Founded in 1823, the Decatur Cemetery is the oldest municipal cemetery in the Atlanta metropolitan area — predating the city of Atlanta itself. Covering 54 acres northeast of the city, the cemetery was featured in the final scenes of the football film “Remember the Titans,” as the team reunites to pay tribute to a fallen former player.

Modern golf originated in Scotland in the 15th century, and some of the most prominent figures in early professional golf are buried at St. Andrews Cathedral. One of the most notable names is “Old” Tom Morris, who was the greenkeeper of the St. Andrews Course and won four of the first eight Open Championships. Jack Burns, Hugh and Andrew Kirklady, and Andrew Strath are some of the other early golf champions buried here.

Founded in 1838, the Green-Wood Cemetery is a 478-acre National Historic Landmark that contains the highest natural point in New York City’s Brooklyn. More than 500,000 people are buried here, including notable New Yorkers F.A.O Schwarz, Horace Greeley, Peter Cooper, and Leonard Bernstein.

With a name that translates to “Valley of Peace,” the Wadi al-Salam cemetery is an ancient resting place found in Iraq’s holy city of Najaf, spanning 3.5 square miles. It is located next to the Imam Ali Mosque, an important pilgrimage destination for Shiite Muslims, and contains the remains of millions of Muslims from around the world.

The Neptune Memorial Reef in Key Biscayne, Florida, is one of the world’s more unusual cemeteries. The human-made reef was created by taking people’s cremated ashes and other various personal items and mixing them with concrete to create grand columns and shapes such as starfish or lions — creating an underground city scene reminiscent of the lost city of Atlantis.

Nicknamed “the cemetery by the sea,” the Waverley Cemetery in Sydney, Australia, overlooks the Pacific Ocean. The picturesque clifftop cemetery sits between the suburbs of Bronte and Clovelly, and every Saturday visitors can not only admire the views but also take a tour to learn about the notable people buried there. The cemetery has been in continuous operation since 1877.

Oscar Wilde was from Dublin, Jim Morrison was from Florida, and Camille Pissaro hailed from the West Indies, but they all ended up in the largest cemetery in Paris: the Père Lachaise. Located in the Paris’s 20th Arrondissement, the cemetery gets its name from King Louis XIV’s confessor, François d’Aix de la Chaise. Other famous creators buried here include composer Frédéric Chopin and author Honoré de Balzac.

Founded in 1660, the Granary Burying Ground may only be the third-oldest cemetery in Boston, but it’s home to several of the most well-known figures from early American history. Paul Revere, Samuel Adams, and John Hancock are among the notable people buried there. The cemetery also features an obelisk marking the grave of Benjamin Franklin’s parents.

Judy Garland, Cecil B. Mille, and Douglas Fairbanks are some of the classic film stars who are buried at the Hollywood Forever Cemetery. The Los Angeles cemetery is home to plenty of non-famous people, too, but what makes it unique is it also functions as a concert venue and location for film screenings.

Listed on the National Register of Historic Places, Philadelphia’s Laurel Hill Cemetery was founded in 1836. The cemetery overlooking Schuylkill River is home to gravesites of several notable historical figures, but film fans may also recognize it from its appearance in “Rocky Balboa,” “Creed,” and “Creed II.” A gravestone honoring one of the film’s fictional characters was left behind in the cemetery, where fans can still see it today.

Constructed in 1897, Ulysses S. Grant’s Tomb is the largest mausoleum in North America. The 18th President wished to be buried next to his wife Julia, which eliminated many typical military cemeteries, and landed him instead on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. The impressive granite and marble structure was designed by architect John Duncan.

Overlooking the nation’s capital, Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia is the largest military cemetery in the U.S. The cemetery’s most prominent memorial is the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, which represents every unidentified American soldier lost in the line of duty. The tomb was built in 1921 in the wake of World War I, following similar memorials in London and Paris.