Alternatives to Burial
Biodegradable Burial Pod –
The biodegradable burial pods Italian designed by Raoul Bretzel and Anna Citelli – named the Capsula Mundi is an egg-shaped pod through which a buried corpse or ashes can provide nutrients to a tree planted above it. Some who have studied biodegradable burials, including authors Bretzel and Citellithey, believe the death may be closely related to consumerism as life. The goal of having a biodegradable burial pod is to create cemeteries full of trees rather than tombstones ultimately. Bacterias in the soil first break down the bio-plastics, then the ashes gradually come into contact with the soil, but without changing its chemical balance too dramatically. As cited by CNN.com research article, we suggest to our subscribers to further their research. This burial process is legal in the whole of North America. For other countries around the globe, additional research should continue for the desired country.
Resomation –
The disposal of our own body after death is a question we all ask ourselves at one time or another in our life. Although most people in the Western Hemisphere were exposed to the limited burial of their loved ones, with the choice of casket/coffin to grave burial or cremation as a funeral arrangement, it likely never dawns on most that these choices were not a green choice. Back then, Burial or cremation was then classified as the legal obligations to funeral plans that a person would have in the Western Hemisphere. However, the green alternatives that allow a person to make a final environmental statement are on the rise. Such as examples cited are both corpse composting and “green burial.” This process uses freeze-drying and also a form of cryogenics. Also, one that breaks down the body using alkaline hydrolysis called resomation.
When considering the planned burial of a loved one, including pre-planning a memorial for self, today, we have vast options exposed to us to plan funeral arrangements. The fact is that a burial that involves a casket to a gravesite does use us valuable land space. Once the casket is placed in the earth, there may be concerns with chemicals such as formaldehyde as one component when embalmed body leaks out hundreds of thousands of liters each year and continues to leak into the earth water reserves. Traditional graves sites due require maintenance that is also costly in terms of labor and water usage.
Alternatively, a greener consideration would be Cremation rather than burial, which uses non-renewable energy sources in massive among to keep the furnace temperature maintained between 800 to 1000 degrees “C.” Clean burning more efficient technology is becoming more efficient on average. About 200 kg of carbon dioxide created during the Cremation. A vary of noxious gases also released into the environment; this includes mercury from dental filling and would affect the supply of water. Water and alkali are used in this process instead of high heat to decompose a body fast.
“Founder of Resomation, Sandy Sullivan, cited that the dead body would be placed in a silk coffin, the body is then placed in a steel chamber with the potassium hydroxide added at a pressure of 10 bars. The process of Resomation at this level continues with a temperature usually 180 °C, which is 80% cooler than a standard crematorium. Sandy Sullivan is a biochemist who developed this company located in Scotland in 2007. Reportedly, the high temperature dissolves the body in two to three hours, leaving just bones to be crushed similarly to cremation and placed in an urn. As with green burial, dental amalgam is separated from the ash.”
The funeral ceremony still uses a traditional casket. Placed inside of this is resomated with the body is a sealed silk coffin.
Research referenced that the process of Resomation may be more expensive than the traditional cremation, although, with only a few resomators around, each costing around US$440,000, it is hardly surprising. While resomation is gaining popularity in Europe, it is currently only approved in six U.S. states – Maine, Colorado, Florida, Minnesota, Oregon, and Maryland – with reviews planned to be conducted in several more.
The ABC News of Scotland- reported that the process of resomation is an alternative to cremation. It reported that the process of resomation makes use of high-temperature water that uses a chemical treatment that dissolves the remains of the deceased. Flame cremation is as fast as this process, but the chemical emission that is harmful to the environment is not present.
A body put into a capsule-like chamber, which is then filled with water and a chemical called potassium hydroxide, is added — this is highly alkaline the opposite of an acid. The water is heated and gently circulated. After two-to-three hours, all that is left of the body is bone, which is then ground down into a powder and returned to a loved one’s family. The water contains broken down organic materials, then funneled into standard municipal water treatment facilities, and returned into the hydrological cycle.
Pets Are Family Too –
The pets that we love offer us comfort, companionship, and love. As members of our family, there is no mistake; they are a big part of our family. Nevertheless, when the times come, and they pass away, we cannot help but celebrate them and their lives while we nurse our way through the loss of this loved one.
The life of every cat, canaries, dogs, horses, and parrots has a story of their life that needs to be told, and their remembrance deserved.
We know that pet members in our family only deserve the best we can offer when their memorial is being pre-planned. Eterneva is redefining the memorial of our pets because diamonds are created from our pet ashes. This method enables our pet family members to be remembered and to remain with us.
Eterneva Diamonds –
The carbon from the pet’s ashes will create real diamonds that are one of a kind. The vibrancy of their spirt is refracted.
Space Burial
There is a space satellite contracted that would be the first commercial space satellite contracted to launch on a US space booster that was privately developed. A payload of cremated humans would be carried into orbit for a mission of space burial. Space burial had a scheduled mission to launch in 1986 or 1987. Aviation Week & Space Technology. 1/21/1985, Vol. 122, Issue 3, p20. 2p.
A new option and a personal favorite for some would-be Space Burial. Space Burials practiced by launching ashes, or for a higher cost, the full remains of the deceased into space via a rocket. Although this is not the eco-friendliest way to be buried, it sure is one of the most interesting. Memorial space trips made available by a company called Celestis for space burials.
All away from 2004 to the current time, a new burial alternative came to the market called “space burial.” Space burial would allow a tiny part of a cremated body place into a capsule, using a rocket to launch into space.
This expense of this option prevents it from being commonly used, and since its conception, a company called Celestis is so far the only company that practices this method, References indicated that the body remains fired into Earth orbit. However, some have launched into other trajectories, including to the moon, Pluto, and deep space, with famous individuals, also utilized this process.
Wikipedia – referenced that Space burial may take place with remains blasting into outer orbit. Surprisingly, “the Missions may go into orbit around the Earth, to other planetary bodies (such as the Moon), or into deep space.”
Launching remains into space using conventional rockets initially proposed by the science fiction author Neil R. Jones in the novella “The Jameson Satellite,” published in a magazine called the Amazing Stories in 1931. It later proposed as a commercial service in the 1965 movie, Richard DeGroot cited a movie called the “The Loved One,” in 1965, according to April 3, 1977, Seattle Times newspaper.
Celestis performed the first known space burial; this was when they launched the cremated remains of Gene Roddenberry into space in 1992. NASA space shuttle called the Columbia was used.
Referenced from the “Funeral Burial Alternatives,” On April 21, 1997, Celestis, which was the first private space burial, was launched. There was a Pegasus rocket continued on an aircraft departing from the Canary Islands, and the remains of 24 people were carried by this rocket to an 11km altitude over the Atlantic Ocean. On May 20, 2092, the craft orbiting the Earth once every 96 minutes until reentry near Australia Northeast. There are several famous people included on this flight, such as, “Gene Roddenberry and Timothy Leary.”
Suborbital Flights
The boundary of space could be crossed by short flights but would not reach orbital velocity with this method of space burial that is cost-effective. The remains are not destroyed in space and are either lost forever or recovered.
Moon Burials
The first moon burial was the remains of Dr. Eugene Shoemaker. Reportedly, a portion of his cremated remains was flown to the Moon by NASA. Research referenced a University of Arizona professor, Carolyn Porco, a former colleague of Shoemaker proposed a tribute for Dr. Shoemaker by launching his ashes on board of the Lunar Prospector spacecraft of NASA.
“Dr. Eugene Shoemaker’s remains were then placed together with images of a brass foil inscribed with the image of the Comet Hale-Bopp. It also was accompanied by an image of a Meteor Crater in northern Arizona and a passage from William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet.” The package prepared and launched on a spacecraft called the Prospector spacecraft and released into space on January 6, 1998. Currently, there is a future mission proposed by Celestis and Elysium Space with the Astrobotic in Pittsburgh is a famous Technology College.”
Pet Burials
Before 2014, Celestis did not have a contract to launch remains into space. However, since this time, the company Celestis has begun to launch a memorial spaceflight service for animals.
Dedicated Spacecraft
Elysium Space announced on May 17, 2017, the world’s first memorial flight involving a dedicated spacecraft. The CubeSat used as a secondary payload on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket using part of the spacecraft as a rideshare mission called SSO-A planned by Spaceflight.
3-D Printing
The first process, called stereolithography, was invented in the 1980s by Charles Hull. The first of many great ideas, with an expensive process and with its first applications, focusing primarily on engineering and manufacturing. Later other ideas surfaced about the first 3D-printed car, houses, human limbs, and a host of other products, including guns.
The concept for 3-D Printing is to turn digital files into physical substances. There are a few industries in operation that will create 3-D Printings to build houses. 3-D Printing is making a new wave into the future, transforming a way of conducting business, with the advancement in marketing to be satisfied on a personal level.
The transformation has already started for “3-D Printing” in health care by printing various parts of human limbs. This includes printing hands, prosthetics, with further research and development into living organs. How fast a person wants the job done would depend on the tools available, such as 3-D Printing to assist one along the way.
3D Printing and Funeral Profession
3D printing and the funeral profession has been introduced and is now on the rise. The Cremation Association of North America cited the cost of Cremation will be less that of casket/coffin burial, as more people are not only choosing cremation as an option over burial, but they have more choices than for burial, along with personalizing their funeral. With a variety of choices, more people are beginning to accept the ideas of preplanning that would help make more personalized choices in burial decisions.
In supporting a healthier environment, 3-D Printing provides an opportunity to print an image of choice. It allows the printing of urns of any shape or a replica of an image.
3D printing will provide families and individuals with new ways to ensure a unique legacy for their loved ones. However, it is not the only way it is making its presence felt in the funeral profession.
Repairing the Dead
Earlier, we mentioned how 3D printing had made its presence in the health care field. Printing living parts are a new advancement, including dental prosthetics and other medical devices. Currently, 3-D printing would be headed in the direction of preparing the dead.
3D printing to repair the bodies of people’s loved ones is a process likely used when a person has been accidentally damaged in disasters and accidents. A lot of make-up and wax is used to make repairs to damage bodies by funeral professionals, and it does not always accurately resemble the original image, especially when severe trauma is the case. It is easy to understand why 3-D Printing draws interest, because this is still a new phenomenon and underdeveloped interest, as with 3D, a family would see their loved ones in a real-life image. The method of using 3D to repair a loved one after a horrific incident could be an excellent comfort in the event of an unexpected accident or tragedy.
How 3D printing works. It illustrates that a digital file of a concept is sent to a machine that then builds a physical object of that file. Anything imaginable could be printed in a short period.
With 3D printing, families can play a more significant part by taking a role in decision-making when planning with funeral professionals.
As technology becomes more advanced, pervasive, and affordable, funeral homes in the future could even do this in-house.
Much like death, change is inevitable. Is there a new way to think about choosing how an individual wants their memorial prepared in their final departure? 3D printing is already a new alternative, and it is permeating the funeral profession. Three-D technology is catching on for many and continues to make its way into people’s awareness by given choices in their planning. As a new product, the expense is noticeable. However, technology is continuously breaking grounds to work on their end to make this product more marketable. Much the same issues have happened in the past regarding the change of technology.
The Process of Dissolution
Dissolution is having the body dissolve, then breaking down the body’s tissues. The dissolution of the body is placed in a secured chemical tank with the solvent chemicals of hydrochloric acid and lye, which activates to break a dead body cell. It may sound creepy for some to imagine this type of process done for a loved one; however, for others, it is a process that could be completed in a short time. Leave this process of dissolving the dead to the professional, as they are trained to complete the process as a licensed professional. We suggest that outside of having a license, do not try this method of getting rid of the dead without having to face the consequences of illegitimate behaviors.
The methods of Dissolution have been used in the United States for almost two decades, to dispose of animal carcasses, now accepted as a burial choice.
The process of dissolution is called alkaline hydrolysis, which uses the process of lye added at very high heat then placed in pressure cylinders that are similar to pressure cookers. Accordingly, this pressure cylinder device breaks down the body’s entities and transforms it into a liquid. The body entities that include the bones and teeth are produced into a powder form and returned to the family as ashes.
Eternal Reefs –
An Atlanta based company called Eternal Reefs, Inc offers an alternative to environmentally enhance the options to memorializing a loved one’s remains. The process is a mixture of the deceased remains mixed into an environmentally safe cast concrete mixture that is used to cast artificial reef formations. The Eternal Reefs company has been in operation since 1998. This company placed memorial reefs in various coast locations, including Maryland, New Jersey, North Carolina, South Carolina, Texas, and Virginia, which helps to enrich the diminishing reefs system around the coastlines.
These memorial reefs are designed in a hollow ball image with various holes and indents within the ball, as this would allow the sea life to feed on the reef, at the same time building new surroundings and new habitats for their environment.
The deceased family members have the opportunity to personalize the reefs, with their involvement in giving back to nature and having memorabilia of their loved ones.
The Founder, George Frankel, Eternal Reefs CEO, cited, “whether connected to marine life or not, the choice of giving back to the environment could be beneficial for anyone who desires to have this choice of memorial, as it could be contributing to help with the sea life.
References indicate that 45 percent of families choose cremation with most remains stashed away or sitting on mantels. Many people across our nations do not have written Wills or Trust Funds leaving family members or friends to handle their burial affairs. The decision to memorialize a loved one with memorial reefs could be an excellent choice to finalize a resting place.
Life Gem
Memorial diamonds made by pressurizing hair or ashes of a deceased, in the same way, real diamonds would be made, but quicker. This process can then be made into jewelry or as a keepsake of a loved one.
What is a Life-Gem
A Life-Gem is a certified, high-quality diamond created from the ashes of a loved one and made to memorialize a unique and beautiful life. The Life-Gem diamond can also be made from the carbon in a lock of hair. A LifeGem diamond provides comfort and supports when and where a person needs it. It allows the loved ones to embrace the memory of their loved ones at all times. If a Life-Gem were a method to consider, it would be a memorable treasure. As time moves forward, the Life-Gem will provide a lasting memory that endures time. After all, a Life-Gem is forever, similar to the known slogan, “Diamonds are Forever.”
As the final bid for immortality, plastination is a technique used in anatomy to preserve bodies or body parts. This technique replaces the water and fat, by preserving the specimens allowing for touching. After the completed process of the plastination with finish products, this property would not leave any odor or decaying. The finish that Plastination produces yields a polished specimen of the original. When preserving parts or bodies, an individual could decide on types of position selected for the final preservation. The process of plastination could be posed into various desired positions.
Many would find Plastinate specimens in various museums displayed around our nations. Other locations may honor these displayed structures as teaching tools for students where students learn about the anatomy of a human body or animal body. The process of plastination provides detailed references to the makeup of the body.
Credit is granted to the Gunther von Hagens, who applied for a German patent who structured an idea addressing preserving the first vegetable tissues and preserving animals. Since these filings, Gunther von Hagens filed a patent for further U.S. patents for preservation work on biological tissues.
The initial stage of the Plastination of the body is a process of preparing the body mass by removing its liquids and leaving it firm and dry. Incredibly, the body is then turned into a plastic-like mannequin and used for educational purposes. As referred by Funeral Burial Alternatives | 23 Ultimate Ways To Be Buried.
The final bid for immortality, plastination is a technique used in anatomy to preserve bodies or body parts.
The initial stage of plastination was conducted in Germany in November 2019 by Gunther von Hagens. “A German patent was filed, proposing the idea of preserving animal and vegetable tissues permanently by synthetic resin impregnation. Since then, von Hagens has applied for further U.S. patents regarding work on preserving biological tissues with polymers.” As sited by https://listverse.com/2010/11/01/15-ways-we-handle-the-dead/
Ashes to Pencils
A person could preplan their memorial by leaving a useful tool in the form of pencils created from the use of their ashes. As reported by Linda Lee, Creating Ashes by making Pencils, January 25, 2016, “Two hundred forty pencils likely made from an average body of ash – a lifetime supply of pencils made for those left behind.”
Ashes that are Artful
Transforming a loved one ash into art is a creative way of memorializing their memory.
Hyperthreatically, Artists would capture the essence of a loved one’s spirit in a swirl of color and ashes. The beauty of their work would capture the artistic essence of their work in the glass form. The completion of the artwork would become not only a centerpiece, but it would help to comfort and support the grieving period yet remaining a memorial of the loved one.
For this process, the founding company for this process located in Seattle, Washington, community.
Tree Burial and its Options
Tree burial is an option presented as a new form of burial for the Western Hemisphere but is a known practice in the areas of the east. Places like the Philippines practice tree burial to protect the bodies from outside elements or animals. The process requires inserting the bodies into a tree by inserting the body inside of a tree-trunk. Hypothetically, the body is secured inside a blanket or coffin then secured or tied to the tree branches. As a memorial for a loved one, tree burial is a new way of remembering a loved one.
Tree Planting and its Options
New to the market as a memorial for a loved one, is tree planning, which is a new way of remembering a loved one. The process entails placing the ashes of a loved one with a seed inside the soil that would later, through time, germinate and grow into a tree. This method does not affect or alter the tree’s DNA. Ultimately this can be a new way of being environmentally-friendly. Many websites are showing detailed information on the topic of tree planning for further research.
As opposed to a coffin enclosure, a biodegradable pod could enclose the deceased body, where it could be positioned under a tree.
As an alternative to a cemetery, a forest memorial could be planted and grown. With the right variety of trees, this would grow into a forest, creating an ecological system, and because of this, wildlife would be attracted. The biodegradable pods would be fed nutrients to the trees that would grow for many years into the future.
Aquamation as an Alternative Burial
If one prefers not to cremate the body, another option for a more environmentally friendly option is the process of Aquamation. This process requires the procedure of the body being bathed in water, which causes the body to speed up the disintegration turning the body into high-quality fertilizer. The procedure requires carefully place the body into a stainless-steel vessel and a combination of water flow. This combination is then added by alkalinity that accelerates and supports the course of the tissue hydrolysis. This is a quick process between 4 to 5 hours, with fewer pollutions exposed compared to cremation, if one is opposed to furnace burning.
Promession
Another unique method is to consider the procedure of Promession as a green alternative to burial. The method of promession involves preserving the organs of the body by leaving them in their organic shape and form. The remains of the body are cast into the soil, which later converts the remains to support the potential of forming a new life. The remains (powder) are placed into a biodegradable bag, which is placed into a shallow grave, with the disregarded hard elements returned to the family.
The process requires the use of liquid nitrogen that cryogenically freezes the remains. With the remains of the body transformed into a powder substance. By the use of vibration, the entire body is turned into a dusty powder weighing about thirty percent of the human mass. The leftover metals are taken for recycling, and the powder is a sealed vacuum container. The process is known as an eco-environmental friendly method.
Dry-freezing
is another method of preserving the remains, as this method that helps to preserve the eco-system of the earth. We should consider giving back to the earth what the earth has given to us. As we know, we come from the earth, so will we return. Let us help to push the process of passing these laws, by contacting our representative across the land, which would help with to enforce and add another alternative burial and save our planet — this method was introduced by Swedish biologist Susanne Wiigh-Masak.
Spain has adopted this method of burial, along with parts of Canada, by fostering this burial method. This burial process has not been adopted in the United States.
Noted, currently, promession is not available in the United States.
Description of the process of promession – A non-profit
fcasocal.org/promession.html
Sky Burial aka Exposure
Sky burial, widely known in the East. In Tibet, they practice this method of burial by releasing the deceased to the animals, and the natural element to decompose the body. The body of the deceased is prepped by removing limbs or skins that help support the decomposition method. The body then preserved with a mixture of tea, milk, flour, and barley, which attracts the local animals.
Sky Burial is not practiced as a form of burial in the Western Hemisphere, except if a body is found under unusual circumstances, in the case of homicidal or suicidal concerns, and left out to the natural elements.
Tibetan sky burial in Tibetan custom (known as a jahtor ) is the ritual dissection of the body, which is then laid out for the animals or the elements to decompose and dispose thereof. Tibet’s land mass is a place where the soil is too rocky to dig graves, and fuel is scarce for cremation, so sky burial arose as a logical alternative. Here is how it works:
The Tibetan custom of burial involves the deceased remains propelled up to a designated location where the body is laid out (typically naked). After that, the deceased is consumed by the local carnivorous, aka condos, vultures, and ravens.
Traditionally Tibetan (rogyapas) celebrate their deceased with jokes, laughing, and chatting while committed to prepping the deceased memorial ceremony.
Memorial Diamonds
Memorial diamonds made by pressurizing hair or ashes of the deceased; in the same way, real diamonds are made, but quicker. It can then be made into jewelry or as a keepsake of a loved one.
Hanging Coffins
This practice of hanging coffins was once an ancient burial technique. Hanging coffins of the deceased are prepared with the coffins showcased on the sides of cliffs. We cannot confirm if this ancient practice is rapidly spread vastly around the world; however, this form of burial is practiced and remains active in places like the Mountain Province of the Philippines. Hanging coffins are practice in several places in the world, including the location of Sagada and other eastern countries. To name a few, the Philippines, and Indonesia, and China perform these burial practices as their ritual for their deceased. Various ethnic groups of these regions, such as the “Bo people,” believe that the souls of their deceased are blessed eternally. This ritual is embraced with the belief that was hanging coffins off the mountain cliffs are a heaven stairways to a higher entity.
References by https://en.wikipedia. org/wiki/Hangingcoffins sites that the practice of the hanging coffins is a ritual by the Ku People at Bainitang Qiubei county, Wenshan Prefecture, Yunnan province, China. https://en.wikipedia. org/wiki/Hanging_coffins
Sea Burial
Sea burial continues to be practiced by sailors and some high officials for cultural and religious reasons. The process includes the deceased being wrapped into a blanket then cast into the sea from a boat/vessel of choice. In the past, this practice was assigned to a selected few including military, but in the present time has transformed to various cultures with regulations making sea burial a choice to memorialize their loved one in memory.
In North America, guidelines are given for those practicing scattering the ashes of their remains to the sea. The deceased remains must have at least three nautical miles from shore. The body (casket) must be buried in a body of water of 600ft depth.
Other forms of sea burial include ashes mixed with a portion of cement mixture that materializes into an artificial reef for the eco-system and climate.
Other religions that perform burials on land include both Islam and Judaism. Allowance for both of these maritime burials are made available should the need arise.
Beautiful Glass Memorials | Infused with Cremation Ash
https://www.spiritpieces.com
Explore over 600 unique memorials from talented artists for memorializing pets and people. Memorializing a loved one in Glass form is an alternative way of remembering the life of a loved one. This process contains the use of a small amount of cremains, using a portion of a teaspoon measure of a loved one remains or ashes. For those interested in the method of memorializing a loved one, contact the company with the attached website to further address the process with the steps acquired.
Home Burial as an Alternative –
The preparation of home burials is a practice in various areas of North America, and many ethnic groups practice it. Before it became widespread for families to place their loved ones into a hospice institution, many families cared for their loved ones in the home. The family supported loved ones in the comfort of their home, as this was a familiar environment. Over the years since the end of the industrial revolution, when many people took on multiple jobs, this practice became difficult. For some, it became inconvenient to care for their family members properly.
There are some ethnic groups and religious groups who continue to practice home burials in North America, and for those who practice this method, find home burials to be more therapeutic in support of the preparation for their loved ones.
In comparison to cost to a traditional burial, the family finds it to be cost-efficient, giving the family choices of all involvement with choosing caskets and arrangements for services, or choice of a mortuary. In North America, all states except Connecticut, Indiana, Louisiana, Nebraska, and New York do not practice home burial. With DC and Michigan pending decision-making to be made on this matter.
We must keep in mind that preparation at home for a loved one does not permit a family to perform ground burials that are not popular in practice.
Studies reveal that home-based funerals help the family with grieving.
Most burial ceremonies continue to be presided by churches or other religious institutions.
If a home funeral is right for a family, then it is necessary to begin making the arrangements for what is often referred to as the “death plan.”
Anatomical Gifts
Preparation is usually made before the deceased death or after death when the family decides to donate their loved one’s organs/body parts. In some cases, the family may denote their loved one’s organs directly to a recipient or have prior arrangements made to denote to a medical establishment where medical students study the cadavers.
If one decides to receipt a gift, an anatomical gift may be an option. This gift form is different from that of organ donors.
Just being an organ donor is a different consideration compared to an anatomical gift. It is removed from the un-embalmed cadaver for medical transplants. If residing in the United States one could make use of the laws within their jurisdiction, the process of being an organ donor is made simply by a signature of their name on the back of a driver’s license. They are alternatively making sure that a health proxy is notarized with their signature for this purpose.
Donating a person’s organs and body parts can serve a dual purpose by saving a life and for medical studies. The advance of modern medicine can save the lives of those with severe conditions.
Plant in Remembrance
If more life is being brought to the planet, than this will be a way a person can remember and honor a loved one that is important or an issue that needs to be recognized. Planting a tree is a visible remembrance where the remains of the deceased will help with the eco-system of the planet, fulfilling an eternal purpose for life to flourish for all animals and species.
Ornament as a New Alternative to Burial
Graphic designers have found inventive ways to create 3D printing as a way of preserving a loved one’s remains. They have created the technique that turns ashes into an ornament. Weiki Somers created this invention and process by creating human ashes into an ornament.
Become a Coral Reef
Around the world, Coral reefs are being destroyed by humans and other natural elements. Nevertheless, now there is a way to contribute to saving the coral reefs. A favorable way to give back to the ecological system, an individual could help in support of rebuilding the ecosystems around the world by giving back and making use of their remains by depositing their ashes. By depositing their ashes and making a reef mold that then would be deposited into the ocean. The memorial of this process is that the family members of the deceased will be supporting sea life and humanity.
The company Eternal Reef places a person’s ashes into a natural reef mold, then deposited into the sea as a Coral Reef burial. As a reference guide, please contact the described company for additional information.
Ashes to Portraits
For a person who wants to expand their imagination, they may want to consider ashes to portraits in an art form. This process calls for the remains of mixing ashes with paint. The finished product will forever be a memorable piece for the family.
Get turned into a Firework
For a person who wants to expand their imagination, they may want to consider turning their ashes into a firework.
Vinyl Compression
For a person who wants to expand their imagination with fun and dance, and for those who enjoy music, a loved one’s ashes can be made into a vinyl record. Deceased remains could be in the manufacture of the vinyl that makes a record that records the chosen music to be selected and recorded. With this process, a loved one’s remains could be recorded to play the deceased voice, with the family always hearing the voice of those since pass.
Transforming a person’s Ashes into Diamonds
“As an alternative to the traditional funerals, there are several companies worldwide that would provide you and your loved ones with an alternative to preserve a few ounces of cremains made into jewelry for the deceased family or dear friends to wear to remember you.” If interested in this process that would become a memorable and priceless piece for the deceased family, one could contact a company called, Cremation Solutions who will turn a few ounces of cremains into a diamond. Customers would have choices with colors and carat size.
BeforeIFallAsleep.com advises our subscribers to further their research to address the cost of this process and to educate themselves on the process.
Use of Fishes
A company called Eternal Reefs offers a unique process of preparing a person’s cremains by incorporating it into concrete balls, which used to help rebuild reefs. Our research referenced that “the concrete balls can weigh 600 to 4,000 pounds, depending on how many people included”. Please contact the company located in Florida for further details and the cost of service.
For services outside the United States conducting this process, please continue research, or consider contacting the company as mentioned above for any additional information.
Up and Away
Another way of having a memorial for a loved one is known as “Up and Away.” This alternative has an estimated cost from a thousand to $12,000. They may consider this alternative to the burial of a loved one, with their loved one cremated as the process of this form of burial. However, this process of spaceflights would not include cremation expenses. The company, Celestis Memorial Spaceflights, will launch “a symbolic portion” of your loved one’s cremains, amount 50% the size of a tube of lipstick. Once launched into earth orbit, it may end up on the lunar surface, or go into deep space.
Frozen in Time
Frozen in Time, “its uniqueness and “for an estimated cost from $28,000 to as much as $200,000 to have this process. Reportedly, the Cryogenically frozen body is then set in storage into liquid nitrogen.”
Sustainable Burials
The definition of Sustainable Burials is to have one buried in a vertical position. The least of about of space is taken up in this position in the cemetery. “According to Council, cemeteries nationwide bury more than 30 million board-feet of hardwood and 90,000 tons of steel in coffins within Cemeteries. Copper and Vaults utilize about 17,000 tons of steel and copper in vaults. Utilizing also 1.6 million tons of reinforced concrete in vaults, and more than 750,000 gallons of formaldehyde-laden embalming fluid in support of this process.”
Donte to Science
An individual body could be donated for science by donating it for medical schools. For the process of handling charges, it is best to contact the school for more information. There is a place called Body Worlds that exhibit post-mortem, where a person could become one of the see-through bodies frozen in action that tour the world, teaching audiences about human anatomy.
For further information addressing plastination, contact the Institute for Plastination in Heidelberg, Germany. This institution offers the choice to have a body undergo the Plastination process.
Liquefaction Process
“Research referenced that California became the 15th state to outline commercial regulations for human disposal remains using the process of liquefaction. This process recognized chemically as alkaline hydrolysis reportedly has been used to dispose of human cadavers and dead pets since the process became modernized in the 1990s. The machine became available for the ordinary funeral. This process may be an environmentally and safe choice as an alternative.
“Two professors at Albany Medical College, Dr. Gordon I. Kaye and Dr. Peter B. Weber developed the process called Alkaline hydrolysis, “for the treatment of bones and animal waste.” Their development of Alkaline hydrolysis was modernized about a century later, and it was later patented in the United States in 1888.
If interested in this process, contact a company called Bio-Response Solution located in the United States. Found in the United States, “Bio-Response Solutions is one of the few working manufacturers of such machines. Joe Wilson, Chief Executive, sells two models; the High-Temperature 28 sells for $220,00. These models have the technique and engineered to dissolve a body in as little as three hours at high temperature. The process also dissolves the body up to 16 hours at a Low-Temperature 28 having a cost of $150,000. Reportedly, (the number refers to the diameter of the cylinder, 28 inches.).”
This alternative method requires research to help educate oneself for the best possible choices.
The definition of Entombment is the act of placing human remains in a structurally enclosed space or burial chamber. The difference from burial is that the body is not consigned directly to the earth, but rather to keep within a specially designed sealed chamber, for example, a tomb made of granite tomb.
Entombment has many variations of tombs, from mausoleums designed to be elegant and memorable for a family crypt and often designed to be above ground with an enclosed entrance. Some tombments designed as an underground chamber.
Tombs are designed for multiple purposes, with some style for single-use, or to house the remains of family lineages. Within a tomb, an individual’s remains are often sealed in coffins or a sarcophagus, with some placed in internment niches. Tombs may not only be developed for a single entity but use by families as well. They may also be developed to show their belonging to various organizations, including religious organizations.
Dismemberment is Another Alternative
The definition of dismemberment includes cutting, tearing, pulling, wrenching, by removing the limbs of some creature. Typically, this process is performed after death. Sometimes, a person found dismembered for which this was the cause of their death.
During the earlier history of the 19th Century, hanging, drawing, and quartering was a collective punishment for high treason. A description of dismembering during this era included that a person could have been drawn and quartered. Drawn and quartered is the most brutal severe blood thirty act one could ever be inflicted with, as punishment for crimes involving obscene deviate, criminal behaviors.
Our studies indicated that in the present day, dismemberment is performed to hide the identity of the deceased. They also used to make the corpse more accessible for transport or fitting into tight spaces. Dismemberment was a typically performed postmortem process. Murders would use the method of dismemberment to hide the possibility of hair samples, fingerprints, facial modeling, and toe prints, which used to identify a deceased.
Research referenced that dismemberment was also practiced by the Catholic hierarchy in medieval times on the remains of Catholic saints, as these earthly remains considered to be holy relics.
Cannibalism
Our research indicates that Cannibalism has been practiced throughout history, and still practiced today. Cannibalism recognized as the practice of people eating human flesh, also known as anthropophagy. Homicide cannibalism is the act of people that kill other humans to be eaten. This practice is known as homicidal cannibalism. On the other hand, if cannibalism performed on those already, this is known as “necro cannibalism.”
“Cannibalistic social behavior falls into two categories, which are endo-cannibalism (the act of consuming the flesh of people in one’s community, and the second is exo-cannibalism, which is eating the flesh of people’s from other communities.”
Rocket Launch
The choice of using a rocket launch for the deceased body remains then launched into space. The definition of Space burial is for the cremains to be sent into space by encasing the cremains and then launching the cremated remains into outer space. These missions into outer space may go into orbit around the Earth, which includes orbiting into deeper space or other planetary bodies.
Referenced by Wikipedia, “The remains are not scattered in space, and will not contribute to space debris. The ashes instead would remain sealed inside the spacecraft until it either burns up on re-entry into the Earth’s atmosphere or reaches its destination or escapes the social system and goes into deep space. To consider a lesser extent suborbital flights could offer the cremains return to Earth as a recovery mission, this may help for the mission to be more cost-effective.”
Lawn Crypt
The definition of Lawn crypt is having the location of the burial above-ground. This choice of burial is maybe more expensive than an actual traditional burial plot. However, a Lawn crypt preferably may provide an environmentally dry and clean space for a loved one’s cremains.
Research indicates that “Lawn crypts in the United States are known to be an economical burial choice as an option for families. Some families chose the option of the burial of their loved ones in Mausoleum entombment, which may be cost-effective as a burial option. Mausoleum entombment is a tradition of burial in-ground.”
Research further referenced that, “Lawn crypts in the United States are known as an ideal choice for cemeteries who offer more cost-effective way of burial choice. Also, the practical solution for cemeteries who have drainage issues is known as Lawn Crypts.”
Mass Grave
When experiencing is an issue, as is often the case with a plague or a disaster, a mass grave may be used. Subsequent to making use of a mass grave, these sites are usually found in selected locations where multitudes of human remains found buried.
Types of mass gravesites are traditionally known for those lost in battle through war, famine, epidemics, and pandemics of diseases that ravish communities, widespread disasters, and a multitude of other environmental or health conditions. Other times mass grave used when one not identified in their loss.
Dating back to times that should not be forgotten, mass burial continues to be practiced in the time of needs. Since its recording history, mass burial still practices in modern times. Their locations are known worldwide: with sites located at Hart Island, New York, as this place is known as a potter’s field for the unknown and used for indigent people who are residents of New York City. Hart Island is the largest tax-funded cemetery known in the world, housing over 850,000 “residents” of current today with a history reaching back to the Civil War. The multitude of mass gravesites includes such places as Chechnya, Haiti, Iraqi, the Soviet Union, and the Killing Fields of Cambodia, to name a few.
Taxidermy as an Alternative to Burials
“The definition of Taxidermy the act of mounting or reproducing dead animals for display, such as hunting trophies, displayed in museums, private homes, or for other sources of study. However, some people have not let that stop them from taking the next step to immortality and having themselves taxidermied after death. The process is rather simple but requires many unique skills.”
Known for the process of skinning the animal, with the remains of the innards disposed thereof. Therefore, the organs of the deceased are removed, and the taxidermist does not see the internal organs. The skin is placed on polyurethane foam after being tanned.
The deceased eyes are replaced with the use of glass or clay. Some suppliers would provide eyes and other suppliers for taxidermists. If supplies are not available, taxidermists will form their supply.
This practice for taxidermy requires further research. Taxidermy is not known as a modern practice in many locations worldwide in the modern-day. Therefore, the expense of this practice is also not known. Although this may not be a common choice for a burial memorial, please make sure that all legalities are covered before moving forward with this memorial choice.
Natural Burial, this is the normal process of casket to grave burial. However, it is not considered eco-friendly. Traditionally, the bodies are placed in a casket or coffin and buried 6 feet under arranged to be rested in a cemetery. Later, a headstone is presented above ground to represent the family’s loved one.
Cremation
This process is also traditional and requires the process of the body exposed to heat, causing it to burn at a particular range of heat that results in leaving ashes. The process of reducing dead bodies to its basics is known as cremation at the temperatures over 1500 degrees.
The remains of the loved one’s ashes later handed over to the family, who will decide on how they keep the ashes, usually placing it in an Urn or dispersing the ashes at given places.
Cremation is most often performed in a crematorium, though some cultures, such as India, do open-air practice cremation.
Respectfully, some cultures perform their cremation by hand. The remains of the loved one’s ashes later handed over to the family, who will decide on how they keep the ashes, with some family members scattering the ashes of their loved ones or providing a traditional grave for cremains.
Research reveals that the process of cremation in Thai and Japanese is a traditional form of funeral practice. The process of cremation involves pulverizing their deceased; however, the bones not pulverized unless their deceased requests this particular stay. Traditionally the deceased remains have the involvement of their family members removing any bones from the ashes, making sues of specific chopsticks for this purpose of removal fragments. Also, the deceased feet are done first in removing any fragments from the cremation. This process completed so that the deceased will not be upside down in the urn. The urn then kept in a place of honor or a small shrine within the home”.
Suggested Research:
TELEVISION SHOWS
TELEVISION PROGRAMS
The Chinese Emperor
—National Geographic Channel
Eight Acres of History- Lexington African American Cemetery No. 2
WKET Lexington Public Library, Inc
The Mysterious Hanging Coffins of China
Science Channel 2010
History Channel
INTERNET SOURCES
— http://listverse.com/2010/11/01/15-ways-we-handle-the-d
–Eterneva Diamonds (Pets Ashes Turned Diamonds)
NEWSPAPER ARTICLES
—-Karen Sprey July 5, 2010
— ABC News
–Sandy Sullivan, founder and managing director of Resomation Ltd.
–Discovery News
— Journal of American Ethnic History / Spring 2017
—Written by Jacob Terranova —[email protected]
–Lifegem.com
WEBSITES
–Wikipedia.com
–Natural Burial (Wikipedia.com)
—https://www.lexikin.com/funerals/burial-alternatives
— balloonsblow.org/environmentally-friendly-alternatives
A Graphic Guide to Cemetery Symbolism- Atlasobscura.com
Cemetery Etiquette: What you Need to Know for that Cemetery Trip
by Pam Velazquez November 4, 2013 (Ancestry.com)
— http://listverse.com/2010/11/01/15-ways-we-handle-the-d
— https://www.spiritpieces.com
–The FuneralSite.com
—https://www.loveliveson.com/the-average-cost-of-a-burial-plot-other-facts-you-need-to-know/
—https://www.whichfuneralplans.com/useful-information/types-of-plot/
–https://www.burialplanning.com/burial-types/above-ground-community-mausoleum/
https://newatlas.com/resomation-corpse-composting-green-burial/15603/
Resomation and corpse-composting: green alternatives
BOOKS
Andrea E. Frohne. Syracuse: Syracuse University Press, 2015. 435 pp. List of illustrations, notes, bibliography, and index
Encyclopedia Britannica
The Winter Solstice: The Sacred Traditions of Christmas by John & Caitlin
Matthews
Corpse: Nature, , Forensics, and the Struggle to Pinpoint Time and Death by Jessica Snyder Sachs, The New York Public Library, Mid-Manhattan Branch Library, 5th Avenue, New York, NY 10016
The Winter Solstice: The Sacred Traditions of Christmas by John & Caitlin
Matthews, The New York Public Library, Mid-Manhattan Branch Library, 5th Avenue, New York, NY 10016
Death and Architecture by James Stevens Curl
Sutton, 2002, The New York Public Library, Mid-Manhattan Branch Library, 5th Avenue, New York, NY 10016
Last Landscapes: the architecture of the cemetery in the West by Ken Worpole Reaktion Books, London, 2003, The New York Public Library, Mid-Manhattan Branch Library, 5th Avenue, New York, NY 10016
Celebrations Around the World: A Multicultural Handbook by Carole S. Angell Fulcrum Publishing, 1996, The New York Public Library, Mid-Manhattan Branch Library, 5th Avenue, New York, NY 10016
Through Death to Life, by Joseph M. Champlin, Ave Maria Presse, Notre Dame, IN
The American Way of Death Revisited, by Jessica Mitford, Vintage
Soldier Dead, How We Recover, Identify, Bury, and Honor Our Military Fall, by Michael Sledge, Columbia University Press New York
Preparing a Catholic Funeral, Third Edition, Updated and Expanded, by Rev. Kenneth Koehler; Morehouse Education Resources, A division of Church Publishing Incorporated
Architecture and the After-Life by Howard Colvin
Yale University Press, 1991
The Architecture of Death: the transformation of the cemetery in
eighteenth-century Paris
Richard A. Etlin MIT Press, 1984
Celebrations Around the World: A Multicultural Handbook by Carole S. Angell
Fulcrum Publishing, 1996
Dealing Creatively with Death by Ernest Morgan.
Upper Access Books, 2001
Death and Architecture by James Stevens Curl
Sutton, 2002
Disposal of the Dead: (At Issue Environment) by Diane Andrews Henningfield
Greenhaven Press, 2009
–Encyclopedia Britannica
Funeral Festivals in America by Jacqueline S. Thursby
The University Press of Kentucy, 2006
From Dust to Ashes; Cremation and the British Way of Death by Peter C. Jupp
Palgrave Macmillan 2006
From My Death May Life Come Forth. A Feasibility Study of the Woodland
Cemetery in Canada by Mike Salisbury
Greek Funerary Sculpture. Catalogue of the Collection at the Getty Villa
by Janet Burnett Grossman J. Paul Getty Museum, 2001
The Handbook to Wills, Funerals & Probate by Theodore E. Hughes & David Klein
Checkmark Books 2007
Hope for Bereaved
1342 Lancaster Ave., Syracuse, NY 13210.
Journey of Life: Death by Sarah Levete
Rosen Publishing, 2010
Last Landscapes: the architecture of the cemetery in the West by Ken Worpole
Reaktion Books, London, 2003
Russian Peasant Beliefs & Practices Concerning Death & Supernatural by
Elizabeth A. Warren
2000
Soldier Dead by Michael Sledge
Columbia University Press, 2005
An Uncommon History to Common Things by Bethanne Patrick & John Thompson
National Geographic Society, 2009
The Use of Symbols in Worship
Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge Alcuin Club 2007
The Winter Solstice: The Sacred Traditions of Christmas by John & Caitlin
Matthews
Quest Books Theosophical Publishing House & Godsfield Press 1998
FUNERAL RITES AROUND THE WORLD
As found on Funeral Source.com for additional information of each country
China’s Profound Culture of Death
Japanese Funeral Practices
Korean Cremation Alternative
Funeral Rites of the South Pacific
“Neptune Memorial Reef: Deep Sea Diving for the Deceased”; https://www.brightonfuneraldirectors.com.uk/neptune-memorial
Balinese Funerals
This information is from funeral source.com.
African Funerals: Funerals | Psychology Wiki | Fandom. https://psychology.fandom.com/wiki/Funerals
We acknowledge that Africa is a continent, therefore, each countries and regions have their own beliefs and practice of how they preserve the rituals for their deceased.
The African practice and custom of burying the dead on the floor of dwelling houses have been, to some degree, a practice at this location/region on the Gold Coast of Africa. “The ceremony is purely animist and apparently without any set ritual. The main exception is that the females of the family of the deceased and their friends may undergo mournful lamentations. “Sometimes, they work their feelings up to an ostentatious, frenzy-like degree of sorrow. The revelry may be heightened by the use of alcohol, of which drummers, flute players, bards, and singing men may partake”.
“The funeral may last for as much as a week. Another custom, a kind of memorial, frequently takes place seven years after the person’s death. These funerals, especially the memorials, may be costly for the family Cattle, sheep, goats, and poultry may be offered in remembrance and then consumed in festivities”. Funerals | Psychology Wiki | Fandom. https://psychology.fandom.com/wiki/Funerals
We provide research for “funerals in Ghana that are held for the deceased arranged in elaborate “fantasy coffins.”colored and shaped after a particular object,such as a fish, crab, boat, and even an airplane”. Research; https://psychology.fandom.com/wiki/Funersals and https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Funeral
Funerals in the Middle East
The dying are prepared by family members chanting and reading prayers from the Vedas. The body is then cleansed and dressed in its best clothing and surrounded with garlands of flowers in preparation for cremation.
Hindus believe the Soul passes to heaven or hell, and then the Soul is reborn into another body. Because of this belief, there is no reason to have the old body, and the religion always uses cremation. Mourners say prayers during the funeral, and the body is put on a pyre for cremation. Highly flammable, liquid ghee is thrown onto the fire to make the flames burn hotter compared to another method that may be utilized. After cremation the ashes are scattered in a holy river, the holiest being the Ganges.
The widows wear a white sari for the mourning period of 11 to 13 days, with the end of mourning marked with a Kriya Ceremony.
Islamic traditions
Since the Islamic religion does not believe in cremation, they bury their dead. They believe in eternal life and that everyone will be called to account on ‘The Last
Judgment’
The deceased is ritually cared for by a close family member of the same gender. They are dressed in simple shrouds, and prayers are read over the body.Services are then led by an Imam, with mourners forming rows behind the Imam, facing Mecca. The holiest of all places in Islam. Prayers are then said for the Soul of the deceased. Their body is buried with or without a simple pine box facing Mecca. Three days of mourning is the norm, with increased prayer and devotion. Outward signs of grieving are frowned upon. A simple tombstone is used to mark the grave Site.
Because of the widely varied religions and beliefs within the Middle East, not to mention each country when attempting to cover most of the religions and customs in the region. If one is familiar with a religion, sect, or tradition we have not mentioned, please send us the information, and we will add those facts for all to learn further.
Judaism Traditions
Because the Jewish consider a dead body to be unclean, specially trained volunteers care for their deceased. The body is ritually prepared by a member of the same gender and dressed in a simple soon as possible. However, the Liberal sect of Judaism believes in cremation. (Orthodox does not) Readings from the Psalms are read over the body, while relatives sit with the body at all times before the funeral.
A Rabbi conducts the services. Mourners wear dark clothes and tear a hole in clothing to show their grief. There is no viewing of the body. Prayers and Psalms are read during the service. Flowers should not be sent. However, a sympathy food basket sent to the immediate family’s home is acceptable.
Burial is simple and quick after death, with or without a simple pine box. Tombstones are usually kept to a simple marker. The family then sits seven days of Shiv’ah, or Shiva, a time of mourning in which they receive friends and visitors.
There are also other mourning markers at one month and eleven months, and prayers are said on the anniversary of the death of a loved one.
(See: Judaism Traditions)
Sikhism
Close relatives care for their dead by bathing and cleansing them and for Sikhs who are members of the Khalsa. Flowers, in preparation for service, then surround the body.
Hymns and prayers were mainly recited for the dead during the service. A member of the family, usually the eldest son, carries the torch to light the funeral pyre that begins the cremation. They believe that the fire releases the pure Soul to join the
Brahman– the ultimate reality. The ashes are scattered.
There is no set mourning period, but family members read continuously from the Guru Granth Sahib for ten days.
(See: Sikhism Traditions)
Buddhism
Male mourners take the body to the burial site or cremation, with monks leading the way. Monks may chant over the body. White flowers may be placed around the departed. Some Buddhists receive earth burial, while in other parts of Tibet, they receive sky burial. In some areas, the ashes are blessed by the monks.
There are no particular mourning rituals, but since death is considered rebirth to a higher plane, mourners are encouraged to perform good deeds and keep good thoughts to help the departed on their way to being born into a better life.
(See: Buddhism Traditions)
Ancient Jewish Rites
Some methods of Embalming similar to those originated by the Egyptians were used by the Persians, Syrians, and Babylonians. Some primitive people exposed corpses in the open, in trees, or on platforms.
Australia
New Zealand
For both Australia and New Zealand, the presentation of preparing their dead wakes is commonly practiced. Studies referenced that the funeral service is in the absence of the body and is often “wet,” As indicated
and safe to say, alcohol is presented as a celebration. The celebration of their beloved one during the Wake is shown to resemble a party for the beloved. This provides the needed support for the family in difficult times. This model of support for the deceased/beloved ones gave way to the same and similar celebration for the Irish tradition of a Wake for the deceased in
this way; it follows the model of the traditional Irish Wake (see: Irish Traditions) although there is a long tradition of feasting and celebration connected with funeral service amongst the Māori of New
Zealand that predates European settlement. See https://evolutionoffunderarycustoms.weebly.com/traditions.
Bibliography, Footnotes, and Website references
Bibliography
Beforeifallasleep.com provides a plethora of information gathered from endless sources.
Research, books, conversations, articles, magazines, Federal Trade Commission, ‘The Department of Defense, The Department of Veteran Affairs,’ internet sources, and television programs. Our Site has acknowledged any sources of information – Meoli, Daria. “Nonprofit Finds Way to Thank Veterans for Service.” NJBIZ, vol. 28, no. 44, Nov. 2015, p. 17.rom the above-described websites.
https://njbiz.com/law/page/102/
BOOKS
Andrea E. Frohne. Syracuse: Syracuse University Press, 2015. 435 pp. List of illustrations, notes, bibliography, and index
Encyclopedia Britannica
The Winter Solstice: The Sacred Traditions of Christmas by John & Caitlin
Matthews
Corpse: Nature, Forensics, and the Struggle to Pinpoint Time and Death by Jessica Snyder Sachs, The New York Public Library, Mid-Manhattan Branch Library, 5th Avenue, New York, NY 10016
The Winter Solstice: The Sacred Traditions of Christmas by John & Caitlin
Matthews, The New York Public Library, Mid-Manhattan Branch Library, 5th Avenue, New York, NY 10016
Death and Architecture by James Stevens Curl
Sutton, 2002, The New York Public Library, Mid-Manhattan Branch Library, 5th Avenue, New York, NY 10016
Last Landscapes: the architecture of the cemetery in the West by Ken Worpole Reaktion Books, London, 2003, The New York Public Library, Mid-Manhattan Branch Library, 5th Avenue, New York, NY 10016
Celebrations Around the World: A Multicultural Handbook by Carole S. Angell Fulcrum Publishing, 1996, The New York Public Library, Mid-Manhattan Branch Library, 5th Avenue, New York, NY 10016 (see: https://www.ebay.com/p/1572272)
Through Death to Life, by Joseph M. Champlin, Ave Maria Presse, Notre Dame, INThe American Way of Death Revisited, by Jessica Mitford, Vintage
Soldier Dead, How We Recover, Identify, Bury, and Honor Our Military Fall, by Michael Sledge, Columbia University Press New York
–Preparing a Catholic Funeral, Third Edition, Updated, and Expanded, by Rev. Kenneth Koehler; Morehouse Education Resources, A division of Church Publishing Incorporated
Architecture and the After-Life by Howard Colvin
Yale University Press, 1991
The Architecture of Death: the transformation of the cemetery in the eighteenth-century by Paris Richard A. Etlin MIT Press, 1984
Celebrations Around the World: A Multicultural Handbook, by Carole S. Angell Fulcrum Publishing, 1996
Dealing Creatively with Death by Ernest Morgan.
Upper Access Books, 2001
Death and Architecture by James Stevens Curl
Sutton, 2002
Disposal of the Dead: (At Issue Environment) by Diane Andrews Henningfield
Greenhaven Press, 2009
Encyclopedia Britannica
Funeral Festivals in America by Jacqueline S. Thursby
The University Press of Kentucky, 2006
From Dust to Ashes; Cremation and the British Way of Death by Peter C. JuppPalgrave Macmillan 2006
From My Death May Life Come Forth. A Feasibility Study of the Woodland Cemetery in Canada by Mike Salisbury
Greek Funerary Sculpture. Catalog of the Collection at the Getty Villaby Janet Burnett Grossman J. Paul Getty Museum, 2001
The Handbook to Wills, Funerals & Probate by Theodore E. Hughes & David KleinCheckmark Books 2007
Hope for Bereaved 1342 Lancaster Ave., Syracuse, NY 13210.
Journey of Life: Death by Sarah Levete Rosen Publishing, 2010
Last Landscapes – the architecture of the cemetery in the West by Ken Worpole Reaktion Books, London, 2003
Russian Peasant Beliefs & Practices Concerning Death & Supernatural by Elizabeth A. Warren 2000
Soldier Dead by Michael Sledge Columbia University Press, 2005
An Uncommon History to Common Things by Bethanne Patrick & John ThompsonNational Geographic Society, 2009
The Use of Symbols in WorshipSociety for Promoting Christian Knowledge Alcuin Club 2007
The Winter Solstice: The Sacred Traditions of Christmas by John & Caitlin Matthews
Quest Books Theosophical Publishing House & Godsfield Press 1998
INTERNET SOURCES
http://listverse.com/2010/11/01/15-ways-we-handle-the-d
Eterneva Diamonds (Pets Ashes Turned Diamonds)
NEWSPAPER ARTICLES
Karen Sprey July 5, 2010
ABC News
Sandy Sullivan, founder and managing director of Resomation Ltd.
Discovery News
Journal of American Ethnic History / Spring 2017
Written by Jacob Terranova –[email protected]
Lifegem.com
WEBSITES
Wikipedia.com
Natural Burial (Wikipedia.com)
Burial Alternatives – 23 Ultimate Ways To Check Out
balloonsblow.org/environmentally-friendly-alternatives
A Graphic Guide to Cemetery Symbolism- Atlasobscura.com
Cemetery Etiquette: What You Need to Know for that Cemetery Trip, by Pam Velazquez November 4, 2013 (Ancestry.com)
http://listverse.com/2010/11/01/15-ways-we-handle-the-d
https://www.spiritpieces.com
The FuneralSite.com
The Average Cost of a Burial Plot (and Other Facts You Need to Know)
–https://www.whichfuneralplans.com/useful-information/types-of-plot/
https://www.burialplanning.com/burial-types/above-ground-community-mausoleum/
https://newatlas.com/resomation-corpse-composting-green-burial/15603/
Resomation and corpse-composting: green alternatives
TELEVISION SHOWS
TELEVISION PROGRAMS
The Chinese Emperor
National Geographic Channel
Eight Acres of History- Lexington African American cemetery No. 2
WKET Lexington Public Library, Inc
The Mysterious Hanging Coffins of China
Science Channel 2010
History Channel
SEE WEBSITE FOR –
FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION CONSUMER INFORMATION TYPES OF FUNERALS
Types of Funerals
Every family is different, and not everyone wants the same type of funeral. Funeral practices are influenced by religious and cultural traditions, costs, and personal preferences. These factors help determine whether the funeral will be elaborate or simple, public or private, religious or secular, and where it will be held. They also influence whether the body will be present at the funeral, if there will be a viewing or visitation, and if so, whether the casket will be open or closed, and whether the remains will be buried or cremated.
“Traditional” Full-service Funeral
This type of funeral, often referred to by funeral providers as a “traditional” funeral, usually includes a viewing or visitation and formal funeral service, use of a hearse to transport the body to the funeral site and cemetery, and burial, entombment, or cremation of the remains.
It is generally the most expensive type of funeral. In addition to the funeral home’s basic services fee, costs often include embalming and dressing the body; rental of the funeral home for the viewing or service; and use of vehicles to transport the family if they don’t use their own. The costs of a casket, cemetery plot or crypt and other funeral goods and services also must be factored in.
Direct Burial
The body is buried shortly after death, usually in a simple container. No viewing or visitation is involved, so no embalming is necessary. A memorial service may be held at the graveside or later. Direct burial usually costs less than the “traditional” full-service funeral. Costs include the funeral home’s basic services fee, as well as transportation and care of the body, the purchase of a casket or burial container and a cemetery plot or crypt. If the family chooses to be at the cemetery for the burial, the funeral home often charges an additional fee for a graveside service.
Direct Cremation
The body is cremated shortly after death, without embalming. The cremated remains are placed in an urn or other container. No viewing or visitation is involved. The remains can be kept in the home, buried, or placed in a crypt or niche in a cemetery, or buried or scattered in a favorite spot. Direct cremation usually costs less than the “traditional” full-service funeral. Costs include the funeral home’s basic services fee, as well as transportation and care of the body. A crematory fee may be included or, if the funeral home does not own the crematory, the fee may be added on. There also will be a charge for an urn or other container. The cost of a cemetery plot or crypt is included only if the remains are buried or entombed.
Funeral providers who offer direct cremations also must offer to provide an alternative container that can be used in place of a casket.
Immediate Burial
The Funeral Rule describes immediate burial as a burial that occurs shortly after death with no view or visitation and is usually in a simple container or casket. There is generally no viewing or visitation, so embalming is not necessary or required. A memorial service is generally held at the burial site, or at a later date.
Costs associated with this choice include the funeral director’s basic service fee, transportation and care of the body, the casket or burial container and the cemetery plot or crypt. If the family selects a burial site service, extra charges will be added.
Choosing a Funeral Provider
Many people don’t realize that in most states they are not legally required to use a funeral home to plan and conduct a funeral. However, because they have little experience with the many details and legal requirements involved and may be emotionally distraught when it’s time to make the plans, they find the services of a professional funeral home to be a comfort.
People often select a funeral home or cemetery because it’s close to home, has served the family in the past, or has been recommended by someone they trust. But limiting the search to just one funeral home may risk paying more than necessary for the funeral or narrowing their choice of goods and services.
Comparison Shopping for a Funeral Home/Provider
Comparison shopping doesn’t have to be difficult, especially if it’s done before the need for a funeral arises. Thinking ahead can help you make informed and thoughtful decisions about funeral arrangements. It allows you to choose the specific items you want and need, and to compare the prices several funeral providers charge.
If you visit a funeral home in person, the funeral provider is required by law to give you a general price list (GPL) itemizing the cost of the items and services the home offers. If the GPL does not include specific prices of caskets or outer burial containers, the law requires the funeral director to show you the price lists for those items before showing you the items.
Sometimes it’s more convenient and less stressful to “price shop” funeral homes by telephone. The Funeral Rule requires funeral directors to provide price information on the phone to any caller who asks for it. In addition, many funeral homes are happy to mail you their price lists, although that is not required by law.
When comparing prices, be sure to consider the total cost of all the items together, in addition to the costs of single items. Every funeral home should have price lists that include all the items essential for the different types of arrangements it offers. Many funeral homes offer package funerals that may cost less than buying individual items or services. Offering package funerals is permitted by law, as long as an itemized price list also is provided. But you can’t accurately compare total costs unless you use the price lists.
In addition, there’s a trend toward consolidation in the funeral home industry, and many neighborhood funeral homes may appear to be locally owned when in fact, they’re owned by a national corporation. If this issue is important to you, you may want to ask if the funeral home is independent and locally owned.
Planning Your Own Funeral
To help relieve their families, an increasing number of people are planning their own funerals, designating their funeral preferences, and sometimes paying for them in advance. They see funeral planning as an extension of will and estate planning.
Funeral Planning Tips
Thinking ahead can help you make informed and thoughtful decisions about funeral arrangements. It allows you to choose the specific items you want and need, and compare the prices offered by several funeral providers. It also spares your survivors the stress of making these decisions under the pressure of time and strong emotions. You can make arrangements directly with a funeral establishment.
An important consideration when planning a funeral pre-need is where the remains will be buried, entombed, or scattered. In the short time between the death and burial of a loved one, many family members find themselves rushing to buy a cemetery plot or grave — often without careful thought or a personal visit to the site. That’s why it’s in the family’s best interest to buy cemetery plots before you need them.
You may wish to make decisions about your arrangements in advance, but not pay for them in advance. Keep in mind that over time, prices may go up and businesses may close or change ownership. However, in some areas with increased competition, prices may go down over time. It’s a good idea to review and revise your decisions every few years, and to make sure your family is aware of your wishes.
Put your preferences in writing, give copies to family members and your attorney, and keep a copy in a handy place. Don’t designate your preferences in your will, because a will often is not found or read until after the funeral. And avoid putting the only copy of your preferences in a safe deposit box. That’s because your family may have to make arrangements on a weekend or holiday, before the box can be opened.
Prepaying
Millions of Americans have entered into contracts to arrange their funerals and prepay some or all of the expenses involved. Laws of individual states govern the prepayment of funeral goods and services; various states have laws to help ensure that these advance payments are available to pay for the funeral products and services when they’re needed. But protections vary widely from state to state, and some state laws offer little or no effective protection. Some state laws require the funeral home or cemetery to place a percentage of the prepayment in a state-regulated trust or to purchase a life insurance policy with the death benefits assigned to the funeral home or cemetery.
If you’re thinking about prepaying for funeral goods and services, it’s important to consider these issues before putting down any money:
- What are you are paying for? Are you buying only merchandise, like a casket and vault, or are you purchasing funeral services as well?
- What happens to the money you’ve prepaid? States have different requirements for handling funds paid for prearranged funeral services.
- What happens to the interest income on money that is prepaid and put into a trust account?
- Are you protected if the firm you dealt with goes out of business?
- Can you cancel the contract and get a full refund if you change your mind?
- What happens if you move to a different area or die while away from home? Some prepaid funeral plans can be transferred, but often at an added cost.
Be sure to tell your family about the plans you’ve made; let them know where the documents are filed. If your family isn’t aware that you’ve made plans, your wishes may not be carried out. And if family members don’t know that you’ve prepaid the funeral costs, they could end up paying for the same arrangements. You may wish to consult an attorney on the best way to ensure that your wishes are followed.
Funeral Terms and Contact Information
This article provides a glossary of terms you will encounter when planning a funeral, and offers a list of resources for more information.
- Glossary of Funeral Terms
- For More Information about Funerals, Funeral Providers, and Where to File a Complaint
Glossary of Funeral Terms
Alternative Container: An unfinished wood box or other non-metal receptacle without ornamentation, often made of fiberboard, pressed wood, or composition materials, and generally lower in cost than caskets.
Casket/Coffin: A box or chest for burying remains.
Cemetery Property: A grave, crypt, or niche.
Cemetery Services: Opening and closing graves, crypts or niches; setting grave liners and vaults; setting markers; and long-term maintenance of cemetery grounds and facilities.
Columbarium: A structure with niches (small spaces) for placing cremated remains in urns or other approved containers. It may be outdoors or part of a mausoleum.
Cremation: Exposing remains and the container encasing them to extreme heat and flame and processing the resulting bone fragments to a uniform size and consistency.
Crypt: A space in a mausoleum or other building to hold cremated or whole remains.
Disposition: The placement of cremated or whole remains in their final resting place.
Endowment Care Fund: Money collected from cemetery property purchasers and placed in trust for the maintenance and upkeep of the cemetery.
Entombment: Burial in a mausoleum.
Funeral Ceremony: A service commemorating the deceased, with the body present.
Funeral Services: Services provided by a funeral director and staff, which may include consulting with the family on funeral planning; transportation, shelter, refrigeration and embalming of remains; preparing and filing notices; obtaining authorizations and permits; and coordinating with the cemetery, crematory or other third parties.
Grave: A space in the ground in a cemetery for the burial of remains.
Grave Liner or Outer Container: A concrete cover that fits over a casket in a grave. Some liners cover tops and sides of the casket. Others, referred to as vaults, completely enclose the casket. Grave liners minimize ground settling.
Graveside Service: A service to commemorate the deceased held at the cemetery before burial.
Interment: Burial in the ground, inurnment or entombment.
Inurnment: The placing of cremated remains in an urn.
Mausoleum: A building in which remains are buried or entombed.
Memorial Service: A ceremony commemorating the deceased, without the body present.
Niche: A space in a columbarium, mausoleum or niche wall to hold an urn.
Urn: A container to hold cremated remains. It can be placed in a columbarium or mausoleum, or buried in the ground.
Vault: A grave liner that completely encloses a casket.
For More Information about Funerals, Funeral Providers, and Where to File a Complaint
Most states have a licensing board that regulates the funeral industry. You may contact the board in your state for information or help. If you want additional information about making funeral arrangements and the options available, you may want to contact interested business, professional and consumer groups. Some of the biggest are:
- AARP
AARP is a membership organization for people 50 years of age and older. Funeral-related information also is available in the Grief & Loss section. - Cremation Association of North America
CANA is an association of crematories, cemeteries, and funeral homes that offer cremation. - Funeral Consumers Alliance
FCA is a nonprofit educational organization that supports increased funeral consumer protection. Their website has free pamphlets on funeral planning, plus a directory of local volunteer funeral planning groups. - Funeral Ethics Organization
FEO, an independent nonprofit educational organization, promotes ethical dealings in death- related transactions and provides mediation assistance to resolve consumer complaints. - Green Burial Council
GBC, an independent, nonprofit that encourages environmentally sustainable death care practices as a means of acquiring, restoring, and stewarding natural areas, assists consumers in identifying “green” cemetery, funeral, and cremation services. - International Cemetery, Cremation and Funeral Association
ICCFA is a nonprofit association of cemeteries, funeral homes, crematories, and monument retailers that offers informal mediation of consumer complaints through its Cemetery Consumer Service Council. Its website provides information and advice in its Consumer Resource Guide. - International Order of the Golden Rule
OGR is an international association of about 1,300 independent funeral homes. - Jewish Funeral Directors of America
JFDA is an international association of funeral homes serving the Jewish community. - National Funeral Directors Association
NFDA is an educational and professional association of funeral directors, which provides consumer information and sponsors the NFDA Help Line, which is designed to help consumers resolve complaints about NFDA members. - National Funeral Directors and Morticians Association
NFDMA is a national association primarily of African-American funeral providers. - Selected Independent Funeral Homes
SIFH is an international association of funeral firms that have agreed to comply with its Code of Good Funeral Practices.
Resolving Problems
If you have a problem concerning funeral matters, it’s best to try to resolve it first with the funeral director. If you are dissatisfied with the funeral services you receive, the Funeral Consumers Alliance offers advice on how best to resolve a problem. In addition, the FEO, the NFDA Help Line, and the ICCFA Cemetery Consumer Service Council may be able to provide informal mediation of a complaint. You also can contact your state Attorney General’s office or local consumer protection agencies.
In addition, you can file a complaint with the FTC online or call 1-877-FTC-HELP (382-4357); TDD: 1-866-653-4261. Although the Commission cannot resolve individual problems for consumers, it can act against a company if it sees a pattern of possible law violations.
Funeral Costs and Pricing Checklist
Funeral costs include basic services fee for the funeral director and staff, charges for other services and merchandise, and cash advances. Make copies of the checklist at the end of this article. Use it when you shop with several funeral homes to compare costs.
Funeral Fees
The Funeral Rule allows funeral providers to charge a basic services fee that customers have to pay. The basic services fee includes services that are common to all funerals, regardless of the specific arrangement. These include funeral planning, securing the necessary permits and copies of death certificates, preparing the notices, sheltering the remains, and coordinating the arrangements with the cemetery, crematory or other third parties. The fee does not include charges for optional services or merchandise.
Charges for other services and merchandise, include costs for optional goods and services such as transporting the remains; embalming and other preparation; use of the funeral home for the viewing, ceremony or memorial service; use of equipment and staff for a graveside service; use of a hearse or limousine; a casket, outer burial container or alternate container; and cremation or interment.
Cash advances are fees charged by the funeral home for goods and services it buys from outside vendors on your behalf, including flowers, obituary notices, pallbearers, officiating clergy, and organists and soloists. Some funeral providers charge you their cost for the items they buy on your behalf. Others add a service fee to the cost. The Funeral Rule requires those who charge an extra fee to disclose that fact in writing, although it doesn’t require them to specify the amount of their markup. The Rule also requires funeral providers to tell you if there are refunds, discounts, or rebates from the supplier on any cash advance item.
Calculating the Actual Cost of a Funeral
The funeral provider must give you an itemized statement of the total cost of the funeral goods and services you have selected when you are making the arrangements. If the funeral provider doesn’t know the cost of the cash advance items at the time, he or she is required to give you a written “good faith estimate.” This statement also must disclose any legal cemetery or crematory requirements that you purchase specific funeral goods or services.
The Funeral Rule does not require any specific format for this information. Funeral providers may include it in any document they give you at the end of your discussion about funeral arrangements.
Services and Products
Embalming
Many funeral homes require embalming if you’re planning a viewing or visitation. But embalming generally is not necessary or legally required if the body is buried or cremated shortly after death. Eliminating this service can save you hundreds of dollars. Under the Funeral Rule, a funeral provider:
- may not provide embalming services without permission.
- may not falsely state that embalming is required by law.
- must disclose in writing that embalming is not required by law, except in certain special cases.
- may not charge a fee for unauthorized embalming unless embalming is required by state law.
- must disclose in writing that you usually have the right to choose a disposition, like direct cremation or immediate burial, that does not require embalming if you do not want this service.
- must disclose in writing that some funeral arrangements, such as a funeral with viewing, may make embalming a practical necessity and, if so, a required purchase.
Caskets
For a “traditional” full-service funeral:
A casket often is the single most expensive item you’ll buy if you plan a “traditional” full-service funeral. Caskets vary widely in style and price and are sold primarily for their visual appeal. Typically, they’re constructed of metal, wood, fiberboard, fiberglass or plastic. Although an average casket costs slightly more than $2,000, some mahogany, bronze or copper caskets sell for as much as $10,000.
When you visit a funeral home or showroom to shop for a casket, the Funeral Rule requires the funeral director to show you a list of caskets the company sells, with descriptions and prices, before showing you the caskets. Industry studies show that the average casket shopper buys one of the first three models shown, generally the middle-priced of the three.
So it’s in the seller’s best interest to start out by showing you higher-end models. If you haven’t seen some of the lower-priced models on the price list, ask to see them — but don’t be surprised if they’re not prominently displayed, or not on display at all.
Traditionally, caskets have been sold only by funeral homes. But more and more, showrooms and websites operated by “third-party” dealers are selling caskets. You can buy a casket from one of these dealers and have it shipped directly to the funeral home. The Funeral Rule requires funeral homes to agree to use a casket you bought elsewhere, and doesn’t allow them to charge you a fee for using it.
No matter where or when you’re buying a casket, it’s important to remember that its purpose is to provide a dignified way to move the body before burial or cremation. No casket, regardless of its qualities or cost, will preserve a body forever. Metal caskets frequently are described as “gasketed,” “protective” or “sealer” caskets. These terms mean that the casket has a rubber gasket or some other feature that is designed to delay the penetration of water into the casket and prevent rust. The Funeral Rule forbids claims that these features help preserve the remains indefinitely because they don’t. They just add to the cost of the casket.
Most metal caskets are made from rolled steel of varying gauges — the lower the gauge, the thicker the steel. Some metal caskets come with a warranty for longevity. Wooden caskets generally are not gasketed and don’t have a warranty for longevity. They can be hardwood like mahogany, walnut, cherry or oak, or softwood like pine. Pine caskets are a less expensive option, but funeral homes rarely display them. Manufacturers of both wooden and metal caskets usually offer warranties for workmanship and materials.
For cremation:
Many families that choose to have their loved ones cremated rent a casket from the funeral home for the visitation and funeral, eliminating the cost of buying a casket. If you opt for visitation and cremation, ask about the rental option. For those who choose a direct cremation without a viewing or other ceremony where the body is present, the funeral provider must offer an inexpensive unfinished wood box or alternative container, a non-metal enclosure — pressboard, cardboard or canvas — that is cremated with the body.
Under the Funeral Rule, funeral directors who offer direct cremations:
- may not tell you that state or local law requires a casket for direct cremations, because none do;
- must disclose in writing your right to buy an unfinished wood box or an alternative container for a direct cremation; and
- must make an unfinished wood box or other alternative container available for direct cremations.
Burial Vaults or Grave Liners
Burial vaults or grave liners, also known as burial containers, are commonly used in “traditional” full-service funerals. The vault or liner is placed in the ground before burial, and the casket is lowered into it at burial. The purpose is to prevent the ground from caving in as the casket deteriorates over time. A grave liner is made of reinforced concrete and will satisfy any cemetery requirement. Grave liners cover only the top and sides of the casket. A burial vault is more substantial and expensive than a grave liner. It surrounds the casket in concrete or another material and may be sold with a warranty of protective strength.
State laws do not require a vault or liner, and funeral providers may not tell you otherwise. However, keep in mind that many cemeteries require some type of outer burial container to prevent the grave from sinking in the future. Neither grave liners nor burial vaults are designed to prevent the eventual decomposition of human remains. It is illegal for funeral providers to claim that a vault will keep water, dirt, or other debris from penetrating into the casket if that’s not true.
Before showing you any outer burial containers, a funeral provider is required to give you a list of prices and descriptions. It may be less expensive to buy an outer burial container from a third-party dealer than from a funeral home or cemetery. Compare prices from several sources before you select a model.
Preservation Processes and Products
As far back as the ancient Egyptians, people have used oils, herbs and special body preparations to help preserve the bodies of their dead. Yet, no process or products have been devised to preserve a body in the grave indefinitely. The Funeral Rule prohibits funeral providers from telling you that it can be done. For example, funeral providers may not claim that either embalming or a particular type of casket will preserve the body of the deceased for an unlimited time.
SAMPLE: Funeral Pricing Checklist
Make copies of this page and check with several funeral homes to compare costs.
“Simple” disposition of the remains:
Immediate burial __________
Immediate cremation __________
If the cremation process is extra, how much is it? __________
Donation of the body to a medical school or hospital __________
“Traditional,” full-service burial or cremation:
Basic services fee for the funeral director and staff __________
Pickup of body __________
Embalming __________
Other preparation of body __________
Least expensive casket __________
Description, including model # __________
Outer Burial Container (vault) __________
Description __________
Visitation/viewing — staff and facilities __________
Funeral or memorial service — staff and facilities __________
Graveside service, including staff and equipment __________
Hearse __________
Other vehicles __________
Total __________
Other Services:
Forwarding body to another funeral home __________
Receiving body from another funeral home __________
Cemetery/Mausoleum Costs:
Cost of lot or crypt (if you don’t already own one) __________
Perpetual care __________
Opening and closing the grave or crypt __________
Grave liner, if required __________
Marker/monument (including setup) __________
Shopping for Funeral Services
When a loved one dies, grieving family members and friends often are confronted with dozens of decisions about the funeral — all of which must be made quickly and often under great emotional duress. What kind of funeral should it be? What funeral provider should you use? Should you bury or cremate the body, or donate it to science? What are you legally required to buy? What about the availability of environmentally friendly or “green” burials? What other arrangements should you plan? And, practically, how much is it all going to cost?
Funeral Planning Tips
Many funeral providers offer various “packages” of goods and services for different kinds of funerals. When you arrange for a funeral, you have the right to buy goods and services separately. That is, you do not have to accept a package that may include items you do not want. Here are some tips to help you shop for funeral services:
- Shop around in advance. Compare prices from at least two funeral homes. Remember that you can supply your own casket or urn.
- Ask for a price list. The law requires funeral homes to give you written price lists for products and services.
- Resist pressure to buy goods and services you don’t really want or need.
- Avoid emotional overspending. It’s not necessary to have the fanciest casket or the most elaborate funeral to properly honor a loved one.
- Recognize your rights. Laws regarding funerals and burials vary from state to state. It’s a smart move to know which goods or services the law requires you to purchase and which are optional.
- Apply the same smart shopping techniques you use for other major purchases. You can cut costs by limiting the viewing to one day or one hour before the funeral, and by dressing your loved one in a favorite outfit instead of costly burial clothing.
- Shop in advance. It allows you to comparison shop without time constraints, creates an opportunity for family discussion, and lifts some of the burden from your family.
Buying a Cemetery Site
When you buy a cemetery plot, the cost is not the only consideration. The location of the cemetery and whether it meets the requirements of your family’s religion are important, as well.
Specific Considerations
Additional considerations include what, if any, restrictions the cemetery places on burial vaults purchased elsewhere, the type of monuments or memorials it allows, and whether flowers or other remembrances may be placed on graves.
And then there’s cost. Cemetery plots can be expensive, especially in metropolitan areas. Most, but not all, cemeteries require you to purchase a grave liner, which will cost several hundred dollars. Note that there are charges — usually hundreds of dollars — to open a grave for interment and additional charges to fill it in. Perpetual care on a cemetery plot sometimes is included in the purchase price, but it’s important to clarify that point before you buy the site or service. If it’s not included, look for a separate endowment care fee for maintenance and groundskeeping.
If you plan to bury your loved one’s cremated remains in a mausoleum or columbarium, you can expect to purchase a crypt and pay opening and closing fees, as well as charges for endowment care and other services. The FTC’s Funeral Rule does not cover cemeteries and mausoleums unless they sell both funeral goods and funeral services.
Veterans Cemeteries
All veterans are entitled to a free burial in a national cemetery and a grave marker. This eligibility also extends to some civilians who have provided military-related service and some Public Health Service personnel. Spouses and dependent children also are entitled to a lot and marker when buried in a national cemetery. There are no charges for opening or closing the grave, for a vault or liner, or for setting the marker in a national cemetery. The family generally is responsible for other expenses, including transportation to the cemetery. For more information, visit the Department of Veterans Affairs. To reach the regional Veterans Affairs office in your area, call 1-800-827-1000.
In addition, many states have established veterans cemeteries. Eligibility requirements and other details vary. Contact your state for more information.
You may see ads for so-called “veterans’ specials” by commercial cemeteries. These cemeteries sometimes offer a free plot for the veteran, but charge exorbitant rates for an adjoining plot for the spouse, as well as high fees for opening and closing each grave. Evaluate the bottom-line cost to be sure the special is as special as you may be led to believe.
Single Plot
- A burial plot in a public cemetery: The average cost for a single burial plot is $200 to $2,000. Rural cemeteries fall within the lower end of the range, while urban cemeteries are in the upper end of the range, as land is at a premium. Plots for infants and children are less expensive.
- A burial plot in a private cemetery: The average cost of a single burial plot is $2,000 to $5,000, depending on where the cemetery is located, the cemetery’s amenities, and whether the plot is in a more desirable section within the cemetery. As with public cemeteries, infant and child burial plots are less expensive than adult burial plots. In densely populated urban areas, a burial plot in a private cemetery can skyrocket up to $25,000 for a single burial plot, and up to $50,000 or higher for a double depth plot.
- A burial plot for cremated remains in a public cemetery: The average cost for burying cremation ashes in a public cemetery is $350 to $500.
- A burial plot for cremated remains in a private cemetery: The average cost for burying cremation ashes in a private cemetery is $1,000 to $2,500.
Companion Plots –
Companion plots are two burial plots that are sold together for a couple, usually a married couple. Companion plots can be two plots side-by-side, or a single plot in which the caskets are buried on top of each other (often referred to as “double depth”).
Single plots
These are the type of plots you may be the most accustomed to seeing, and are the most common in any cemetery or graveyard.
A single plot is sized to take just one casket and will only be suitable as the burial site for one person.
Companion plots
Some couples have an express wish to be buried together and this is when a companion plot would be purchased.
A companion plot is larger and designed for two people to be buried together, ideal for a married couple.
A companion plot can either consist of two caskets buried side by side, or alternatively, a single plot which is dug deeper where the two caskets are on top of each other. This is known as double depth.
Double depth companion plots may often work out more economical than those where the burials take place side by side because only one outer burial container is typically required, rather than two.
Family plots
In some cases a family may purchase an area of land within a cemetery which is dedicated to burials for members of the family.
The area is normally marked with a large headstone with the family name, and then each individual plot has a smaller headstone to mark their place.
Family plots in some cases may be simpler and consist of a strip of single plots which have been purchased together as a package, ready for use when needed.
Cremation plots
Cremated remains can also be buried in cemeteries, sometimes alongside a buried casket. Because cremated remains take up much less room, it’s sometimes possible to have several urns buried together.
Urn gardens
Another alternative for cremated remains is to arrange for the burial within a dedicated urn garden. This may be an area within a cemetery which is dedicated to the burial of urns, and is usually landscaped to be particularly picturesque.
Urn gardens can vary greatly in size and design, with some being no more than a small-sized plot while others are more elaborate, incorporating features such as benches, fountains, rocks or other parts of the landscape.
Because urn garden plots are not as big as a standard burial plot, they are typically cheaper. You may however have to factor in the cost for an outer container for the urn which some cemetery specify as compulsory before burial.
The cost of a plot
There are several factors which can determine the price of a plot, and the cost can vary depending on geographical location too.
The type of plot you buy, and the number of plots, inevitably has a bearing on the final price but the position within the cemetery can also influence the total cost. The more desirable locations usually cost more to purchase.
Just like any other kind of purchase, the more you buy at the same time, the cheaper each one works out to be. However, before buying any plots don’t forget to add in all the other costs such as the price of headstones and any ongoing maintenance costs too.
Public Mausoleum
A public mausoleum (sometimes referred to as a community mausoleum) is an above ground building memorializing multiple individuals. Mausoleums provide you with a secure enclosure that will remain clean and completely dry without ever letting the casket or vault come in contact with the earth.
Some of the most well known monuments in history are public mausoleums, such as the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, the Great Pyramids, Westminster Abbey, and the Tomb of Christ.
Above ground community mausoleum benefits:
- The burial site will always remain dry
- Loved ones can visit in any weather
- Public mausoleums are in-door and above ground
- Mausoleums offer the prestige of being entombed inside a structure