Egypt, Greece, Rome, Hebrew, and Early Christian Funeral Practices

CCMS SOC321: Historical to Contemporary Funeral Practices

This period includes Ancient Egypt, Ancient Greece, and Ancient Rome

Period of Evisceration

The Period of Evisceration lasted how long?

3200BC-650AD

The Period of Anatomists lasted how long?

650AD-1861AD

The Modern Era lasted how long?

1861-Present

This period includes the middle ages and the Renaissance

Period of Anatomists

This period includes pre/post Civil War through the present

Modern Era

Egyptians believed the _____ was the center of the universe

sun

_____ was the sun god

Ra

_____ was the earthly representation of the sun god

Pharaoh

Ra disappeared each evening in the _____ and fought his way through the underworld

west

Ra was reborn in the morning as a _____

scarab beetle

Scarab beetles represent _____

rebirth

_____ was the god of the Underworld and the Judge of the dead

Osiris

_____ murdered Osiris and threw him in the Nile

Set

Osiris’ wife was _____ who gathered his body and resurrected him

Isis

Isis had a son named _____ who became god of sky

Horus

This means keeping elements of the body intact; if the body is intact, the soul was also intact

Circle of Necessity

This means the soul was immortalized by having all its elements brought back to the body

Complex Elements Reassembled

Ba

Soul; the personality and all things that made that person unique

Ren

Name; given to you by the gods at birth

Sheut/Shuyet

Shadow; contained the essence of the person

Ib/Jb

Heart; seat of intellect, emotion, and good/evil

Ka

Spirit or vital essence; the most significant; remained with the body through ritualistic actions such as prayer

Yakhu/Akh/Ikhu

The Shining One; a combination of the Ba and Ka representing the enlightened immortal being after death

God of death and embalming

Anubis

Beast; devours hearts

Ament/Ammut/Ammit

Anubis weighed the heart of the dead against the _____

Feather of MaatT

The goddess _____ was the personification of Truth and Order

Maat

Greek philosopher gave the best-known accounts for egyptian embalming practices

Herodotus

Body preparation was based on _____

economic status

Natron

natural salts

Only ‘High End’ embalming got to have _____

canopic jars

Canopic jars represented the _____ children of Horus

four

Tuamutef (Jackal) canopic jar held the

heart and lungs

Mestha (Human) canopic jar held the

stomach and large intestines

Hapi (Dog) canopic jar held the

small intestines

Qebhsennuf (Hawk) canopic jar held the

liver and gallbladder

This was a mixture of linen and stucco; painted to give the deceased a lifelike appearance

Cartonnage

These were designed to act as substitutes for the deceased in the afterlife if they were called to work, so the soul could rest in peace

Ushtabi figures

The priest who superintended all embalming funeral arrangements was called the

Kher-heb

This was the funeral procession made up of oxen or men

Cortege

The “city of the dead” was known as this

necropolis

Earth and sky were created by the

Titans

_____ was the supreme god

Zeus

_____ was Zeus’ jealous wife

Hera

_____ was the god of the dead and the underworld

Hades

These are the three judges of the dead

Rhadamanthus, Aeacus, & Minos

Bad souls were delivered to the

Furies

Great souls were delivered to the

Elysian Fields

The average person ended up in

Hades

_____ took souls to Hades via the River Styx

Hermes

This was the passageway between the living and the dead

River Styx

The ferryman of the River Styx was known as

Charon

A coin, or _____, was placed in the mouth of the deceased to pay the ferryman for the journey

obol

_____ was the god of wine/ecstasy/fertility

Dionysius

_____ was practiced when bodies couldn’t be returned home

cremation

Human sacrifices to appease Gods were known as

suttee

Funeral preparation was done by who?

female family and children

This type of Greek tomb is an upright slab of stone

Stelae

This type of Greek tomb has columns

KionesT

This type of Greek tomb is square cut

TrapezaeT

This type of Greek tomb is a temple-like building

Naidia

Rome was known as the first _____ society

secular

This is the belief that all things have a soul and that the soul is the vital principle

animism

This philosopher believed that atoms just disintegrated upon death

Epicurus

In Roman culture, there was no incentive to be _____

good

A declaration, made by a government or ruler and states, that members of a given religion will not be persecuted for engaging in their religious practices and traditions and that all people deserve a proper burial

Edict of Toleration

Who made the Edict of Toleration?

Constantine the GreatW

When was the Edict of Toleration made?

300 AD

Cremation was normal _____ the Edict of Toleration

before

The Romans placed cremated remains in _____

columbaria

This means burial ‘outside the city walls’

extramural burial

_____ was the goddess of corpses and funerals

Libitina

_____ was the Roman equivalent of the head undertaker, first secular funeral director and businessman

Libitinarius

_____ was the roman word for embalmers

pollinctores

The _____ was the master of ceremonies and director of funeral procession

designator

The _____ was the death crier

praeco

A torchlight procession was known as

Funeralis

Sad funeral songs were called

dirges

Calling out for the dead was called

conclamatio mortis

Constantine enacted these types of laws that prevented overcharging of funeral paraphernalia and prohibited excessive funerary spending

sumptuary

_____ means ‘flesh’ and is one of two elements that composes man

basar

_____ means ‘breath’ and is one of two elements that composes man

nefesh

Shadowy afterlife was spent here

Sheol

Occasional but rare _____

embalming

_____, sometimes trained community members, took charge of preparing the body

women

rending the garments in mourning

K’riah

7 days of formal mourning

Shiv’ah

first full month of mourning

Sh’loshim

1 year anniversary of death

Yahrtzeit

In the Jewish faith, funerals are prohibited on the _____

Sabbath

_____ taught the infinite and equal value of every soul

Christ

The hope of Christianity is the _____

resurrection

Only in extreme circumstances of _____ were bodies cremated

disease

This word means ‘sleeping place’

cemetery

Early _____ laid down requirements for simple burial

Canon Law

The Christian _____ broke Jewish barriers as Christians touched the dead for the first time

Kiss of Peace

The _____ was meant to ensure that the deceased was not alive

wake

In _____ the poor would pool money to pay for funerals

burial clubs

Changing viewpoints in the church leads to the _____

Reformation