Chapter 4 - Funeral Rites and Funerary Treatment of the Dead

Neanderthals Circa:

300,000 to 30,000 Years Ago

Neanderthal Burial Customs and Afterlife

Had burial customs to honor dead and no idea what their version of the afterlife was

Burials in Shandar Cave (60,000 years ago)

Group of Neanderthals buried with 8 species of plants where 7 could be used for medicinal purposes

First Neanderthal Funeral Rite Pattern

Single place for corpse in caves or rock shelters

Second Neanderthal Funeral Rite Pattern

Bodies are buried in fetal position

Third Neanderthal Funeral Rite Pattern

Aligned in an east-west direction

Fourth Neanderthal Funeral Rite Pattern

Bodies usually lie on the left side

Fifth Neanderthal Funeral Rite Pattern

Sometimes heads were removed before burial

Sixth Neanderthal Funeral Rite Pattern

Had grave goods such as animal bones and stone tools

Ancient Greeks Circa

500 to 300 BC

Ancient Greeks Thoughts on Burial Rites

emphasized necessity of proper burial

omission of it was insult to human dignity

Ancient Greeks Pre-Burial Rites

relatives of deceased (primarily women) conducted elaborate rites

washed and anointed with oil

body dressed and placed on a high bed within house

Ancient Greek Burial Rites

very few objects in grave

monumental earth mounds, rectangular built tombs, and elaborate marble stelae and statues erected to mark grave

women made visits to grave with offerings

Prothesis

First Greek burial rite - laying out the body

Ekphora

Second Greek burial rite - funeral procession

Interment/cremating body

Third Greek burial rite

During Prothesis

Relatives and friends came to mourn and pray

Wealthy Aristocratic Family’s Graves

Relief sculptures of deceased’s life, statues, and finials

6th Century BC Ancient Greece

Had the most lavish funerary monuments were erected in this time period

End of 5th Century BC Ancient Greece

Athenian families began to bury their dead in simple stone sarcophagi

Marble monuments placed somewhere else instead of on grave

4th Century BC Ancient Greece

Too many family members added to gravestone inscription scenes making it difficult to distinguish between alive and dead

Ancient Maya Circa

600 to 900 AD

First Type of Mayan Burial Ritual

Simple burials of corpses in ground/within structure covered by earth/rubble

Second Type of Mayan Burial Ritual

Cist burials - secondary burials of bones and objects in hollowed out spaces

Third Type of Mayan Burial Ritual

Crypt burials - construction of a coffin-shaped grave built of cut stones and covered by stone capstones

Fourth Type of Mayan Burial Ritual

Burial chambers - rooms in buildings that sealed up after the body’s inside

Burial of Important Mayan People

Covered in red ochre or wrapped in burial shroud

Poorest Mayan Grave Goods

No Grave Goods at all

Royal Mayan Grave Goods

Decorated pottery vessels, jade jewelry, incense, seashells, coral, other parts of sea creatures, or jaguar bones/teeth

The Norse (Vikings) Circa

800 to 1050 AD

Norse Mythology

Odin sent his own dead son to sea in a funeral barge laden with gold and silver then set it on fire

Valhalla

One of the Norse afterlives where Odin and other warriors resided in a grand hall

Norse Ships

Used in life for survival and identity, then carried souls to next life by being set on fire

Norse Burial Rituals

Cremated in funeral pyre, laid in graves in wooden ships, or burnt while laid in stone ship on shore

High Status/Wealthy Norse Burial Rituals

buried in enormous longboat with sacrificed horses, wooden chests, ornate carts, beds, etc.

Norse Grave Goods

Food, weapons, treasure

Victorian England (and Anglo-America) Circa

1840 to 1914 AD

Victorian Wakes

corpse remained in home, dressed and laid out so family could see before burial; also open time for mourning and superstition

Victorian Beliefs After Death

spirit or deceased with other wanderers may become trapped in this world/possess the living

Victorian Mirrors and Paintings

Covered in black shroud so spirits wouldn’t become trapped inside them and anyone who looked may become possessed

Victorian Windows

Thrown open in last moments of someone’s life so spirit could leave house; also covered with a white sheet

Victorian Literature

specters appeared in windows and mirrors and called out to the living for entrance into home

Victorian City of Carthage

mourning mothers would collect their tears to be placed on grave as tangible evidence of loss and love

Victorian Tear Bottles

part of public and elaborate grieving inspired by literature and poetry to remind them of dead/sprinkle on grave

Victorian Trend in 19th and Early 20th Century

Post-mortem photography where a corpse would be dressed up and posed for a photograph; mostly children involved due to high mortality rate and too expensive when they’re alive

First Inuit (Northern Canada) Postmortem Ritual

Purification ritual where family of deceased empties person’s house by cleaning and burning grasses of resins (smudging)

Second Inuit Postmortem Ritual

Corpse kept overnight in house wrapped in shroud of animal skin (usually from seal) and leather thongs to force spirit to stay in body till final resting place

Third Inuit Postmortem Ritual

Men removed deceased through hole in wall in front or back of home to prevent bad luck

Fourth Inuit Postmortem Ritual

bundled body is placed on hilltop until buried under pile of stones, at bottom of cave, or outside to be eaten by birds

Regional Variation of Burial Ceremony

Greenland - sent bodies out to sea

Inuit Name Practice

Forbidden to pronounce name of dead person until given to unborn child to transmit values, characteristics, and destinies while soul/spirit gets to live again

Islam Beliefs After Death

Day of judgement and life after death; it’s a transition from on being to another, not an end

Actions follow you to afterlife

Islam Pre-Burial Rituals

Body is bathed and covered with white cotton by Muslim person (non-Muslim wear gloves) of same sex/gender

Islam Burial Ritual

Body must be buried ASAP (within 24 hours) so soul can be freed

No embalming or cremation

Head face Mecca or East

Eyes and mouth closed

No open casket

Islam Funeral Traditions

Guests greeted by someone of same sex and sit separately as well

Flowers, perfume, and excessive mourning are discouraged

Body carried by 4 men to graveyard with procession of friends and relatives following behind

Jannah

Islam final resting place for good and devout in afterlife

Salat al-Janazah

Islam funeral prayer asking Allah to forgive deceased and welcome them to Jannah

Islam After Burial Rituals

All guests go to deceased’s family’s house

Meal prepped

Guests stay entire day

Family members can stay for a whole week to socialize/ease suffering

Hidaad

3-day mourning period for relatives

Iddah

4 months and 10-day mourning period for widow

Wicca:

Neo-pagan Religion

First Part of Wicca Funeral

Priestess and priest conduct funeral ceremony with assistants

Body laid out at altar

Mourners wait at outside edges while priestess preps space and recites ritual chants

After prayer - mourners invited to speak to deceased

Second Part of Wicca Funeral

Priest/Priestess conducts ceremony

Deceased buried in natural setting with body wrapped in cloth to allow natural decomposition/quicker

Burial intended to respect Earth and for ‘death to nourish life’

Alternative Wicca Burials

Cremation and burial of ashes

May share some ashes with those who loved deceased

Strict/Orthodox Wicca Funeral/Burial

Non-Wiccans can be forbidden from participating

Summerlands

Wiccan afterlife that’s a forest filled with friends and family who died

Reincarnated eventually

Wiccan Beliefs

With each life, a person learns to lead a better life and accumulate life experiences

Judaism First After Death Ritual

body wrapped in white cloth and laid on floor with feet facing door and candles lit

Shomer

A ‘watcher’ that some families call upon to keep vigil over deceased

Chevra Kadisha

Orthodox Jewish volunteer group that washed and preps body and has to be the same sex as deceased

Judaism Burial Ritual

Can’t be cremated or embalmed

ASAP (within 24 hours)

Buried in plain coffin to represent equality

Head stone in cemetery to show they aren’t forgotten

Judaism Mourning

Takes place in cemetery, not synagogue

Kraih

Tear clothing or cut black ribbon as expression of grief

Shivah

7-day period of mourning when friends and family visit family of deceased and reminisce

Shloshim

For 30 days: Avoid haircuts, can’t shave, or wear clean clothes

Aveluf

Children of deceased expected to mourn for 1 year

Kaddish

At end of funeral service and for 1 year after death, this special prayer is said by relatives of deceased

Seudant havra-ah

following burial ceremony, communal meal for mourners with one meal always served: hard boiled eggs, to symbolize continuation of life