Funerary Customs Research Articles

The Uzbek-American Expedition in Bukhara. Preliminary Report on the Third Season (2017)

ABSTRACT Excavations at the site of Bashtepa, at the western interface of the Bukhara oasis and the Kyzyl-kum desert, and at the kurgan sites at Kuyu-Mazar and Lyavandak on the eastern and north eastern fringes of the oasis, are detailed here, enriching our understanding of agro-pastoralism in Antiquity. At Bashtepa, results indicate a shifting site function, from a border fortress, over a phase during which a monumental though still poorly understood platform dominated the northern part of the site, to a final phase when the site evolved into a small rural settlement characterized by pit houses. Preliminary archaeo-botanical and paleo-zoological studies demonstrate an engagement with grain farming, but also with animal husbandry, as well as hunting and fishing. Ceramics indicate contacts with the surrounding oases. Excavations at the kurgan provide new data on burial architecture and funerary customs, including a collective burial with khums being used as containers for human bones. Results challenge the chronology of previously excavated comparable kurgans in the area, suggesting an earlier date. The analysis of ceramics from the kurgan burials underlines the need to rework the dating of the ceramic typology for the Bukhara oasis, especially for the period between the 3rd century BCE and the 3rd century CE.

Patriarchs, Pipers and Presidents: Gaelic Immigrant Funerary Customs and Music in North America

One of the most moving tributes to the dead is the playing of the Highland bagpipes during funeral services, whether in the church or at the graveside. This custom has a long history both in Scotland and in areas of North America settled by Scottish immigrants over the past 300 years, and for lovers of bagpipe music it is an essential part of the funeral ritual. Throughout its history the piper’s lament has transcended social class structure and has been performed for paupers and presidents alike. Despite being deeply rooted in tradition, the music and function of this musical practice have changed over time. Drawing from printed texts of the 19th and 20th centuries, recent scholarship and local folklore surrounding funeral customs and music, this paper examines the origins of the funeral piping tradition in Gaelic Scotland and its evolution in North American society.

The Northern Necropolis of Gebelein in Light of Old and Current Fieldwork

The Northern Necropolis of Gebelein was a place of important discoveries, e.g. an archive of Old Kingdom papyri, the Tomb of Unknowns, and the Tomb of the General Iti II. Several excavations have taken place there, but none have been sufficiently published. The archaeological contexts of these discoveries are poorly known, which limits their research value. Archival data from two unpublished excavations can help to understand the archaeological topography of the eastern part of this cemetery. The current survey of the area enables the authors to understand the progress of previous excavations, to locate in the field some of the archaeological features discovered during the twentieth century excavations, and contributes to contextualisation of some of the artefacts which were discovered at the cemetery. The necropolis in question presents the development of an important, provincial burial ground which can contribute to the understanding of the history of the region and the funerary traditions in provincial areas. Worth to note are the peculiarities, such as an Old Kingdom mastaba with subsidiary burials within its walls, mummified dogs in a Twelfth Dynasty tomb, and Nubian influence on local funerary customs.

Funerary colors in Pre-classical Maya culture: the red pigment in the 19th tomb of Rio Azul (Peten, Guatemala)

The pigments were important in the funerary customs of the ancient Maya. They could be introduced as an offering inside the tombs or burials, and were also used to wrap the dead bodies, as if it were a funeral shroud. In the tombs and burials of royalty and high social classes the use of pigments for this purpose is well documented, and physicochemical studies are focused on their identification. This scientific contribution shows the results obtained when analyzing two reddish pigmenting materials from the grave goods of the tomb 19 of the archaeological site of Rio Azul, (Guatemalan Department of Petén), using a multi-technique approach including microscopy, diffraction, spectroscopic, electrochemical and chromatographic techniques. The results have enabled the identification of the inorganic and organic materials composing these pigmenting materials found in a ceramic posthumous offering dish and further discussion mainly has been focused on the geological source of the inorganic materials and the possible origin of the organic matter accompanying these two pigmenting materials.

Herodotus 9.85 and Spartiate Burial Customs

At 9.85 Herodotus states that after the Battle of Plataia, the Lakedaimonians buried their dead in three separate graves: one for the ἱρέες, one for the rest of the Spartiates, and one for helots. Taken together with 9.71, this passage suggests that all of the Spartiates decorated for bravery at Plataia were priests, which seems prima facie improbable. The interpretive challenges presented by 9.85 have been the subject of lively scholarly debate since the eighteenth century because this passage potentially provides important evidence for Spartiates’ funerary, religious, and educational customs. With an eye to facilitating future research, this article offers a detailed conspectus of the extensive collection of relevant scholarship and, in part by drawing upon evidence from the archaeological excavations of the Tomb of the Lakedaimonians in the Kerameikos, identifies one reading, which involves athetizing part of 9.85, as the preferred interpretive approach.

Changes in funerary rites and burial practices in Modern Korea (1876–1945)

ABSTRACTBefore Korea opened its ports in 1876, funerary customs and burial practices were strongly influenced by Confucianism and geomancy. Wailing was systematized, and the sacred nature of ancestral bones allowed only for earth burial, preferably in spots that were selected for their geomantic energy. Japan, extending its influence in Korea steadily up to full annexation in 1910, intensely challenged Korean burial practices in an attempt to align them with Japanese procedures. In the name of modernization, public cemeteries and cremation were introduced, while private graveyards were forcefully removed. This article attempts to trace these changes and evaluate their impact in Modern Korea. First, the situation at the advent of Modern Korea will be outlined to understand the problems during that period. Next, Japanese changes to funerary practice in Korea will be reviewed, and then reactions to these changes will be analyzed through the diary left by Yun Ch’i-ho (1864–1945), a famous intellectual and controversial figure in Modern Korean history, who, after a life struggling between Confucianism and Christianity, Korean nationalism and Japanese collaboration, left behind 50 years’ worth of diary entries that bear witness of the end of the Korean Empire and the entire colonial period. It serves as source to understand how Japanese colonial policy concerning burial practice influenced the mind-set and actions of the Korean elite.

Greek Christian epitaphs from Charakmoba and the Land of Moab

ABSTRACTFifteen Greek inscriptions recently discovered in the Land of Moab (southern Jordan) are published here. All are Christian epitaphs, engraved on limestone funerary stelae of an extremely common type at Al-Karak (ancient Charakmoba) and on the surrounding plateau, which bring new information on the onomastics and funerary customs of the local communities in Late Antiquity. An epigram that contains phrases directly borrowed from the epic code of the time is also remarkable. Like the other, less sophisticated, inscriptions discussed here, it testifies to the late and partial Hellenization that characterized the history of the Land of Moab in the Byzantine period.

Burial in the Time of the Amorites. The Middle Bronze Age Burial Customs from a Mesopotamian Perspective

The paper focuses on the funerary customs attested in Middle Bronze Age (MBA) Mesopotamia, addressing the issue of common or distinctive characteristics and searching for potential evidence of assimilation of a new tribal-rooted identity. Specific burial practices, such as residential burials, use of vaulted chamber tombs and post-entombment rituals, were widely disseminated throughout the whole area during this period. Occurrence of donkey burials appears to be another distinctive trait in Upper Mesopotamia. Moreover, certain characteristic elements of these practices have been noted beyond Mesopotamia, in the Levant and as far as the eastern Nile Delta (Tell Daba’a), where they are associated with the Hyksos period. A puzzling resemblance between MBA funerary assemblages from Tell Arbid in northern Syria (Upper Mesopotamia) and the material from the distant region of Tell Daba’a (Avaris) was noted. This prompted a deeper study and presentation of the Mesopotamian MBA burials in a broader sociopolitical context, addressing issues of the character of similarities and discrepancies through comparison of relevant ritual variables throughout the area discussed. It confirmed a broad emergence of parallel mortuary behaviors focusing on kinship and ancestor commemoration. However, several areas do not fit this seemingly coherent picture of funerary customs, revealing distinctive regional identities. The changes in burial customs coincide with a sociopolitical transformation in Mesopotamia, resulting in the establishment of Amorite kingdoms and a profusion of pastoral tribes. It would seem, therefore, that the adoption of a new mortuary ideology and new constructed group identity was an answer to these sociopolitical developments.

ETHNODIALECTIC FEATURES OF KOSTROMA OMENS, RELATED TO NAMES OF BIRDS AND ANIMALS (BASED ON V.I. SMIRNOV'S MATERIALS)

The article, based on the materials of ethnographic notes by V. I. Smirnov «Folk funerals and lamentations in the Kostroma Territory», analyzes the names of birds and animals found in the folk omens collected in the late 19th and early 20th centuries by the members of Kostroma Scientific Society specialised on the Study of the Local Territory, thematically related to funeral customs and rituals, identifying their ethno-dialectical features, which are a hallmark of a special ethnocultural zone - the Kostroma Volga region.

中西殡葬习俗折射出的社会文化差异之浅析

中西殡葬习俗折射出的社会文化差异之浅析

A study on the cinnabar-bottomed burials of the early Bronze Age

Abstract Bottoming burials with cinnabar emerged in Phase II of the Erlitou Culture of the Xia Dynasty, which might be an important step of the interment ceremony of the Xia people, especially the elites, with the meaning of laying foundations for the burials in order to bless the deceased in the afterworld. This funeral custom became more common, which might be because of the northward expansion of the Erlitou Culture into southern Shanxi that involved absorbing or replacing local cultural elements. In the early Shang Dynasty, cinnabar-bottomed burials continued to exist, which supports the traditional belief that “Shang people followed the regulations of Xia”. By the time of the late Shang Dynasty, the popularity of waist pit burials increased while the ability of the Shang people to control the cinnabar resource declined, and consequently we see fewer cinnabar-bottomed burials.

An analysis of modified human teeth at Neolithic Çatalhöyük, Turkey

The use of human teeth for ornamental purposes is archaeologically documented from the European Upper Palaeolithic, and, sporadically, during the subsequent Mesolithic, Neolithic and Chalcolithic periods. To date, no examples of this practice are available for the Near East during this timeframe. This contribution presents three human teeth from Neolithic Çatalhöyük (Central Anatolia, Turkey; 7100–6000 cal BC) that appear to have been modified for use as pendants. Macroscopic, microscopic and radiographic analyses confirm the modification and use of two out of three of these finds. The two confirmed pendants were likely extracted from the skeletonised remains of mature and old adults, carefully drilled, and worn for a variable period of time. The rarity of such artefacts in the prehistoric Near East suggests a profound symbolic meaning for this practice and these objects, and provides new insights into the funerary customs and symbolic importance of the use of human body parts during the Neolithic of the Near East.

Funerary customs of Golasecca Culture

Both M. Primas in 1970 and the Author in 1988 argued that within the Golasecca culture three cultural facies were recognizable: Como, Golasecca, Sopraceneri including Mesolcina. On the basis of the available data then it could be said that in the first two facies the exclusive funerary rite was cremation, while to the north of the Monte Ceneri gradually passed from cremation to biritualism and finally to inhumation as an exclusive funeral rite. Recently the thesis was presented that in the Golasecca facies also inhumation tombs were present. According to Gambari, two pit tombs of the necropolis of Pombia, the t. 12/1995 and the t. 15/1995, would be interpreted as childhood or adolescence inhumation graves. In the complete absence of skeletal remains, the hypothesis was formulated solely on the basis of the pit size, which was not exceptional. According to Grassi and Mangani four pit tombs of the necropolis of Monsorino di Golasecca would always be inhumations exclusively on the basis of the pit size. The Author rejects these interpretations as unfounded. First of all, in the absence of skeletal remains due to the strong acidity of the soil, two hypotheses can be taken into consideration: the inhumation or the rite of spreading the burnt bones on the bottom of the tomb. The analysis of the grave goods indicates as likely the second hypothesis. For example in the tomb 12/1995 there is a fragment of a broken and bent pin. De-functionalization in accordance with ritual norms is characteristic of cremation tombs. In the necropolis of Pombia two tombs, the 4/1995 and the 7/1995, have a size comparable to those considered to be inhumations, but burnt bones were discovered in them, thus confirming the ritual of spreading the ashes on the bottom of the tomb. In the tomb 39 of Monsorino a beaker with a globular body and distinct neck has the ribbon handle removed with a clean cut both to the upper and lower attachment, according to a ritual norm typical of the Golasecca culture when a pot is used as a container for the burnt bones, also in the same grave the metal objects have been discovered towards one end of the pit, but if it were an inhumation tomb the bronze belt-plate should be in the center of the pit. Grassi, Mangani and Voltolini argue that the grave of the Tripod from Sesto Calende-Bellaria would have been an inhumation burial, relying on the position of the objects, moreover they believe that the tomb would have had a bottom entirely covered with wooden planks and also a covering of wooden planks and it would never have been subject to violation with removal of the slab cover and part of the grave-goods. The author presents the excavation data, some of which are still unpublished, which clearly demonstrate the violation of the tomb and the unreliability of the reconstruction proposed by Grassi, Mangani and Voltolini. Since no rest of the skeleton has been preserved, one must think of its complete dissolution due to the nature of the soil, too acidic, but this fact is denied by the preservation of animal bones in one of the cups. Furthermore, in the NE corner of the tomb the body of a small leech fibula was found, devoid of spring, and catch-plate, all deformed by thermal effect, evidently coming from the funerary pyre. The arrangement of the materials is incompatible with the hypothesis of an inhumation, in particular an iron spit was found mixed with the chains of the long pendant / breastplate. Grassi, Mangani and Voltolini believe that the incontrovertible proof of the existence of inhumation burials in the facies of Golasecca and Como are two tombs from the small necropolis of Urago d’Oglio, dated to the second half of the fifth century and attributed to the Golasecca culture. This thesis is the result of a series of macroscopic typological classification, dating and cultural background mistakes. In fact, four cremation graves can be dated to the end of the sixth century, while two inhumations date back to the La Tene B (fourth century BC) and must be attributed to the Cisalpine Gauls.

Transformation by Fire: Changes in Funerary Customs from the Early Agricultural to Early Preclassic Period among Prehispanic Populations of Southern Arizona

We examine the changes in funerary rituals from the Early Agricultural period (2100 BC–AD 50) to the Early Preclassic period (AD 475–750) and how these changes concurrently reflect changes in social relationships between the dead, their families, and the community. The predominant mortuary ritual in the Early Agricultural period was inhumation, possibly emphasizing a variety of identity intersections of the dead and the mourners in the treatment of the body while creating collective memories and remembrances through shared ways of commemorating the dead. An innovation in funerary practices in the form of secondary cremation appeared in the Early Agricultural period and was slowly but broadly adopted, representing new social dynamics within the society. Thereafter, secondary cremation became the main funeral custom. During the Early Preclassic period, the variation in body position and the type and quantity of objects found with individuals decreased. It is possible that the vehicle for displaying different identity intersections changed and was not placed in the body, per se, as much as in previous periods. However, the transformation characteristics of these funeral rituals and the increase in community investment could have fostered the building or reinforcing of stronger social ties that highlighted a “collective identity.”

STUDI HADIS – HADIS TENTANG SHALAT JENAZAH

Merupakan sebuah kewajiban bagi setiap muslim untuk menyelenggarakan jenazah saudaranya jika meninggal dunia. Salah satu dari kewajiban tersebut adalah menshalatkan jenazah. Adanya berbagai macam sikap dan pengamalan kaum muslimin dalam menshalatkan jenazah seperti dalam menentukan siapa orang yang berhak untuk menjadi imam dalam shalat jenazah, dan beleh atau tidaknya menshalatkan jenazah pelaku maksiat seperti jenazah pelaku zina dan jenazah koruptor yang telah menimbulkan polemik dan perdebatan di kalangan ahli ilmu sekarang ini. berbagai macam sikap kaum muslimin tersebut di atas juga didasarkan pada hadis-hadis Rasulullah SAW yang mana kualitasnya ada yang shahih, hasan dan dhaif. Oleh karena itu, penelitian ini akan membahas bagaimana kehujjahan dan pemahaman hadis tentang shalat jenazah yang lebih terfokus kepada hadis-hadis tentang siapa orang yang berhak mengimami shalat jenazah dan hadis tentang Rasul tidak menshalatkan jenazah pelaku maksiat seperti jenazah pelaku zina dan jenazah koruptor.

Identifying a Dionysian Community in Ashkelon’s Eastern Cemetery

Grave goods recovered from Roman Ashkelon’s Eastern Cemetery help not only to date the burials but also to enlighten us as to the deceased’s faith and the funerary customs of this period. The finds...

Patterns of funerary variability, diet, and developmental stress in a Celtic population from NE Italy (3rd-1st c BC).

Little is known about the types of social organization characterizing the pre-Roman Celtic populations of Italy. Here, we explore the funerary variability characterizing the late Iron Age site of Seminario Vescovile (SV: Verona, Italy, 3rd-1st c. BC), and test its possible correlation to diet and relative exposure to developmental stressors. Patterns on funerary treatment (N = 125), δ13C and δ15N (N = 90), and linear enamel hypoplasia (N = 47) from SV are compared, and their possible association with sex and age-at-death further discussed. Results point to the presence at SV of variable funerary customs while at the same time demonstrating a rather homogenous diet and exposure to developmental stressors: funerary treatment is mainly correlated to age-at-death but do not appear to be associated to either isotopic patterns or hypoplasia frequencies. Accordingly, even if some weak social differentiation may have characterized the individuals buried at SV, this was not reflected in markedly differing living conditions. Our study is the first to attempt an exploration of the links between age, sex, funerary variability, and diet in a pre-Roman Celtic community from Italy. While highlighting the potential of a multifaceted approach in bioarcheology, it also points to a series of analytical and theoretical issues relevant when trying to disentangle the cultural and biological dimensions of social differentiation in the past.

Post-medieval burial customs in Germany – an archaeological perspective on materiality and spatiality

ABSTRACTPeople generally behave conservatively when dealing with their deceased as very few alterations in the funerary customs are detectable over centuries or even millennia. There were certain periods, however, when this was different and more rapid and radical changes occurred. There is, for example, a marked changeover in mortuary practices in central Europe during the transition from the Middle Ages to the early modern era following the years around 1500. Another major shift becomes visible in the 18th and 19th centuries. This paper serves as an overview concerning the archaeological research on the changing burial customs from the high medieval period until the early 20th century in Germany. Only a few excursions across the modern state borders into the wider German-speaking area are made. The main focus lies on the later post-medieval times with a special emphasis on the different beliefs in Catholic and Protestant areas and their archaeological manifestation. Of course, explanations for the discovered changes will also be suggested. Graves were used as a means of symbolic communication between this world and the hereafter. Therefore changes in burial custom – such as the location of the cemeteries, the location of the individual graves, and their furnishing with graves goods – always express changes in living culture as well.

Plant Identification and Significance in Funeral Traditions Exemplified by Pillow Filling from a Child Crypt Burial in Byszewo (18th/19th centuries)

Plants have always played an important role in funeral customs. To understand their true meaning, close cooperation between the archaeologist and the archaeobotanist is needed, not only during the final interpretation, but from the very beginning, at the stage of collecting materials. In the article, plants’ identification, using both pollen and macroremains analysis, was described, based on one of the children’s burial from the Holy Trinity Church in Byszewo (18th/19th centu-ries). The filling of the coffin pillow consisted of numerous hop (Humulus lupulus) macroremains, the representation of which was very low in pollen sample. This is due to the fact that only female specimens of hop were inserted into the coffin. To determine the reason for using hops in funeral practices in Byszewo, ethnobotanical data was used. The following re-search indicates the need for the cooperation between two methods of plant identification. It will allow misinterpretations of botanical findings to be avoided.

The Burial Rituals of the Khakass People

Ethnic cultures experience great transformations that affect their sustainability and holistic nature. However, the traditions related to life and death are, remarkably, persisting. This articles focuses on funerary customs and burial rituals that are significant for the Khakass people. In this research of the Khakass burial rituals we bring together archaeological, ethnographic, and folklore material that reveals unique data about funerary customs. The article reviews the burial rituals in historical perspective and focuses on changes the rituals have undergone. It concludes with the summary of transformations in contemporary burial practices.