Intro to Mortuary Science
Roles of Egyptian Embalming Specialists
1. Designer or painter 2. Dissector or anatomist 3. Pollinctor or Apothecary 4. Embalmer or surgeon 5. Physician or priest
Egyptian Burial Traditions
1. Dry burial 2. Embalming
Egyptians believed the body would be resuscitated so they:
1. Preserved the body 2. Put food with the body 3. Placed the body in tombs for protection 4. Prayed for the dead
Cremation began in
1000 B.C.E. Ancient Greeks believed the flames set the soul free. Slaves/animals were sometimes slaughtered and placed in tombs of the rich
Chadwick's report
1840's reported on unsanitary conditions in London created by intramural burials, the high cost of funerals and the 1st use of the death certificate.
National Funeral Directors Association (NFDA)
a professional association of funeral directors and embalmers organized in 1882. It is the oldest and largest national funeral service organization in the world. NFDA currently provides is advocacy, education, information, products, programs and services to help members enhance the quality of services to families. (this statement taken from the NFDA constitution)
Natron
a salt found in dry lake beds of the desert and used by early Egyptians in preparation of bodies. Bodies immersed in the product (believed to be composed of chloride, carbonate, and sulfate of sodium and nitrate of potassium and sodium) were dehydrated thus preventing decay.
Funeral trolley car
a specially designed train car run on a city's trolley line to transport casket and mourners to cemeteries on the outskirts of the city.
Inviter to funerals
a specialty connected with funerals in colonial America; called personally upon those expected to attend funerals; often a municipal appointment.
Jewish Funeral Directors of America (JFDA)
chartered in 1928 to secure harmony in the profession among Jewish funeral directors and elevate the practice of the profession.
Sexton
church caretaker who had responsibility for church property, ringing of bells and digging of graves in the churchyard cemetery. During the Middle Ages most funeral practices were under the direction of church officials.
Necropolis
city of the dead; in Egypt these walled cities located just outside the city proper contained places of burial, mortuary temples and residences of mortuary workers.
Style 'E' state coffin
cloth covered coffin designed for ex-President US Grant by Stein Coffin Co. in 1885 helped elevate acceptance of cloth covered caskets.
Burial club
created in 1800s London by the poor people as a means to afford funerals; costs were shared by others via weekly collections; were the forerunners of industrial insurance.
Direct disposition
disposition of human remains without any rites or ceremonies.
Immediate burial
disposition via earth burial without any form of funeral rite at the time of disposition.
Professional mourners
due to fear that the dead might be jealous, the ancient Romans and Greeks hired persons (often women) to shriek, tear their hair and rend garments, etc. in order to insure adequate display of emotion.
Life signals
due to the fear of pre-mature burial, many early American coffins were designed and patented with a method to alert the living if someone was buried alive.
Sarcophagus
early Egyptians cut massive coffins from a single mass of stone to protect from grave robbers. Same term is applied today to massive copper and bronze caskets. Derivation of term is from Greek, sarco for flesh and phagus for eaters because when opened, bodies inside were found to be in a state of decay.
Anubis
Egyptian god of embalming said to be of human form with the head of a jackal.
Osiris
Egyptian god of the underworld and judge of the dead.
Crier
English custom of Middle Ages which lasted until 19th century.; person who walked the street calling out the name of the deceased and asking people to pray for the soul of the departed.
Cremation Association of North America (CANA)
Founded in 1913, CANA is an international organization of cemeterians, cremationists, funeral directors, industry suppliers and consultants. CANA was originally formed to promote cremation as a modern, safe and hygienic way of dealing with a dead human body.
Where is embalming mentioned in the Bible?
Genesis 50:2, 3, and 26 Joseph commanded his servants to embalm Israel. He was also embalmed at 110 years old.
Animistic view
early Roman view of the afterlife which emphasizes the soul as the vital principle. The soul at death hovered around the place of burial and required. constant attention of the descendants to be happy. Neglect would bring evil upon them.
National Association of Colleges of Mortuary Science
established in 1942 as an organization for privately sponsored schools with the goal of advancement of mortuary education.
National Foundation of Funeral Service
established in 1945 as a non-profit educational trust to advance the education of the profession; currently merged with the NFDA as Funeral Service Foundation.
Undertakers Mutual Protective Association
first formal organization of undertakers; kept a black book of objectionable and delinquent customers to be shared among members only; originated in Philadelphia, January 1864.
Bier
forerunner of today's hearse; a hand stretcher on which the uncoffined body was carried to the grave.
Leagues of Prayer
formed in Middle Ages by lay persons to bury the dead and to pray for the souls of the faithful departed.
Casket
from the French term 'casse' meaning Jewel box' or container for something valuable; came into dominant use in patent literature for burial receptacles in 1890 's in America; a rigid container which is designed for the encasement of human remains and which is usually constructed of wood, metal, fiberglass, plastic, or like material, and ornamented and lined with fabric.
Coffin
from the Greek word 'kofinos'; utilitarian container designed to hold human remains, often anthropoidal in shape.
Cortege
funeral procession.
Adaptive funeral
funeral rite that is adjusted to the needs and wants of those directly involved; altered to suit the trends of the times.
Burial case
generic term used in America to designate all burial receptacles as new variations of the coffin were being offered.
Obsequies
historic term for funeral ceremonies
anthropoid
human shaped; some early coffins were described as anthropoidal shaped.
Elysian fields
in Greek mythology, the Greek version of heaven.
Funeral feast
in Middle Ages the wake also served as a feast to welcome the principal heir to his new estate; for the ancient Greeks, funeral feasts ended the fast of the bereaved.
National Funeral Directors and Morticians Association
incorporated in 1938 as National Negro Funeral Directors and Morticians Association; present name adopted 1957; established to represent specific interests of African-American funeral directors.
Canopic jars
jars made of alabaster, limestone, basalt, clay and other materials used by the early Egyptians to store viscera of the deceased.
Trocar
long hollow tube patented in 1868 by Samuel Rogers of Philadelphia; used by embalmers to inject fluids into cavities and remove excess liquids.
Designator
master of ceremonies and director of the ancient Roman funeral procession.
Cremation
method of disposing of the dead body via fire; first attributed to the ancient Greeks.
Hand pump
method to apply a continuous flow of embalming solution via manual manipulation of a handheld mechanism.
Soul shot
mortuary fee paid to insure entrance of the decedent's soul into heaven.
Undertaker's buggy
name given to the vehicle used by undertakers to transport the necessary mortuary paraphernalia to the homes where funerals were typically held. These vehicles sometimes had an appearance like a hearse but were much less ornate.
Pollinctores
name of the ancient Roman embalmers. They were either slaves or employees of Libitinarius
Pagan
one who has little or no religion and who delights in sensual pleasures and material goods; heathen; an irreligious or hedonistic person; in ancient Rome, a follower of a polytheistic religion.
Trade embalmer
or embalmer to the trade; term originated when some of the original graduates of early embalming courses gave up regular employment with a single firm to provide embalming service to firms which had no trained embalmer.
University Mortuary Science Education Association
organization of college and university based funeral service programs established in 1961.
Conference of Funeral Service Examining Boards
organization of licensing agencies in North America; responsible for the national licensing exam known as the National Board Exam; established in St. Louis in 1904.
Manufacturers Association
organization of the casket manufacturers intended to facilitate sharing of information (now known as the Casket and Funeral Supply Association)
Undertaker
original term applied to those whose occupation included responsibility to organize and facilitate funeral activities; used interchangeably (by some) for the term funeral director.
Wake
originated as an ancient Hebrew practice, family and friends sit with the deceased as a precaution against premature burial; continued as an act of piety in Middle Ages (aka vigil for the dead).
Catacombs
originated in ancient Rome as excavated cemeteries cut out of soft rock for the tombs of wealthy Christians; later became a place for religious rites to avoid persecution.
Burial vault
outer enclosure for caskets placed in the grave; originally intended to prevent grave robbery.
Fisk metallic coffin
patented in 1848 as form-fitting, airtight metallic coffin designed to improve ability to preserve the body; also had a glass plate to allow for viewing of the face.
Cooling board
portable table on which the body was placed while the corpse cooler was in use; later became the embalming table when embalming was done in the home of the deceased.
Funeral undertaker
provided services of organizing and facilitating funeral details as an occupation; aka undertaker, different from furnishing undertaker.
Furnishing undertaker
provided supplies and merchandise (i.e. door badges, carriages etc.) to funeral undertakers who were dealing directly with the public. Furnishing undertakers filled the role of middle man.
Catafalque
raised platform (with or without a canopy) used for a body to lie in state.
Mystery cults
religious/philosophical belief of the ancient Greeks and Oriental East emphasizing spiritual aspects of the afterlife and the hope of joining the cult god in a wonderful existence in eternity.
Burial in Woolen Act of 1666
required that woolen cloth be substituted for linen in the shroud and lining of the coffin; was an attempt to shift the use of imported linen to the expanding paper industry of England and provide customers for the wool industry. Heavy fines were assessed for violation; not repealed until 1814.
Restorative Art
term applied to systematic treatment of cases requiring repair of injuries due to disease or trauma. Joel Crandall, a New York City embalmer, is credited with developing such a treatment plan in 1912.
Libitinarius
the ancient Roman goddess of corpses and funerals.
Scarab Beetle
this symbol represented rebirth due to its perceived magical powers to create life from death
Hearse
today, a vehicle specially designed to transport casketed remains; derived from French word, herse; originally a stationary framework of wood to hold candles and decorations placed on the coffin; forerunner was a bier; hearse and bier were used interchangeably until mid-19th century.; aka funeral coach.
Drummers
traveling salesmen who went from town to town selling their products. Early embalmers often obtained their products and training in this manner.
Corpse cooler
type of ice chest placed over the torso the body in order to slow down the process of decomposition prior to the funeral. It was typically a responsibility of the undertaker to provide ice and change the ice when it melted.
"Ordinary" Romans had funerals at
Night
Hebrew Burial Customs
- Body washed, anointed, and dressed - Burial on day of death due to climate - Buried without coffins - Burial with family was important - Embalming rare. Cremation discouraged
2nd Egyptian Embalming Method
- Cedar oil injected into body - Body laid in nature (salt) This reduced the body to skin and bones
Ancient Romans
- Cremated early on - Buried after Christ - Body placed on funeral couch for 3 days to a week
Ancient Germans and Scandinavians
- Cremation popular until Christianity took over - Cremation freed spirits and protected the living from the dead
Christian Funerals
- Food/money to poor at grave - Prayers for the dead - More elaborate over time - Feast days on death anniversaries of martyrs - Church help with funeral functions - Burial clubs
3rd Egyptian Embalming Method
- Intestines purged - Body soaked in salt solution
Funeral Processions
- Many cultures - Varied by social status - Subdued and reverent for early Christians
Early Christian Burial Customs
- Preferred burial - Simple funeral ceremonies with lights and holy water - Crossed hands - Holy ground
Commonalities among ancient civilizations
- Relationships between the dead and the living do not end at death - Location of burial/cremation was important - The dead have needs and personality
Ancient Greeks
- Reverenced the dead - Cremated battle dead and sent them home - Body preped. by family - Held viewings
Viking Ship Burial
- Surrounded by possessions and necessities - Sacrificed slave girl and animals - Stone outline of a ship if necessary
Greek coffins
- Wood - Stone - Baked clay
Purgatorial Doctrine
Catholic belief that those whose souls are not perfectly cleans ed undergo a process of cleansing before they can enter heaven.
Wealthy Romans had funerals during the
Day
Funeralis
Latin for torchlight procession; word 'funeral' is derived from this.
1st Egyptian Embalming Method
The rich and high ranking were mummified. - Brain and internal organs removed and placed in 4 canonic jars - Head/body cavities filled with species/resins - Body soaked in soda solution for 40 days - Body wrapped in linen
National Selected Morticians (NSM)
a limited membership funeral service organization formed in 1917 on the basis of one member firm per city; now known as Select Independent Funeral Homes (SIFH).
Effigy
a life-sized, waxen recreation (dummy) of the deceased; often used at state funerals because the body of the deceased should be present for the funeral but could not be preserved for that length of time.
American Board of Funeral Service Education
agency/organization with responsibility to accredit colleges and programs of mortuary science/funeral service education.
Praeco
aka crier, a special funeral functionary in ancient Rome who summoned participants to a public funeral.
Ogee design
an innovation'. introduced to square sided caskets in order to reduce the excess space and weight, particularly of metal caskets; characterized by an "S." shaped curvature.
Circle of necessity
ancient Egyptian belief that the soul of the deceased would make a 3000-year journey and return to the body. Once reunited the whole man would live with the gods. This belief created the need for embalming.
Mound burial
ancient Viking custom; after deceased was placed in his boat with items necessary for the spirit to maintain the position held on earth, all was cremated, and the pyre then covered with earth.
Gravity injector
apparatus used to inject arterial fluid during the vascular (arterial) phase of the embalming process; relies on gravity to create the pressure required to deliver the fluid (0.43 pounds of pressure per foot of elevation).
Barber-surgeon
approximately 1540-1745 were the sole agency permitted to embalm and perform anatomical dissections in the city of London.
Order of the Golden Rule (OGR)
association established in 1928; committed to quality services and high standards; membership limited to one independently owned funeral home per community; now known as IOGR (International Order of Golden Rule).
Layers out of the dead
became an occupational specialty in many larger US cities by the end of the 18th century.; predecessor to the undertaker.
Bloodletting
belief or practice of draining a quantity of blood to cure illness or disease.
Extramural burial
burial outside the walls of the city; concept introduced during the ancient Roman times.
