To Protect the Corpse from Being Stolen. Snatching dead bodies was common in many parts of England and Scotland in the early 1800s. Therefore, graves were always dug six feet deep to prevent body snatchers from gaining access to the buried remains.
For the most part, graves dug today are not 6 feet deep. For single gravesites, roughly 4 feet deep is closer to the norm. An exception is double- or even triple-depth plots. In these plots, caskets are "stacked" vertically in the same gravesite.
When we say that a person is six feet under, this means that he or she is dead and buried. Some historians believe that this slang expression has historical significance related to The Great Plague of London in 1665. In order to prevent further outbreak, six feet may have been the minimum depth to bury dead bodies.
Therefore the grave needs to be deep enough to allow not only for the depth of coffins/caskets that will be buried but also to accommodate legal requirements of undisturbed earth to be between each coffin and the amount of earth that must cover the last interment.
It should be free from water or hard rock to a depth of not less than 4 feet 3 inches if only one interment is to be made in each grave. This would allow 1 foot 3 inches for depth of coffin and 3 feet for cover of earth above the coffin.
If the ground is light, dry soil, decomposition is quicker. Generally speaking, a body takes 10 or 15 years to decompose to a skeleton. Some of the old Victorian graves hold families of up to eight people. As those coffins decompose, the remains will gradually sink to the bottom of the grave and merge.
For example, human burial legislation in NSW requires the top of the coffin to be buried no less than 900 millimetres below the natural surface level of the soil. This works out to around three feet. When you take the cask dimensions into account, you're looking at an overall single-coffin depth of four to five feet.
The wheat has no religious significance but is a centuries old custom that symbolises the resurrection at judgement time. The family then approaches to place some sand in the grave which symbolises going back to original roots, back to the earth.
Capacity of the grave
Graves can be for a maximum of three full earth burials, depending on ground conditions in the cemetery. The depth has to be determined with the first burial. In a dedicated cremation plot, designed solely for cremated remains, ten caskets can be interred.
Over time, however, the soil will settle, and the pockets of air will gradually be removed. This will result in a denser soil – and the surface of the grave will appear to have dropped. The technical term for this change is grave subsidence, but it is often referred to as grave sinking.
Coffins get tapered to conform to the shape of a human form. A coffin also has a removable lid while caskets have lids with hinges. Coffins are usually made out of wood and lined with cloth interiors. Unlike caskets, they do not have rails that make transportation easier.
For those who are embalmed and buried in a coffin, five to 10 years is a more typical decomposition timeline, he said. At that point, the tissue is gone and only bones remain. The quality of the embalming job also plays a role, Wescott said.
It has been used to prevent the odor of decay, to give family members closure and prevent them from witnessing the decomposition of their loved ones, and in many cultures it has been seen as a necessary step for the deceased to enter the afterlife or to give back to the cycle of life.
Nothing physically prevents a casket from being unlocked and reopened before it is buried in a grave. When preparing for a funeral, funeral directors will seal, lock, and reopen caskets several times. They may close and seal it shut for transport to the funeral, then open it during the service.
In a coffin or casket, a body will decompose over time. During the first few months underground, the body will typically undergo active decay, putrefaction, and blackening. Over several decades, the tissue and organs will continue to break down and liquefy until only the teeth remain.
The rate at which this occurs varies depending on the type of casket, the elements in the soil, and its condition. Typically, wooden coffins may take a few years to collapse after being buried, while metal ones are more resistant and can last longer.
Can Couples Be Placed in the Same Coffin? While it may be possible if there is a big enough coffin and plot to accommodate the couple, there are many other logistical constraints that may not permit this to happen. Having a large enough casket for two may not be easily transportable.
Is the coffin cremated with the body? Yes. The Federation Of Burial and Cremation Authorities (FBCA) Guiding Principles state that the container and the body shall be placed in cremator and cremation commenced.
Usually the head end of the coffin is the heaviest, thus the strongest two of your six pallbearers should take the handles at this end.
In burial: Water burial. The association between water and immortality is reflected in the myths of many cultures, myths that often centre on a god-hero who sails away from his people in death with the promise to return again.
Livor, rigor, and algor mortis
Goff explains, “[T]he blood begins to settle, by gravity, to the lowest portions of the body,” causing the skin to become discolored. This process may begin after about an hour following death and can continue to develop until the 9–12 hour mark postmortem.
The reason is most likely algae, lichen, moss, mold, or mildew growth and stains. These growths develop on the surface, making headstones and memorials look dark and dirty. The majority of monuments sit outside and are constantly subjected to moist, humid conditions.
Grave reuse has been legally practised in South Australia since 1863, explains Robert Pitt, CEO of the Adelaide Cemeteries Authority. When a grave site's interment rights are issued, it's for a period of either 50 or 99 years. After that point, graves are available to be reused.
When I purchase a burial site, is it mine forever? In accordance with South Australian legislation the Adelaide Cemeteries Authority offers Interment Rights for a period of 50 or 99 years for burial and memorial sites. Interment Rights can be renewed at any time during the tenure period.
While approval is required for the burial of bodily remains outside a public cemetery, there is no impediment to the burial of cremated remains on private property. This may be an option that you and your family may wish to consider further.