Funerary – Brewminate

Ancient Roman Funerary Practices

Posted on December 2, 2020December 2, 2020 by MAMcIntosh

Funerals were primarily a concern of the family, which was of paramount importance in Roman society. Introduction Roman funerary practices include the Ancient Romans’ religious rituals concerning funerals, cremations, and burials. They were part of time-hallowed tradition (Latin: mos maiorum), the unwritten code from which Romans derived their social norms.[1] Roman cemeteries were located outside the sacred boundary (pomerium) of towns and cities. They were visited regularly with offerings of[…]

Ancient Greek Funeral and Burial Practices

Posted on December 2, 2020December 2, 2020 by MAMcIntosh

Ancient Greek funerary practices are attested widely in the literature, the archaeological record, and the art of ancient Greece. Mycenaean Period The Mycenaeans practiced a burial of the dead, and did so consistently.[1][2] The body of the deceased was prepared to lie in state, followed by a procession to the resting place, a single grave or a[…]

The Funeral in Ancient Rome

Posted on November 27, 2020 by MAMcIntosh

The funeral procession was marked by the movement of bodies, both living and dead, and the loud noise that it generated. By Steven Fife Introduction The Roman funeral was a rite of passage that signified the transition between the states of life and death. It was very important to conduct the proper ceremonies and burial in order to avoid having[…]

Ancient Greek Classics on Grief and the Importance of Mourning the Dead

Posted on September 27, 2020September 27, 2020 by MAMcIntosh

Memories of the past were an important guide to the future. This is in part why the funeral oration became so important in Athenian life. Introduction As a scholar of classical studies, I tend to look to the past to help understand the present. Ancient literature, especially ancient Greek epics, explore what it means to[…]

Mortuary Cults in Ancient Egypt, Greece, and Rome

Posted on April 22, 2020 by MAMcIntosh

Ancient cultures left behind extraordinary memorials which were used for mortuary cults during the epoques in which they were created. Introduction A mortuary cult (also called funerary cult and death cult) is a ceremonial and religious form of a cult fostered over a certain duration of time, often lasting for generations or even dynasties. It[…]

Wearing Black at Funerals: Lessons from Victorian Mourning Culture

Posted on October 31, 2019 by MAMcIntosh

They needed others to see them, to draw people to their grief. Reader, he died. I’ve devoted my career to death. As a scholar of Victorian disease, I think about death nearly every day, but this did not protect me from the sucker punch of loss. Neither did his slow, prolonged decline, nor my slow,[…]

Curses and Fines on Ancient Epitaphs

Posted on September 12, 2019September 12, 2019 by MAMcIntosh

Examples of curse-fine epitaphs range all over the ancient world. Introduction The concept of a curse laid on a tomb or gravesite is best known from ancient Egypt but the practice was quite common in other civilizations of antiquity. The tomb or grave was the eternal home of the physical remains of the deceased to which his or her soul could[…]

The Ancient Egyptian Book of the Heavenly Cow

Posted on September 11, 2019 by MAMcIntosh

The tale begins after Ra had created the world and was king of the gods and humanity. Introduction The Book of the Heavenly Cow is an ancient Egyptian text dealing with the rebellion of humanity against the sun god Ra, his destruction of the rebels through the goddess Hathor, the reversal of this decision and Ra’s mercy, and his[…]

The Ancient Megalithic Funerary Art of San Agustín, Colombia

Posted on September 2, 2019 by MAMcIntosh

These burial places formed the centers of small-scale chiefdoms and shared a set of sculptural motifs and styles. By Benjamin OswaldHistorian Introduction Beginning approximately 2000 years ago, in a rugged stretch of southwestern Colombia where the Andes split into multiple ranges and the mighty Magdalena River is born, a people created a collection of magnificent[…]