SAN DIEGO — In a ceremony that was brief but redolent of the sacrifice and pain of war, one of the last bits of unfinished business from the Vietnam War was completed Monday at the Fort Rosecrans National Cemetery. The remains of Marine Pfc. Richard Rivenburgh were buried 37 years after his helicopter was shot […]
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Cremation
Cremation, the practice of reducing a corpse to its essential elements by burning. The practice of cremation on open fires was introduced to the Western world by the Greeks as early as 1000 bce. They seem to have adopted cremation from some northern people as an imperative of war, to ensure soldiers slain in alien […]
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Cemetery for the Homeless
For many people, homelessness in life also means indignity in death—an anonymous, budget burial. But things are changing in one major European city: CityLab’s Mimi Kirk writes that Copenhagen’s Assistens Cemetery in Denmark has set aside a section just for homeless people. More than 300,000 people are buried at Assistens, Denmark’s most famous graveyard. Previously, […]
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2,000 Year Old Pet Cemetery in Egypt
The ancient Egyptians had complicated relationships with animals. They kept a wide range of pets, from cats and dogs to hippos and falcons, and many household pets were mummified and buried with their owners. Animals were also mummified at an “industrial scale,” sold to pilgrims who offered the mummies to the gods. One catacomb at […]
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Père-Lachaise Cemetery Hailed the Most Visited Cemetery in the World
Père-Lachaise Cemetery, formal name Cimetiere de l’Est (“Cemetery of the East”), cemetery and park located on the northeast side of Paris, France. Situated on some 110 acres (44.5 hectares), amid more than 5,000 trees, it is both the largest park and the largest cemetery in Paris. Estimates concerning the number of people buried there vary […]
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Rare Spider Hides Out in London Cemetery Vaults for 150 Years
A rare species of orb weaver spider, Meta bourneti, turned up in the vaults of London’s Highgate Cemetery where it may have been lying low for the past 150 years. As an orb weaver, the species requires total darkness, so archeologists think the tombs made a perfect hideout for the spider, which normally lives in […]
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Buried Atop a Bed of Flowers
Sometime during our species’ ancient history, we began thinking about the bodies of our deceased family members and friends in a different way—as beings with emotional value that deserve ceremony respect, rather than simply as dead carcasses. Other animals simply leave their dead in place, and our earlier ancestors either did the same or buried […]
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Memorials, Monuments, and Museums Dedicated to WWI Throughout the World
Today, memorials, monuments and museums dedicated to WWI can be found in all of the combatant countries. From a rose garden in Ireland to vast war cemeteries built on or near the major battlefields, these sites ensure that the memory of the war and the sacrifices of those who lost their lives will never fade. […]
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A Resting Place That’s Still Active
Not far from the Harvard University campus, in Cambridge, Massachusetts, Mt. Auburn Street is busy and clogged with traffic during the morning rush hour as commuters and their cars creep across the urban landscape of auto shops, supermarkets, and liquor stores. But as I turn into the Egyptian Revival gateway of Mount Auburn Cemetery, a […]
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North Huntingdon woman fundraising for Wreaths Across America event
Each year, volunteers across the country donate their time to place wreaths at the headstones of veterans at cemeteries across the country, most notably at Arlington National Cemetery. The organization Wreaths Across America provide a number of volunteers with wreaths to place at their local cemeteries and this year a local woman is fundraising to add […]
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