Death

By: Julie

Ancient Mesopotamians

• The Mesopotamians were not sure about what happened after death.• They believed that dead people could bless and curse their children and grand-

children by bringing or not bringing them children. • They buried their dead with food, because they believed excessively skinny corpses

would haunt the living as scary ghosts. Archeologists have found Akkadian graves filled with skeletons which have hands grasping cups beside their faces.

• In Mesopotamia, people cared a lot about burying the dead properly and nicely, because if they didn’t take care of the dead well, the dead will transform into ghosts and haunt the living. The dead people could not rest in peace in the Underworld, and if they didn’t get enough regular supplies of food, they would starve. Almost everybody had a funeral; only criminals or women who had abortions or died having a baby didn’t get one which is so unhappy.

Royal Mesopotamian Rulers• The rulers’ tombs were filled with rich and expensive objects made with

precious stones and gold to enter into the afterlife. • When a royal died, musicians, servants, family members, handmaidens,

and oxen were killed and were buried as well. • When the Queen Pu-abi died, her tomb contained jewelry such as ten gold

rings, necklace made of lapis lazuli, and a cape made out of gold, silver, carnelian beads, etc. Beside her, there was a four-foot gold drinking straw, wreaths, weapons, gold tweezers, pins, and diadems.

• Ur royal tombs were filled with musical instruments and animals that pull carts such as oxen. The tombs of Ashur were placed underneath a huge palace and the dead bodies were put into sarcophagi made of stone. The dead people were put into coffins made out of wood and they were given clothing, games, weapons, treasures, food, and drink.

• The Sumerians used baskets made out of braided twigs which were put into brick coffins for the dead. They arranged their dead in regular rows organized into streets and lanes. Wealthy people were buried with their favorite objects made of gold, silver, precious stones, etc. The ordinary people were buried with common objects made of stone, not precious metals or jewels.

• In Ancient Mesopotamia, people feared the dead, because they thought that evil spirits could escape from the Underworld and cause big problems for the living as they entered their bodies through their ears. Also, the dead could rise up and torture the living if they didn’t give proper care and burial to the dead. Consequently, even dead enemies were buried properly so this won’t happen. Some babies were buried in cooking pots and placed underneath the floors of houses which I don’t know why.

• The Mesopotamians had a very different understanding of death from the Egyptians. For them, death was scary, because they believed that people were made from clay mixed with the blood of a god, which made them partly immortal. Therefore, the spirit of the dead person didn’t die after death; it didn’t move on instead it suffered unhappy afterlife. The soul lived underground and ate only clay and dust with no healthy water to drink. The only nice thing was the food that their relatives left for them.

• The dead were largely feared in Ancient Mesopotamia. It was thought that distressed, murdered and evil spirits could escape the land of the death to cause havoc among the living through entering the bodies of the living through their ears. Likewise, the dead could rise up and torment the living if not given a proper burial, so even the bodies of enemies were buried in a manner such as to prevent this from happening. Most were buried in cemeteries, but the bodies of babies have been found under the floors of houses, often curiously buried in cooking pots.

• The Mesopotamians, a civilization existing in and around modern day Iraq around the same time as the time of Pharaohs of Egypt had a very different view of death. For them, death was something to be feared. In the Mesopotamian tradition, humans were created from clay mixed with the blood of a sacrificed god. Thus, being partly immortal, the spirit did not die after death but lingered on to suffer a dismal afterlife. While retaining all the needs and emotions of the living, after death the soul would live a dark and subterranean existence eating only dust and clay in a place deprived of drinkable water. The only respite from this existence was the food and offerings of their descendants. This meant that the confiscation of an enemy’s body from the care of the family was a terrible punishment.

Tomb of Queen Pu-abi that is filled with jewelries ,

gold, etc..

Incantation bowl from Nippur

Babylonian coffin

From the royal graves

Mesopotamian Funeral

Uruk plate

Ancient Egypt

• Ancient Egyptians spent a lot of time thinking and preparing for death and the afterlife. The pyramids are proof of how important death was to ancient Egypt.

• They believed that it was crucial to preserve the physical body. They developed an elaborate process called Mummification which involves using chemicals, removing organs and then wrapping the body in strips of linen cloth. A person’s khat was like a double; it had to be fed and watered like a person. It enjoyed smelling the incense and it gave comfort, protection, and safety.

• There was also something called the ba which was pictured as a falcon bird with a human head. It could enter the body and it was responsible for the body. It was like a soul. There were other spiritual aspects of a dead such as ren, sekhem, and khu.

• The Egyptians thought the heart was the main part of the human body and the heart was said to be source of life and living. When they embalmed the body, they left the heart in or took it out and replaced it in the thorax.

• The Egyptians were very careful to provide the dead with everything that they needed for the afterlife, because they viewed as a continuation of life before death. The tombs of regular people had some food, jewelry, favorite objects, and other things. The wealthy people put in artistic objects made out of gold and precious stones such as beautiful bowls and jugs.

• In the pyramids, pictures were painted by the Egyptians to show a happy life filled with blessings such as fertile fields, good crops, special events with musicians and happy families.

• Death was very important to the Egyptians who passed on their belief that a person faced judgment of their life after death.

Picture painted by the Egyptians

Mummy

Mummy

Pyramids

Another picture painted by the Egyptians

Ancient Rome• The Romans had an interesting set of beliefs about death. When a

person died, his or her soul started on a journey to the River Styx on the way to the Underworld where the dead lived. If the dead didn’t have a gold coin, Charon the Ferryman couldn’t allow him or her to go to the Underworld without permission. You had to pass a three-headed dog without getting eaten and having a safe journey. First, you had to have a trial with a judge named Dis Pater who decided where you would end up going. The next level, Minos, Rhadamanthos and Aeacus were the three judges and they demanded and account of your life. The good and kind people went to Elysian Fields, while others went to Fields of Asphodel where they lived as Shades. A third group who is very bad indeed, went to Tartarus where it’s punishment and torture always.

• In the first stage, in the roman funeral, the body was prepared usually by undertakers, who cleaned and dressed the body. Next, they put pearls or beeswax in the dead person’s nostrils to prevent evil spirits getting in the dead body and controlling it. Then the undertaker made sure that the body had everything it needed for the after life such as food, money, jewelry, clothes, and eating utensils.

• The second stage of mourning was very short for poor people. The body was cremated the day after death, but rich people had a much longer mourning period. They displayed the body on a marble slab and people came to pay their respects. They would never let the dead body be alone, because that could cause anger and support haunting nightmares.

• After, there was a funeral procession which showed what kind of life the person had. If you were wealthy, there would be a giant colorful parade to take them to the place of burial. There were dancers, mimes, and sometimes, hired mourners. For military service people, family members rode in chariots with horses and their army colleagues went with the body. The people, who went to the procession, often wore red or white robes to show that they were in mourning. For an important person, there was a stop at the Forum where the oldest son gave a speech about his father or mother.

• There were two choices of disposal for dead bodies which were cremation or burial. If the person were cremated, the body was placed on top of a funeral pyre.

Tartarus

Fields of Asphodel Elysian Fields

Modern Canada• Most people have a funeral or memorial service to celebrate the life of the person who

died. People find out about the funeral by reading the obituary notice in the newspaper or computer. The service is sometimes held in a church {Christian}, {Synagogue}, {Jewish}, and other places of worship. It can also be held in a funeral parlour where the body is sometimes displayed for people to see and pay their respects. The body is put into a casket, plain or fancy, depending on how wealthy the family is, and placed in car big black car called a Hearse for transportation first to the church and then to the cemetery where it is put in the ground. Prayers are said and then earth is put on top of the casket before workers bury it completely. Flowers and sometimes pictures are very important part of funeral rights in Canada. Flowers from the church service are often taken to the grave and left there to show the dead person respect. In most cemeteries, the graves are arranged neatly in rows and on the top of the each grave; there is a grave stone with the dead person’s name and birth and death dates. A wealthy family may put a really big stone to honor the dead person, but most people have a simple stone. If the person prefers to be cremated, the ashes may be put into a small space in the cemetery. Some people like to scatter the ashes and other people like to keep the ashes at home to honor memory of the good times with that dead person.

• If a person served in the military, there is a special ceremony for him or her to show respect and honor their service. The casket may be covered with the flag. A high military official may give a speech named a Eulogy and they play a sad song on the bugle called Taps. This person may be buried in a special military cemetery. When a lot of soldiers died, their names may be inscribed on a giant stone called a War Memorial.

• It is customary to send flowers and sympathy notes to the family of the dead person called the deceased. Today, many families ask people not to send flowers but give money instead to the person’s favorite charity. For example, if someone died who loved animals; his or her family would encourage donations to the SPCA.

Ceremonial Funeral Service for Margaret Thatcher Australian War Memorial, Canberra.

CasketGrave

Vikings

• They estimated that when a Viking dies, he or she will unite with the gods in afterlife.

• Vikings who were men, were buried in a grave filled with various weapons and tools, but women Vikings were buried in a grave which were filled with jewellery and equipments.

• The Vikings weren’t only buried in graves, they were buried in boats or even ships. Few Vikings were buried in a ring made of stones which the shape turned out to be a boat.

• People believe that Vikings went on a boat to travel to afterlife. If they had no real boats, they had stones t go there which is very interesting.

• In the ancient Norse {Vikings} belief, there are two types of soul. It’s a ‘free soul’ or ‘dream soul that could just leave the Vikings’ body during sleep, ecstasy, trance, and unconsciousness.

• When a Viking died, on the tumulus, people traditionally put out beer and food. If the people took care of a dead Viking , he or she will come back to keep the homestead and people safe. People can bury the Viking or burn him or her to ashes.

• When a Viking died and seven days passes by, people will celebrate a funeral ale called sjaund. People paid respect and honored the Viking as everyone else.

Girl Viking

Men Vikings

Grave

Weapons & Tools

Jewelry

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