Cemetery

A cemetery or graveyard is a place where the remains of dead people are buried or otherwise interred. The
word cemetery (from Greekκοιμητήριον, "sleeping place")[1][2] implies that the land is specifically designated as a
burial ground and originally applied to the Romanunderground catacombs.[3] The term graveyard is often used
interchangeably with cemetery, but a graveyard primarily refers to a burial ground within a churchyard.[4][5]
The intact or cremated remains of people may be interred in a grave, commonly referred to as burial, or in a tomb,
an "above-ground grave" (resembling a sarcophagus), a mausoleum, columbarium, niche, or other edifice.
In Western cultures, funeral ceremonies are often observed in cemeteries. These ceremonies or rites of
passage differ according to cultural practices and religious beliefs. Modern cemeteries often include crematoria, and
some grounds previously used for both, continue as crematoria as a principal use long after the interment areas
have been filled.

History.
Early Christianity
Les Innocents cemetery in 1550.

From about the 7th century, European burial was under the control of the Church and could only take place
on consecrated church ground. Practices varied, but in continental Europe, bodies were usually buried in a mass
grave until they had decomposed. The bones were then exhumed and stored in ossuaries, either along
the arcaded bounding walls of the cemetery, or within the church under floor slabs and behind walls.
In most cultures those who were vastly rich, had important professions, were part of the nobility or were of any other
high social status were usually buried in individual crypts inside or beneath the relevant place of worship with an
indication of their name, date of death and other biographical data. In Europe this was often accompanied with a
depiction of their coat of arms.
Most others were buried in graveyards again divided by social status. Mourners who could afford the work of
a stonemason had a headstoneengraved with a name, dates of birth and death and sometimes other biographical
data, and set up over the place of burial. Usually, the more writing and symbols carved on the headstone, the more
expensive it was. As with most other human property such as houses and means of transport, richer families used to
compete for the artistic value of their family headstone in comparison to others around it, sometimes adding a statue
(such as a weeping angel) on the top of the grave.
Those who could not pay for a headstone at all usually had some religious symbol made from wood on the place of
burial such as a Christian cross; however, this would quickly deteriorate under the rain or snow. Some families hired
a blacksmith and had large crosses made from various metals put on the place of burial.

Modernity
Starting in the early 19th century, the burial of the dead in graveyards began to be discontinued, due to rapid
population growth in the early stages of the Industrial Revolution, continued outbreaks of infectious disease near
graveyards and the increasingly limited space in graveyards for new interment. In many European states, burial in
graveyards was eventually outlawed altogether through government legislation.
Instead of graveyards, completely new places of burial were established away from heavily populated areas and
outside of old towns and city centers. Many new cemeteries became municipally owned or were run by their own
corporations, and thus independent from churches and their churchyards.
In some cases, skeletons were exhumed from graveyards and moved into ossuaries or catacombs. A large action of
this type occurred in 18th century Paris when human remains were transferred from graveyards all over the city to
the Catacombs of Paris. The bones of an estimated 6 million people are to be found there.[6]
An early example of a landscape-style cemetery is Père Lachaise in Paris. This embodied the idea of state- rather
than church-controlled burial, a concept that spread through the continent of Europe with the Napoleonic invasions.
This could include the opening of cemeteries by private or joint stock companies. The shift to municipal cemeteries
or those established by private companies was usually accompanied by the establishing of landscaped burial
grounds outside the city (e.g. extramural).
John Claudius Loudon, one of the first professional cemetery designers.

In Britain the movement was driven by dissenters and public health concerns. The Rosary Cemetery in Norwich was
opened in 1819 as a burial ground for all religious backgrounds. Similar private non-denominational cemeteries
were established near industrialising towns with growing populations, such as Manchester (1821)
and Liverpool (1825). Each cemetery required a separate Act of Parliament for authorisation, although the capital
was raised through the formation of joint-stock companies.
In the first 50 years of the 19th century the population of London more than doubled from 1 million to 2.3 million. The
small parish churchyards were rapidly becoming dangerously overcrowded, and decaying matter infiltrating the
water supply was causing epidemics. The issue became particularly acute after the cholera epidemic of 1831, which
killed 52,000 people in Britain alone, putting unprecedented pressure on the country's burial capacity. Concerns
were also raised about the potential public health hazard arising from the inhalation of gases generated from
human putrefaction under the then prevailing miasma theory of disease.
Legislative action was slow in coming, but in 1832 Parliament finally acknowledged the need for the establishment
of large municipal cemeteries and encouraged their construction outside London. The same bill also closed all inner
London churchyards to new deposits. The Magnificent Seven, seven large cemeteries around London, were
established in the following decade, starting with Kensal Green in 1832.[7]
Urban planner and author John Claudius Loudon was one of the first professional cemetery designers, and his
book On the Laying Out, Planting and Managing of Cemeteries (1843) was very influential on designers and
architects of the period. Loudon himself, designed three cemeteries – Bath Abbey Cemetery, Histon Road
Cemetery, Cambridge, and Southampton Old Cemetery.[8]
The Metropolitan Burial Act of 1852 legislated for the establishment of the first national system of government
funded municipal cemeteries across the country, opening the way for a massive expansion of burial facilities
throughout the late 19th century.[9]

Types
The 1,400 square feet (130 m2) plot pictured here has the graves of nineteen members of the Hillendahl family, including one
who was interred in 1854, in the Spring Branch area of Houston, Texas, United States. A descendant of the family sold all of the
land around the grave site, but refused to move the actual graves. [10]

There are a number of different styles of cemetery in use. Many cemeteries have areas based on different styles,
reflecting the diversity of cultural practices around death and how it changes over time.

Urban
The urban cemetery is a burial ground located in the interior of a village, town, or city. Early urban cemeteries were
churchyards, which filled quickly and exhibited a haphazard placement of burial markers as sextons tried to squeeze
new burials into the remaining space. As new burying grounds were established in urban areas to compensate,
burial plots were often laid out in a grid to replace the chaotic appearance of the churchyard. [11] Urban cemeteries
developed over time into a more landscaped form as part of civic development of beliefs and institutions that sought
to portray the city as civilized and harmonious.[12]
Urban cemeteries were more sanitary (a place to safely dispose of decomposing corpses) than they were
aesthetically pleasing. Corpses were usually buried wrapped in cloth, since coffins, burial vaults, and above-ground
crypts inhibited the process of decomposition.[13] Nonetheless, urban cemeteries which were heavily used were often
very unhealthy. Receiving vaults and crypts often needed to be aired before entering, as decomposing corpses used
up so much oxygen that even candles could not remain lit.[14] The sheer stench from decomposing corpses, even
when buried deeply, was overpowering in areas adjacent to the urban cemetery. [15][16] Decomposition of the human
body releases significant pathogenic bacteria, fungi, protozoa, and viruses which can cause disease and illness,
and many urban cemeteries were located without consideration for local groundwater. Modern burials in urban
cemeteries also release toxic chemicals associated with embalming, such as arsenic, formaldehyde, and mercury.
Coffins and burial equipment can also release significant amounts of toxic chemicals such as arsenic (used to
preserve coffin wood) and formaldehyde (used in varnishes and as a sealant) and toxic metals such as copper, lead,
and zinc (from coffin handles and flanges).[17]
Urban cemeteries relied heavily on the fact that the soft parts of the body would decompose in about 25 years
(although, in moist soil, decomposition can take up to 70 years).[18] If room for new burials was needed, older bones
could be dug up and interred elsewhere (such as in an ossuary) to make space for new interments. [13] It was not
uncommon in some places, such as England, for fresher corpses to be chopped up to aid decomposition, and for
bones to be burned to create fertilizer.[19] The re-use of graves allowed for a steady stream of income, which enabled
the cemetery to remain well-maintained and in good repair. [20] Not all urban cemeteries engaged in re-use of graves,
and cultural taboos often prevented it. Many urban cemeteries have fallen into disrepair and become overgrown, as
they lacked endowments to fund perpetual care. Many urban cemeteries today are thus home to wildlife, birds, and
plants which cannot be found anywhere else in the urban area, and many urban cemeteries in the late 20th century
touted their role as an environmental refuge.[21][22]
Many urban cemeteries are characterized by multiple burials in the same grave. Multiple burials is a consequence of
the limited size of the urban cemetery, which cannot easily expand due to adjacent building development. It was not
uncommon for an urban cemetery to begin adding soil to the top of the cemetery, to create new burial space. In
some cases, cemeteries rose 10 to 15 feet (3.0 to 4.6 m) above the level of the surrounding streets, and heavy
retaining walls were built to keep the cemetery (and corpses) from falling into the street.

Monumental
A monumental cemetery is the traditional style of cemetery where headstones or other monuments made
of marble, granite or similar materials rise vertically above the ground (typically around 50 cm but some can be over
2 metres high). Often the entire grave is covered by a slab, commonly concrete, but it can be more expensive
materials such as marble or granite, and/or has its boundaries delimited by a fence which may be made
of concrete, cast iron or timber. Where a number of family members are buried together (either vertically or
horizontally), the slab or boundaries may encompass a number of graves. Monumental cemeteries are often
regarded as unsightly due to the random collection of monuments and headstones they contain. Also, as
maintenance of the headstones is the responsibility of family members (in the absence of a proscribed Perpetual
Care and Maintenance Fund), over time many headstones are forgotten about and decay and become damaged.
For cemetery authorities, monumental cemeteries are difficult to maintain. While cemeteries often have grassed
areas between graves, the layout of graves makes it difficult to use modern equipment such as ride-on lawn mowers
in the cemetery. Often the maintenance of grass must be done by more labour-intensive (and therefore expensive)
methods. In order to reduce the labour cost, devices such as string trimmers are increasingly used in cemetery
maintenance,[citation needed] but such devices can damage the monuments and headstones. Cemetery authorities dislike
the criticism they receive for the deteriorating condition of the headstones, arguing that they have no responsibility
for the upkeep of headstones, and typically disregard their own maintenance practices as being one of the causes
of that deterioration.[citation needed]

Rural or garden
The rural cemetery or garden cemetery[25] is a style of burial ground that uses landscaping in a park-like setting. It
was conceived in 1711 by the British architect Sir Christopher Wren, who advocated the creation of landscaped
burial grounds which featured well-planned walkways which gave extensive access to graves and planned plantings
of trees, bushes, and flowers.[26] Wren's idea was not immediately accepted. But by the early 1800s, existing
churchyards were growing overcrowded and unhealthy, with graves stacked upon each other or emptied and reused
for new burials.[27] As a reaction to this, the first "garden" cemetery – Père Lachaise Cemetery in Paris – opened in
1804.[28] Because these cemeteries were usually on the outskirts of town (where land was plentiful and cheap), they
were called "rural cemeteries", a term still used to describe them today.[27] The concept quickly spread across
Europe.[29]

Garden/rural cemeteries were not necessarily outside city limits. When land within a city could be found, the
cemetery was enclosed with a wall to give it a garden-like quality. These cemeteries were often not sectarian, nor
co-located with a house of worship. Inspired by the English landscape garden movement,[30] they often looked like
attractive parks. The first garden/rural cemetery in the United States was Mount Auburn
Cemetery near Boston, Massachusetts, founded by the Massachusetts Horticultural Society in 1831. [31] Following the
establishment of Mount Auburn, dozens of other "rural" cemeteries were established in the United States – perhaps
in part because of Supreme Court Justice Joseph Story's dedication address – and there were dozens of dedication
addresses.[32] Of course the most famous dedication address was Abraham Lincoln's address at a previously little-
known hamlet in south central Pennsylvania, Gettysburg.
The cost of building a garden/rural cemetery often meant that only the wealthy could afford burial there.
[33]
Subsequently, garden/rural cemeteries often feature above-ground monuments and memorials, mausoleums,
and columbaria. The excessive filling of rural/garden cemeteries with elaborate above-ground memorials, many of
dubious artistic quality or taste, created a backlash which led to the development of the lawn cemetery. [34]

Lawn cemetery
In a review of British burial and death practises, Julie Rugg wrote that there were "four closely interlinked factors
that explain the 'invention' and widespread adoption of the lawn cemetery: the deterioration of the Victorian
cemetery; a self-conscious rejection of Victorian aesthetics in favour of modern alternatives; resource difficulties
that, particularly after World War II, increasingly constrained what might be achieved in terms of cemetery
maintenance; and growing professionalism in the field of cemetery management." [35]
Typically, lawn cemeteries comprise a number of graves in a lawn setting with trees and gardens on the
perimeter. Adolph Strauch introduced this style in 1855 in Cincinnati.[36] While aesthetic appeal to family members
has been the primary driver for the development of lawn cemeteries, cemetery authorities initially welcomed this
new style of cemetery enthusiastically, expecting easier maintenance. Selecting (or grading) the land intended for a
lawn cemetery so that it is completely flat allows the use of large efficient mowers (such as ride-on mowers or lawn
tractors) - the plaques (being horizontally set in the ground) lie below the level of the blades and are not damaged
by the blades. Unfortunately, in practice, while families are often initially attracted to the uncluttered appearance of a
lawn cemetery, the common practice of placing flowers (sometimes in vases) and increasingly other items (e.g.
small toys on children's graves) re-introduces some clutter to the cemetery and makes it difficult to use the
larger mowers. While cemetery authorities increasingly impose restrictions on the nature and type of objects that
can be placed on lawn graves and actively remove prohibited items, grieving families are often unwilling to comply
with these restrictions and become very upset if the items are removed. Another problem with lawn cemeteries
involves grass over-growth over time: the grass can grow over and cover the plaque, to the distress of families who
can no longer easily locate the grave. Grasses that propagate by an above-ground stolon (runner) can cover a
plaque very quickly. Grasses that propagate by a below-ground rhizome tend not to cover the plaque as easily.

Lawn beam

The lawn beam cemetery, a recent development, seeks to solve the problems of the lawn cemetery while retaining
many of its benefits. Low (10–15 cm) raised concrete slabs (beams) are placed across the
cemetery. Commemorative plaques (usually standardised in terms of size and materials similar to lawn cemeteries)
stand on these beams adjacent to each grave. As in a lawn cemetery, grass grows over the graves themselves. The
areas between the beams are wide enough to permit easy mowing with a larger mower. As the mower blades are
set lower than the top of the beam and the mowers do not go over the beam, the blades cannot damage the
plaques. Up on the beam, the plaques cannot be easily overgrown by grass, and spaces between the plaques
permit families to place flowers and other objects out of reach of the mowing.

Natural
See also: Environmental impact of conventional burial and Natural burial

A natural cemetery, eco-cemetery, green cemetery or conservation cemetery, is a new style of cemetery as an area
set aside for natural burials (with or without coffins). Natural burials are motivated by a desire to be environmentally
conscious with the body rapidly decomposing and becoming part of the natural environment without incurring the
environmental cost of traditional burials.
Many scientists have argued that natural burials would be a highly efficient use of land if designed specifically to
save endangered habitats, ecoysystems and species.[37]
The opposite has also been proposed. Instead of letting natural burials permanently protect wild landscapes, others
have argued that the rapid decomposition of a natural burial, in principle, allows for the quick re-use of grave sites in
comparison with conventional burials. However, it is unclear if reusing cemetery land will be culturally acceptable to
most people.
In keeping with the intention of "returning to nature" and the early re-use potential, natural cemeteries do not
normally have conventional grave markings such as headstones. Instead, exact GPS recordings and or the placing
of a tree, bush or rock often marks the location of the dead, so grieving family and friends can visit the precise
location of a grave.
Columbarium wall
Columbarium walls are a common feature of many cemeteries, reflecting the increasing use of cremation rather
than burial. While cremated remains can be kept at home by families in urns or scattered in some significant or
attractive place, neither of these approaches allows for a long-lasting commemorative plaque to honour the dead
nor provide a place for the wider circle of friends and family to come to mourn or visit. Therefore, many cemeteries
now provide walls (typically of brick or rendered brick construction) with a rectangular array of niches, with each
niche being big enough to accommodate a person's cremated remains. Columbarium walls are a very space-
efficient use of land in a cemetery compared with burials and a niche in a columbarium wall is a much cheaper
alternative to a burial plot. A small plaque (about 15 cm x 10 cm) can be affixed across the front of each niche and is
generally included as part of the price of a niche. As the writing on the plaques has to be fairly small to fit on the
small size of the plaque, the design of columbarium walls is constrained by the ability of visitors to read the plaques.
Thus, the niches are typically placed between 1 metre to 2 metres above the ground so the plaques can be easily
read by an adult. Some columbarium walls have niches going close to ground level, but these niches are usually
unpopular with families as it is difficult to read the plaque without bending down very low (something older people in
particular find difficult or uncomfortable to do).
As with graves, the niches may be assigned by the cemetery authorities or families may choose from the
unoccupied niches available. It is usually possible to purchase (or pay a deposit) to reserve the use of adjacent
niches for other family members. The use of adjacent niches (vertically or horizontally) usually permits a larger
plaque spanning all the niches involved, which provides more space for the writing. As with graves, there may be
separate columbarium walls for different religions or for war veterans. As with lawn cemeteries, the original
expectation was that people would prefer the uncluttered simplicity of a wall of plaques, but the practice of
leaving flowers is very entrenched. Mourners leave flowers (and other objects) on top of columbarium walls or at the
base, as close as they can to the plaque of their family member. In some cases, it is possible to squeeze a piece of
wire or string under the plaque allowing a flower or small posy to be placed on the plaque itself or clips are glued
onto the plaque for that purpose. Newer designs of columbarium walls take this desire to leave flowers into account
by incorporating a metal clip or loop beside each plaque, typically designed to hold a single flower stem or a small
posy. As the flowers decay, they simply fall to the ground and do not create a significant maintenance problem.

Family
While uncommon today, family (or private) cemeteries were a matter of practicality during the settlement of America.
If a municipal or religious cemetery had not been established, settlers would seek out a small plot of land, often in
wooded areas bordering their fields, to begin a family plot. Sometimes, several families would arrange to bury their
dead together. While some of these sites later grew into true cemeteries, many were forgotten after a family moved
away or died out.
Today, it is not unheard of to discover groupings of tombstones, ranging from a few to a dozen or more, on
undeveloped land. As late 20th century suburban sprawl pressured the pace of development in formerly rural areas,
it became increasingly common for larger exurban properties to be encumbered by "religious easements," which are
legal requirements for the property owner to permit periodic maintenance of small burial plots located on the
property but technically not owned with it. Often, cemeteries are relocated to accommodate building. However, if the
cemetery is not relocated, descendants of people buried there may visit the cemetery. [38]
More recent is the practice of families with large estates choosing to create private cemeteries in the form of burial
sites, monuments, crypts, or mausoleums on their property; the mausoleum at Fallingwater is an example of this
practice. Burial of a body at a site may protect the location from redevelopment, with such estates often being
placed in the care of a trust or foundation. Presently, state regulations have made it increasingly difficult, if not
impossible, to start private cemeteries; many require a plan to care for the site in perpetuity. Private cemeteries are
nearly always forbidden on incorporated residential zones. Many people will bury a beloved pet on the family
property.

Arabian tribal
Most of the Saudis in Al Baha are Muslims, and this is reflected in their cemetery and funeral customs. "The
southern tribal hinterland of Baha – home to especially the Al-Ghamdiand Al-Zahrani tribes – has been renowned for
centuries for their tribal cemeteries that are now slowly vanishing", according to the Asharq Al-Awsat newspaper:
"One old villager explained how tribal cemeteries came about. 'People used to die in large numbers and very rapidly
one after the other because of diseases. So the villagers would dig graves close by burying members of the same
family in one area. That was how the family and tribal burial grounds came about... If the family ran out of space,
they would open old graves where family members had been buried before and add more people to them. This
process is known as khashf.'" During famines and outbreaks of epidemics huge numbers of people would die and
many tribes faced difficulties in digging new graves because of the difficult weather. In the past, some Arab winters
lasted for more than six months and would be accompanied with lots of rain and fog, which made movement
difficult. But due to tribal rivalries many families would guard their cemeteries and put restrictions on who got buried
in them. Across Baha, burial grounds have been constructed in different ways. Some cemeteries consist of
underground vaults or concrete burial chambers with the capacity of holding a large number of bodies at a time.
Such vaults include windows for people to peer through and are usually decorated ornately with text, drawings, and
patterns. At least one resident believes that the graves unique in the region because many are not oriented
toward Mecca, and therefore must pre-date Islam.[39]