subject: Cremation Explained [print this page] Cremation Explained Cremation Explained
Cremation Explained
Cremation is described legally as "the act or practice of re ducing the corpse to ashes by means of fire." A corpse is described as "the body of a human being, deprived of life, but not yet entirely disintegrated." In referring to cremation, a California Court said:
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The practice of cremation has been revived in civilized com munities in comparatively recent times, and it is advocated mainly on the ground that it is safer for the living, more sanitary, than ordinary burial in a cemetery. . . . The practice has become general, and crematories are now so common in many of the larger cities of the United States that the courts may take judicial notice of the usual method of operation.
The corpse is placed in a crucible, entirely closed except the neces sary vents for the escape of gases, and there subjected to intense, heat, whereby, in a few hours at most, it is entirely con sumed or reduced to ashes. The resulting gases are necessarily free from disease germs. It was at one time contended in Eng land, chiefly on moral or religious grounds, that the practice of cremation was unlawful. Despite the judicial language, cremated remains, although often referred to as "ashes," are actually purified human skeletal remains or fragments, weighing from six to twelve pounds for adults, according to an information leaflet of the Crema tion Association of America.
Such remains normally are placed in an urn, which is a permanent receptacle with identification of the deceased, corresponding to the data usually contained in an epitaph on a cemetery grave marker. The urns are preserved and are made available for viewing hi a columbarium, a dedicated enclosed place, often maintained at a cemetery or in connection with a mausoleum.
