All Topics  
Embalming

 
Embalming

   Email Print
   Bookmark   Link






 

Embalming



 
 
Embalming, in most modern culture
Culture

Culture is difficult to define. For example, in 1952, Alfred Kroeber and Clyde Kluckhohn compiled a list of 164 definitions of "culture" in Culture: A Critical Review of Concepts and Definitions....
s, is the art
Art

Art is the process or product of deliberately arranging elements in a way that appeals to the senses or emotions. It encompasses a diverse range of human activities, creations, and modes of expression, including music and literature....
 and science
Science

In its broadest sense, science refers to any systematic knowledge or practice. In its more usual restricted sense, science refers to a system of acquiring knowledge based on scientific method, as well as to the organized body of knowledge gained through such research....
 of temporarily preserving human remains to forestall decomposition
Decomposition

Decomposition refers to the process by which tissues of dead organisms break down into simpler forms of matter. Such a breakdown of dead organisms is essential for new growth and development of living organisms because it recycles the finite chemical constituents and frees up the limited physical space in the biome....
 and to make them suitable for display at a funeral
Funeral

A funeral is a ceremony marking a person's death. Funerary customs comprise the complex of beliefs and practices used by a culture to remember the dead, from the funeral itself, to various monuments, prayers, and rituals undertaken in their honour....
. The three goals of embalming are thus preservation, sanitization
Disinfection

Disinfectants are antimicrobial agents that are applied to non-living objects to destroy microorganisms, the process of which is known as disinfection....
 and presentation
Presentation

Presentation is the process of showing and explaining the content of a topic to an audience. A presentation program, such as OpenOffice.org#Components, Keynote or Microsoft PowerPoint, is often used to generate the presentation content....
 (or restoration
Restoration

selfref|To restore an article that has been deleted, see...
) of a dead body to achieve this effect. Embalming has a very long and cross-cultural
Cross-cultural

cross-cultural may refer to*cross-cultural studies, a comparative tendency in various fields of cultural analysis*any of various forms of interactivity between members of disparate cultural groups ...
 history, with many cultures giving the embalming processes a greater religious
Religion

A religion is an organized approach to human spirituality which usually encompasses a set of myth, symbols, beliefs and practices, often with a supernatural or transcendence quality, that give meaning to the practitioner's experiences of life through reference to a higher power or truth....
 meaning.

lming has been practiced in many cultures and is one of the earliest surgical procedures humanity undertook.






Discussion
Ask a question about 'Embalming'
Start a new discussion about 'Embalming'
Answer questions from other users
Full Discussion Forum



Recent Posts









Encyclopedia


Embalming, in most modern culture
Culture

Culture is difficult to define. For example, in 1952, Alfred Kroeber and Clyde Kluckhohn compiled a list of 164 definitions of "culture" in Culture: A Critical Review of Concepts and Definitions....
s, is the art
Art

Art is the process or product of deliberately arranging elements in a way that appeals to the senses or emotions. It encompasses a diverse range of human activities, creations, and modes of expression, including music and literature....
 and science
Science

In its broadest sense, science refers to any systematic knowledge or practice. In its more usual restricted sense, science refers to a system of acquiring knowledge based on scientific method, as well as to the organized body of knowledge gained through such research....
 of temporarily preserving human remains to forestall decomposition
Decomposition

Decomposition refers to the process by which tissues of dead organisms break down into simpler forms of matter. Such a breakdown of dead organisms is essential for new growth and development of living organisms because it recycles the finite chemical constituents and frees up the limited physical space in the biome....
 and to make them suitable for display at a funeral
Funeral

A funeral is a ceremony marking a person's death. Funerary customs comprise the complex of beliefs and practices used by a culture to remember the dead, from the funeral itself, to various monuments, prayers, and rituals undertaken in their honour....
. The three goals of embalming are thus preservation, sanitization
Disinfection

Disinfectants are antimicrobial agents that are applied to non-living objects to destroy microorganisms, the process of which is known as disinfection....
 and presentation
Presentation

Presentation is the process of showing and explaining the content of a topic to an audience. A presentation program, such as OpenOffice.org#Components, Keynote or Microsoft PowerPoint, is often used to generate the presentation content....
 (or restoration
Restoration

selfref|To restore an article that has been deleted, see...
) of a dead body to achieve this effect. Embalming has a very long and cross-cultural
Cross-cultural

cross-cultural may refer to*cross-cultural studies, a comparative tendency in various fields of cultural analysis*any of various forms of interactivity between members of disparate cultural groups ...
 history, with many cultures giving the embalming processes a greater religious
Religion

A religion is an organized approach to human spirituality which usually encompasses a set of myth, symbols, beliefs and practices, often with a supernatural or transcendence quality, that give meaning to the practitioner's experiences of life through reference to a higher power or truth....
 meaning.

History

Mummy At British Museum
Embalming has been practiced in many cultures and is one of the earliest surgical procedures humanity undertook. In classical antiquity
Classical antiquity

Classical antiquity is a broad term for a long period of cultural history centered on the Mediterranean Sea, comprising the interlocking civilizations of Ancient Greece and Ancient Rome....
, perhaps the Old World culture that had developed embalming to the greatest extent was that of ancient Egypt
Ancient Egypt

Ancient Egypt was an Ancient history civilization in eastern North Africa, concentrated along the lower reaches of the Nile in what is now the modern nation of Egypt....
, who developed the process of mummification
Mummy

A mummy is a corpse whose skin and organs have been preserved by either intentional or incidental exposure to chemicals, extreme coldness, very high humidity, or lack of air when bodies are submerged in bogs....
. They believed that preservation of the mummy empowered the soul after death, which would return to the preserved corpse.

Other cultures that had developed embalming processes include the Inca
Inca

The Inca civilization began as a tribe in the Cuzco area, where the legendary first Sapa Inca, Manco Capac founded the Kingdom of Cuzco around 1200....
s and other cultures of Peru
Peru

Peru , officially the Republic of Peru , is a country in western South America. It is bordered on the north by Ecuador and Colombia, on the east by Brazil, on the southeast by Bolivia, on the south by Chile, and on the west by the Pacific Ocean....
, whose climate also favoured a form of mummification. The sankar empire also had a form of mummification.

. ]]

However some of the best preserved bodies in the world are from Han dynasty
Han Dynasty

The Han Dynasty followed the Qin Dynasty and preceded the Three Kingdoms in China. The Han Dynasty was ruled by the family known as the Liu clan who had peasant origins....
 China, although the preservation process is still incompletely understood. It seems a special liquid, in which the bodies were embedded, was of major influence. (see Mawangdui
Mawangdui

Mawangdui is an archaeological site located in Changsha, China. The site consists of two saddle-shaped hills and contained the tombs of three people from the western Han Dynasty....
 )

Embalming in Europe had a much more sporadic existence. It was attempted from time to time, especially during the Crusades, when crusading noblemen wished to have their bodies preserved for burial closer to home. Embalming began to come back into practice in parallel with the anatomists of the Renaissance
Renaissance

The Renaissance was a cultural movement that spanned roughly the 14th to the 17th century, beginning in Italy in the late Middle Ages and later spreading to the rest of Europe....
 who needed to be able to preserve their specimens. Arterial embalming is believed to have been first practiced in the Netherlands
Netherlands

The Netherlands is a country that is part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It is a parliamentary democratic constitutional monarchy. The Netherlands is located in North-West Europe, and bordered by the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east....
 in the 17th century by Frederik Ruysch
Frederik Ruysch

Frederik Ruysch was a Netherlands botany and anatomy, remembered for his developments in anatomical preservation and the creation of dioramas or scenes incorporating human parts....
 but his liquor balsamicum preservative was kept a secret to the grave and his methods were not widely copied.

Contemporary embalming methods advanced markedly during the American Civil War
American Civil War

The American Civil War , also known as the War Between the States and several Naming the American Civil War, was a civil war in the United States....
, which once again involved many servicemen dying far from home, and their family wishing them returned for local burial
Burial

Burial, also called interment and inhumation, is the act of placing a person or object into the ground. This is accomplished by excavating a pit or trench, placing an object in it, and covering it over....
. Dr. Thomas Holmes
Thomas Holmes

Thomas Holmes was a mortician who is often thought of as the father of American embalming....
 received a commission from the Army Medical Corps to embalm the corpses of dead Union officers to return to their families. Military authorities also permitted private embalmers to work in military-controlled areas. The passage of Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln

Abraham Lincoln was the List of Presidents of the United States President of the United States. He successfully led the country through its greatest internal crisis, the American Civil War, preserving the Union and ending slavery....
's body home for burial was made possible by embalming and it brought the possibilities and potential of embalming to a wider public notice.

In 1867, the German
Germany

Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered to the north by the North Sea, Denmark, and the Baltic Sea; to the east by Poland and the Czech Republic; to the south by Austria and Switzerland; and to the west by France, Luxembourg, Belgium, and the Netherlands....
 chemist August Wilhelm von Hofmann discovered formaldehyde
Formaldehyde

Formaldehyde is a chemical compound with the chemical formula H2CO. It is the simplest aldehyde. Formaldehyde exists in several forms aside from H2CO: the cyclic trimer trioxane and the polymer Polyoxymethylene....
, whose preservative properties were soon discovered and which became the foundation for modern methods of embalming.

In the 19th and early 20th centuries arsenic
Arsenic

Arsenic is a well-known chemical element that has the symbol As and atomic number 33. Arsenic was first documented by Albertus Magnus in 1250....
 was frequently used as an embalming fluid but has since been supplanted by other more effective and less toxic chemicals. There were questions about the possibility of arsenic from embalmed bodies later contaminating ground water supplies. There were also legal concerns as people suspected of murder by arsenic poisoning could claim that the levels of poison in the deceased's body were a result of embalming post mortem rather than evidence of homicide
Homicide

Homicide refers to the act of killing another human being. It can also describe a person who has committed such an act, though this use is rare in modern English....
.

Embalming is distinct from taxidermy
Taxidermy

Taxidermy is the art of mounting or reproducing dead animals for display or for other sources of study. Taxidermy can be done on all species of animals including humans....
. Embalming preserves the human body intact, whereas taxidermy is the recreation of an animal's form using only the creature's skin.

Modern embalming is most commonly done to ensure a better presentation of the deceased for viewing by relatives and friends as, everything else being equal, an embalmed body will look better than one this is unembalmed.. A successful viewing is considered by many authorities to be helpful in the grieving process.

Who is an embalmer?


The roles of a mortician and an embalmer are different. A mortician is a person who arranges for the final disposition of the deceased who may or may not prepare the deceased. An embalmer is someone who has been trained in the art and science of embalming and may not have any contact with the family, although many people fill both roles. Embalming training commonly involves formal study in anatomy
Anatomy

Anatomy is a branch of biology that is the consideration of the body plan. It is a general term that includes human anatomy, animal anatomy and plant anatomy ....
, thanatology
Thanatology

Thanatology is the academic, and often science, study of death among human beings. It investigates the circumstances surrounding a person's death, the grief experienced by the deceased's loved ones, and larger social attitudes towards death such as ritual and memorialization....
, chemistry and specific embalming theory (to widely varying levels depending on the region of the world one lives in) combined with practical instruction in a mortuary with a resultant formal qualification granted after the passing of a final practical examination and acceptance into a recognized embalming body. Examples of nationally recognized courses can be found found here and here.

Legal requirements over who can practice vary geographically. Some regions or countries have no specific requirements as to who may practice embalming. Additionally, in many places embalming is not done by trained embalmers but rather by doctors who, while they have the required anatomical knowledge, are not trained specialists in this field.

In the United States, the title of an embalmer is based largely on the state that they are licensed in. In states such as Pennsylvania, Virginia, Minnesota and Maryland, a funeral director is someone who is licensed only to make arrangements and handle the business side of the funeral home while a mortician is licensed to do these things as well as to embalm.

Modern practices


As practiced in the funeral home
Funeral home

A funeral home, funeral parlor or mortuary, is a business that provides burial and funeral services for the deceased and their families....
s of the Western World
Western world

The term Western world, the West or the Occident can have multiple meanings dependent on its context . Accordingly, the basic definition of what constitutes "the West" varies, expanding and contracting over time, in relation to various historical circumstances....
 (notably North America), embalming uses several steps. Modern embalming techniques are not the result of a single practitioner, but rather the accumulation of many decades, even centuries, of research, trial and error, and invention. A standardized version follows below, but variation on techniques is very common.

The deceased is placed on the mortuary table in the supine anatomical
Supine position

The supine position is a position of the human body; lying down with the face up, as opposed to the prone position, which is face down. When used in surgical procedures, it allows access to the peritoneal, thoracic and pericardium regions; as well as the head, neck and extremities....
 position with the head elevated by a headblock. The first step in embalming is to check that the individual is in fact deceased, and then verify the identity of the body (normally via wrist or leg tags). At this point embalmers commonly perform basic tests for signs of death, noting things such as clouded-over corneas, lividity, and rigor mortis
Rigor mortis

Rigor mortis is one of the recognizable signs of death that is caused by a chemical change in the muscles after death, causing the limbs of the Dead body to become stiff and difficult to move or manipulate....
 or by simply attempting to palpate a pulse in the carotid or radial artery. In modern times people awakening on the preparation table is largely the province of horror fiction
Horror fiction

Horror fiction is fiction in any medium intended to scare, unsettle, or horrify the audience. Historically, the cause of the "horror" experience has often been the intrusion of a supernatural element into everyday human experience....
 and urban myth. Any clothing
Clothing

A feature of all human societies, except perhaps the most primitive, is the wearing of clothing or clothes, especially in public. The primary purpose of clothing is functional, as a protection from the weather....
 on the corpse is removed and set aside and any personal effect such as jewelry is inventoried. A modesty cloth is sometimes placed over the genitalia. The corpse is washed in disinfectant and germicidal solutions. During this process the embalmer bends, flexes and massages the arms and legs to relieve rigor mortis. The eyes are posed using an eye cap that keeps them shut and in the proper expression. The mouth may be closed via suturing with a needle and ligature, using an adhesive, or by setting a wire into the maxilla and mandible with a needle injector, a specialized device most commonly utilized in North America and unique to mortuary practice. Care is taken to make the expression look as relaxed and natural as possible and ideally a recent photograph of the deceased while still living is used as a template. The process of closing the mouth, eyes, shaving, etc is collectively known as setting the features
Setting the features

Setting the features is a mortuary term that refers to the closing of the eyes and the mouth of a deceased person such that the cadaver is presentable as being in a state of rest and repose, and thus more suitable for viewing ....
.

The actual embalming process usually involves four parts:

1. Arterial
Artery

Arteries are blood vessels that carry blood away from the heart. All arteries, with the exception of the pulmonary and umbilical arteries, carry oxygenated blood....
 embalming, which involves the injection of embalming chemicals into the blood vessels, usually via the right common carotid artery. Blood and interstitial fluids are displaced by this injection and, along with excess arterial solution, are expelled via from the right jugular vein
Jugular vein

The jugular veins are veins that bring deoxygenated blood from the head back to the heart via the superior vena cava....
 and collectively referred to as drainage. The embalming solution is injected with a centrifugal pump and the embalmer massages the corpse to break up circulatory clots as to ensure the proper distribution of the embalming fluid. This process of locating vessels for injection and drainage is referred to as raising with injection and drainage from a solitary location being known as a single-point injection. In cases of poor circulation of the arterial solution additional injection points (commonly the axillary
Axillary artery

In human anatomy, the axillary artery is a large blood vessel that conveys oxygenated blood to the lateral aspect of the thorax, the axilla and the upper limb....
, brachial
Brachial artery

The brachial artery is the major blood vessel of the upper arm.It is a continuation of the axillary artery beyond the lower margin of teres major muscle....
 or femoral
Femoral artery

The femoral artery is a large artery in the muscles of the thigh....
 arteries, with the ulnar
Ulnar artery

The ulnar artery is the main blood vessel, with oxygenated blood, of the medial aspect of the forearm. It arises from the brachial artery and terminates in the superficial palmar arch, which joins with the superficial branch of the radial artery....
, radial
Radial artery

In human anatomy, the radial artery is the main blood vessel, with oxygenated blood, of the lateral aspect of the forearm....
 and tibial vessels if necessary) are used. The corresponding veins are commonly also raised and utilised for the purpose of drainage. Cases where multiple vessels are raised are referred to as multi-point injections, with a number referring to the extent of vessel's raised (ie a six-point injection or six-pointer). As a general rule the more points needing to be raised the greater the difficulty of the case. An injection utilizing both the left and right carotids is specifically referred to as a restricted cervical injection (RCI) while draining from a different site to injection (ie injecting arterial fluid into the right common carotid artery and draining from the right femoral vein
Femoral vein

In the human body, the femoral vein is a blood vessel that accompanies the femoral artery artery in the femoral sheath. It begins at the adductor canal and is a continuation of the popliteal vein....
) is referred to as a split injection.

2. Cavity embalming, the suction of the internal fluids of the corpse and the injection of embalming chemicals into body cavities, using an aspirator
Aspirator

An aspirator, also called an eductor-jet pump or filter pump, is a device that produces vacuum by means of the Venturi effect. In an aspirator, fluid flows through a tube which then narrows....
 and trocar
Trocar

A trocar is a hollow cylinder with a sharply pointed end, often three-sided, that is used to introduce cannulas and other similar implements into blood vessels or body cavities....
. The embalmer makes a small incision just above the navel
Navel

The navel is a scar on the abdomen, caused when the umbilical cord is removed from a newborn baby. All Placentalia mammals have a navel. It is fairly conspicuous in humans....
 and pushes the trocar in the chest and stomach cavities to puncture the hollow organs and aspirate their contents. He then fills the cavities with concentrated chemicals that contain formaldehyde. The incision is either sutured closed or a "trocar button" is screwed into place.

3. Hypodermic embalming, the injection of embalming chemicals under the skin as needed.

4. Surface embalming, which supplements the other methods, especially for visible, injured body parts.

A typical embalming takes several hours to complete. An embalming case that requires more attention or has unexpected complications could take substantially longer. The repair of an autopsy case or the restoration of a long-bone donor are two such examples.

Grooming

Mortician's Resorative Tools
After the body is rewashed and dried, a moisturizing cream is applied to the face. The body will usually sit for as long as possible for observation by the embalmer. After being dressed for visitation/funeral services, cosmetics are applied to make it appear more lifelike and to create a "memory picture" for the deceased's friends and relatives. For babies who have died, the embalmer may apply a light cosmetic massage cream after embalming to provide a natural appearance; massage cream is also used on the lips to prevent them from dehydrating, and the infant's mouth is often left open a bit for a more natural expression. If possible, the funeral director uses a light, translucent cosmetic; sometimes, heavier, opaque cosmetics are used to hide bruises, cuts, or discolored areas. Makeup is applied to the lips to mimic their natural color. Sometimes a very pale or light pink lipstick is applied on males, while brighter colored lipstick is applied to females. Hair gels or baby oil is applied to style the hair, especially for deceased who are male. Powders(especially Baby Powder) are applied to the body to eliminate odors, and it is also applied to face to achieve Matte and Fresh Effect to prevent oiliness of the corpse. Powders are commonly applied to corpse of younger ages (about 12-30 years of age) especially teenagers who prefers matte look. Mortuary cosmetizing is not done for the same reason as make-up for living people; rather, it is designed to add depth and dimension to a person's features that the lack of blood circulation has removed. Warm areas - where blood vessels in living people are superficial, such as the cheeks, chin, and knuckles - have subtle reds added to recreate this effect, while browns are added to the palpabrae (eyelids) to add depth, especially important as viewing in a casket
Casket

A casket, or a jewellery box is a receptacle for trinkets and Gemstone. It may take a very modest form, covered in leather and lined with satin, or it may reach the monumental proportions of the jewel cabinets which were made for Marie Antoinette, one of which is at Windsor, and another at Versailles, the work of Schwerdfeger as cabine...
 creates an unusual perspective rarely seen in everyday life. During the viewing, pink-colored lighting is sometimes used near the body to lend a warmer tone to the deceased's complexion. A photograph of the dead person in good health is often sought in order to guide the embalmer's hand in restoring the corpse to a more lifelike appearance. Blemishes and discolorations (such as bruises, in which the discoloration is not in the circulatory system and cannot be removed by arterial injection) occasioned by the last illness, the settling of blood, or the embalming process itself are also dealt with at this time (although some embalmers utilize hypodermic bleaching agents, such as phenol based cauterants, during injection to lighten discoloration and allow for easier cosmetizing).

Clothing

In the Western World men are typically buried in formal attire, such as a suit or coat and tie, and women in semi-formal dresses or pant suits. In recent years, a change has occurred and many individuals are now buried in less formal clothing such that they would have worn on a daily basis or other favourite attire. Clothing worn can also reflect the deceased person's profession or vocation: Priests and ministers are often dressed in their liturgical vestments and military personnel and police often wear their uniform. Underwear, singlets, bras, briefs and hosiery are all used if the family desire it and the deceased are dressed in them as they would be in life.

In certain instances a funeral director will request a specific style of clothing, such as a collared shirt or blouse, in order to cover traumatic marks or autopsy
Autopsy

An autopsy, also known as a post-mortem examination, necropsy , autopsia cadaverum, or obduction, is a medical procedure that consists of a thorough examination of a Dead body to determine the cause and manner of death and to evaluate any disease or injury that may be present....
 incisions. In other cases clothing may be cut down the back and placed on the deceased in this manner rather than a standard dressing procedure to ensure a proper fit. In many areas of Asia and Europe, the custom of dressing the body in a specially designed shroud
Shroud

Shroud usually refers to an item, such as a cloth, that covers or protects some other object. The term is most often used in reference to burial sheets, or winding-sheets, such as the famous Shroud of Turin or Tachrichim that Jews are dressed in for burial....
/funeral gown, rather than in clothing used by the living, is preferred.

After the deceased has been dressed, they are placed in the casket
Casket

A casket, or a jewellery box is a receptacle for trinkets and Gemstone. It may take a very modest form, covered in leather and lined with satin, or it may reach the monumental proportions of the jewel cabinets which were made for Marie Antoinette, one of which is at Windsor, and another at Versailles, the work of Schwerdfeger as cabine...
 (the term casket
Casket

A casket, or a jewellery box is a receptacle for trinkets and Gemstone. It may take a very modest form, covered in leather and lined with satin, or it may reach the monumental proportions of the jewel cabinets which were made for Marie Antoinette, one of which is at Windsor, and another at Versailles, the work of Schwerdfeger as cabine...
 is derived from older usage to refer to a "jewel box", it is called a coffin
Coffin

A coffin is a funerary box used in the display and containment of deceased remains ? either for burial or cremation....
 when the container is anthropoid [a stretched hexagon] in form) for the various funeral rites. It is common for photographs, notes, cards and favorite personal items to be placed in the casket with the deceased. Even bulky and expensive items, such as electric guitars, are occasionally interred with a body. In some ways this mirrors the ancient practice of placing grave goods
Grave goods

Grave goods, in archaeology and anthropology, are the items buried along with the body.They are usually personal possessions, supplies to smooth the deceased's journey into the afterlife or offerings to the gods....
 with a person for the afterlife. In traditional Chinese culture, paper substitutes of the goods are cremated
Cremation

Cremation is the process of reducing human remains to basic Chemical element in the form of bone fragments through flame, heat, and vaporization....
 with the deceased instead, as well as Hell Bank Notes specifically purchased for the occasion.

Embalming chemicals


Embalming chemicals are a variety of preservatives, sanitizers, disinfectant agents and additives used in modern embalming to temporarily delay decomposition
Decomposition

Decomposition refers to the process by which tissues of dead organisms break down into simpler forms of matter. Such a breakdown of dead organisms is essential for new growth and development of living organisms because it recycles the finite chemical constituents and frees up the limited physical space in the biome....
 and restore a natural appearance for viewing a body after death. A mixture of these chemicals is known as embalming fluid and is used to preserve deceased individuals, sometimes only until the funeral
Funeral

A funeral is a ceremony marking a person's death. Funerary customs comprise the complex of beliefs and practices used by a culture to remember the dead, from the funeral itself, to various monuments, prayers, and rituals undertaken in their honour....
, other times indefinitely.

Typical embalming fluid contains a mixture of formaldehyde
Formaldehyde

Formaldehyde is a chemical compound with the chemical formula H2CO. It is the simplest aldehyde. Formaldehyde exists in several forms aside from H2CO: the cyclic trimer trioxane and the polymer Polyoxymethylene....
, glutaraldehyde
Glutaraldehyde

Glutaraldehyde is a colorless liquid with a pungent odor used to sterilize medical and dental equipment. It is also used for industrial water treatment and as a chemical preservative....
, methanol
Methanol

Methanol, also known as methyl alcohol, carbinol, wood alcohol, wood naphtha or wood spirits, is a chemical compound with chemical formula carbonhydrogen3oxygenhydrogen ....
, ethanol
Ethanol

Ethanol, also called ethyl alcohol, pure alcohol, grain alcohol, or drinking alcohol, is a volatility , flammable, colorless liquid....
, and other solvents. The formaldehyde content generally ranges from 5 to 35 percent and the ethanol content may range from 9 to 56 percent.

Specialist embalming

Badly decomposing bodies, trauma cases, frozen and drowned bodies, and those to be transported for long distances also require special treatment beyond that for the "normal" case. The restoration of bodies and features damaged by accident or disease is commonly called restorative art or demisurgery and all qualified embalmers have some degree of training and practice in it. For such cases, the benefit of embalming is startlingly apparent. In contrast though, many people have unreasonable expectations of what a dead body should look like, due to the unrealistic portrayal of "dead" bodies (usually by live actors) in movies and television shows. Viewers generally have an unrealistic expectation that a body going through decomposition should look as it did before death. Ironically, the work of a skilled embalmer often results in the deceased appearing natural enough that the embalmer appears to have done nothing at all. Normally cosmeticians are very happy when someone can bring in a picture and the decedent's regular makeups, if worn, to help make their loved one to look as they did when alive.

Embalming autopsy
Autopsy

An autopsy, also known as a post-mortem examination, necropsy , autopsia cadaverum, or obduction, is a medical procedure that consists of a thorough examination of a Dead body to determine the cause and manner of death and to evaluate any disease or injury that may be present....
 cases differs from standard embalming because the nature of the post-mortem examination irrevocably disrupts the circulatory system, due to the removal of the organs and viscera. In these cases, a six-point injection is made through the two illiac or femoral arteries, subclavian or axillary vessels, and common carotids, with the viscera treated separately with cavity fluid or a special embalming powder in a viscera bag. In many morgues in the United States
United States

The United States of America is a Federal government constitutional republic comprising U.S. state and a federal district. The country is situated mostly in central North America, where its Contiguous United States and Washington, D.C., the Capital districts and territories, lie between the Pacific Ocean and Atlantic Oceans, Borders of the U...
 (such as the Los Angeles County Coroner
Los Angeles County Coroner

The Los Angeles County Department of Coroner was created in its present form on December 7, 1990 by an ordinance approved by the Los Angeles County Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors, though it has existed in some form since the late 19th century....
) and New Zealand
New Zealand

New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses , and numerous Islands of New Zealand, most notably Stewart Island/Rakiura and the Chatham Islands....
, these necessary vessels are carefully preserved during the autopsy; in countries in which embalming has been less common, such as Australia
Australia

Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the southern hemisphere comprising the Australia of the world's smallest continent, the major island of Tasmania, and numerous list of islands of Australia in the Indian Ocean and Pacific Oceans....
 and Japan
Japan

Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, People's Republic of China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south....
, they are routinely excised.

Long-term preservation requires different techniques, such as using stronger preservative chemicals and multiple injection sites to ensure thorough saturation of body tissues.

Embalming is meant to temporarily preserve the body of a deceased person. Regardless of whether embalming is performed, the type of burial or entombment, and the materials used — such as wood or metal caskets and vaults — the body of the deceased will eventually decompose. Modern embalming is done to delay decomposition so that funeral services may take place or for the purpose of shipping the remains to a distant place for disposition.

Embalming for anatomy education

A rather different process is used for cadaver
Cadaver

A cadaver is a dead human body.Cadaver may also refer to:* Cadaver tomb, tomb featuring an effigy in the form of a decomposing body* Cadaver , a video game...
s embalmed for dissection by doctors and medical students. Here, the first priority is for long term preservation, not presentation. As such, medical embalmers use embalming fluids that contain concentrated formaldehyde (37–40%, known as formalin) as well as phenol
Phenol

Phenol, also known as carbolic acid, is a toxic, white crystalline solid with a sweet tarry odor, commonly referred to as a "hospital smell"....
 and are made without dyes or perfumes. Many embalming chemical companies make specialized anatomical embalming fluids. Anatomical embalming is performed into a closed circulatory system. The fluid is usually injected with an embalming machine into an artery under high pressure and flow and allowed to swell and saturate the tissues. After the deceased is left to sit for a number of hours, the venous system is generally opened and the fluid allowed to drain out, although many anatomical embalmers do not use any drainage technique.

Anatomical embalmers may choose to use gravity-feed embalming, where the container dispensing the embalming fluid is elevated above the body's level and fluid is slowly introduced over an extended time, sometimes as long as several days. Unlike standard arterial embalming, no drainage occurs and the body distends extensively with fluid. The distension eventually reduces, often under extended (up to six months) refrigeration, leaving a fairly normal appearance. There is no separate cavity treatment of the internal organs. Anatomically embalmed cadavers have a typically uniform grey colouration, due both to the high formaldehyde concentration and to the lack of red colouration (added normally to standard, non-medical, embalming fluid.

Religious practices


There is much difference of opinion amongst different faiths as to the permissibility of embalming. A brief overview of some of the larger faiths positions are examined below

  • Most branches of the Christian
    Christian

    A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, a Monotheism#Christian view religion centered on the life and teachings of Jesus and interpreted by Christians to have been prophesied in the Hebrew Bible/Old Testament....
     faith generally allow embalming. Some bodies within Eastern Orthodoxy profess an absolute ban against embalming except when required by law or other necessity, while others may discourage but do not prohibit it . In general the decision on embalming is one that is dictated by the personal preference of the family rather than a specific church policy.


  • The Book of Mormon and The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints do not profess against embalming. Often, due to the custom of church members dressing the deceased, embalming is given preference.


  • Members of Iglesia ni Cristo
    Iglesia ni Cristo

    The Iglesia ni Cristo . The INC says the book contains "outright blasphemy" towards the late founder Felix Manalo by likening the INC to a criminal syndicate....
     allows embalming for the view of their loved ones. It forbids autopsy and cremation because they believe the body of the deceased is sacred and should be cared for with respect. They dress and groom the deceased as they looked in life. The preferred method is arterial embalming which injects formaldehyde into the body.


  • Many authorities hold Hinduism
    Hinduism

    'Hinduism' is the predominant religion of the Indian subcontinent. Hinduism is often referred to as , a Sanskrit phrase meaning "the eternal dharma", by its practitioners....
     does not accept embalming. In practice, this is not an adamant prohibition, and embalming for those of Hindu faith are known to occur, generally for repatriation to India or the South Pacific and for the purposes of viewing and funerary rites at the family home.


  • Members of Bahá'í Faith
    Bahá'í Faith

    The 'Bah?'? Faith' is a monotheism religion founded by Bah?'u'll?h in nineteenth-century Persian Empire#Persia and Europe , emphasizing the spiritual unity of all humankind....
     are not embalmed. Instead, the body is washed and placed in a cotton, linen or silk shroud. The body is to be buried within one hour's journey from the place of death, if this will be feasible. Cremation is also forbidden.


  • Zoroastrians traditionally hold a type of sky burial
    Sky burial

    Sky burial or ritual dissection was once a common funeral practice in Tibet wherein a human corpse is cut into small pieces and placed on a mountaintop, exposing it to the elements or the mahabhuta and animals ? especially to birds of prey....
     within structures known as Towers of Silence
    Towers of Silence

    Towers of Silence are circular, raised structures used by Zoroastrianism for exposure of the dead.There is no standard technical name for such a construction....
     in which the body is exposed to weathering and predation to dispose of the remains, and thus embalming the body is contrary to their funeral designs. This is due to the Zoroastrian belief that the dead body is unclean and the pure elements
    Classical element

    Many ancient philosophy used a set of archetype classical elements to explain patterns in nature. In this context, the word element refers to a chemical substance that is either a chemical compound or a mixture of chemical compounds , rather than a chemical element of modern physical science....
     of earth and fire should not be allowed to come into contact with it. This practice is not universally performed any more, and many Iranian Zoroastrians perform traditional cremations and burials instead.


  • Muslims are required to be buried within 24 hours of death, if possible. Embalming is forbidden. The body is washed and prepared specifically for interment. This procedure is to be done according to the last will of the deceased, usually by a close relative of the deceased who is of the same gender. He or she is then dressed in a plain white burial shroud (for women, the hair, ears and neck are covered as they were in life, preserving her dignity before men who are not closely related; men are buried in their ihram, or pilgrim garb, as worn during the Hajj in Mecca). Muslims believe that the spirit remains with the body from death until after burial, which is the reason for same-day burial, as well as the aforementioned procedures; the body is treated with the same care and respect as in life so as to not cause undue stress to the deceased. For the same reason, cremation is also forbidden. Prayers and readings of the Qur'an are spoken aloud to give comfort to the deceased, and the body is not left alone even for a time following the burial, during which the deceased is buried (preferably without a casket) on his or her right side, facing Mecca.


  • Traditional Jewish law forbids embalming, and burial is to be done as soon as possible - preferably within 24 hours. However, under certain circumstances, burial may be delayed if it is impossible to bury a person immediately, or to permit the deceased to be buried in Israel. Guidance of a Rabbi or the local chevra kadisha
    Chevra Kadisha

    A chevra kadisha is a loosely structured but generally closed organization of Jewish men and women who see to it that the bodies of Jews are prepared for burial according to Halacha and are protected from desecration, willful or not, until burial....
     (Jewish Burial Society) should be sought regarding any questions, as particular circumstances may justify leniencies. Notably the Biblical Joseph
    Joseph (Hebrew Bible)

    Joseph or Yosef , is a major figure in the Book of Genesis in the Hebrew Bible . He was Jacob's eleventh son and Rachel's first. He is also mentioned favourably in the Qur'an....
     was embalmed in the Egyptian fashion (Genesis
    Genesis

    Genesis or Breishit is the first book of the Bible used by Judaism and Christianity, and the first of five books of the Pentateuch or Torah....
     50:26).


Fictional Depictions of Embalming


Fictional works tend to portray the fantastic, extraordinary and often dysfunctional aspects of any profession or activity with which the public has little contact, and to ignore the mundane or routine. Embalming is no exception.
  • The Loved One
    The Loved One

    The Loved One: An Anglo-American Tragedy is a short satirical novel by Evelyn Waugh about the funeral business in Los Angeles, the British expatriate community in Hollywood, and the film industry....
    , a satiric novel by Evelyn Waugh
    Evelyn Waugh

    Arthur Evelyn St. John Waugh was a United Kingdom writer, best known for such darkly humorous and Satire novels as Decline and Fall, Vile Bodies, Scoop , A Handful of Dust, and The Loved One, as well as for serious works, such as Brideshead Revisited and the Sword of Honour trilogy that clearly manifest his Catho...
     that was the basis for a movie of the same name
    The Loved One (film)

    The Loved One is a 1965 in film about the funeral business in Los Angeles, which is based on The Loved One , a short satirical novel by Evelyn Waugh....
     directed by Terry Southern
    Terry Southern

    Terry Southern was a highly influential American author, essayist, screenwriter and university lecturer, noted for a distinctive satirical style....
    , is set in the funeral industry of Hollywood, California
    California

    California is a U.S. state on the West Coast of the United States of the United States, along the Pacific Ocean. It is bordered by Oregon to the north, Nevada to the east, Arizona to the southeast, and to the south the Mexico state of Baja California....
    . Specifically, the story is a spoof of Forest Lawn
    Forest Lawn

    Forest Lawn is the name of a number of different places:CemeteriesForest Lawn is a generic name for many cemeteries in the United States. The majority of these are old, elaborate cemeteries that historically had a secondary use as a public park:...
    -style mortuaries. The story centers on Dennis Barlow, a British expatriate who falls in love with Aimee Thanatogenos, a cosmetician at Whispering Glades Mortuary. This brings him into competition with Mr. Joyboy, the mortuary's chief embalmer who lusts after Aimee. In the movie, Mr. Joyboy (Rod Steiger
    Rod Steiger

    Rod Steiger was an United States Academy Award-winning actor known for his intense performances in such films as In the Heat of the Night , Waterloo , On the Waterfront, and Doctor Zhivago ....
    ) is shown shaping the face of Dennis' late uncle (John Gielgud
    John Gielgud

    Sir Arthur John Gielgud, Order of Merit , Companion of Honour was an England actor and singer, particularly known for his warm and expressive voice, which his colleague Alec Guinness likened to "a silver trumpet muffled in silk"....
    ) into ghoulish shapes.
  • In an episode of Quantum Leap
    Quantum leap

    In physics, a quantum leap or quantum jump is a change of an electron from one quantum state to another within an atom. It is discontinuous; the electron jumps from one energy level to another instantaneously....
    , Sam leaps into a small-town mortician. He learns that the young woman he is embalming did not in fact commit suicide and must prove that she was murdered. The episode also features a corpse beautician. Upon her preparation to begin making-up the body, Sam asks her "not to overdo it; keep it natural."
  • The television show Six Feet Under, set in a funeral home, has brought embalming and funeral practice back into the public eye and is noted for its reality and dark humour. The character Hector Federico "Rico" Diaz is a full-time embalmer employed by the funeral home in the show. Many of the more extensive techniques, like a full face rebuild were of the fantastical nature. This television show does not accurately reflect the true, day-to-day activities of an actual funeral home and preparation room.
  • In the film Tales from the Crypt
    Tales from the Crypt (film)

    Tales from the Crypt is a United Kingdom horror movie, made in 1972 by Amicus Productions. It is an anthology film consisting of five separate segments, based on stories from EC Comics....
    , Richard Greene
    Richard Greene

    Richard Marius Joseph Greene - some sources list his birth date as 1914 - was a noted England movie and television actor. A matinee idol who appeared in more than 40 films, he was perhaps best known for the lead role in the long-running British TV series The Adventures of Robin Hood , which ran 143 episodes from 1955 to 1960....
     portrays a character who is killed in a car accident and then magically wished back to life forever, after he has been embalmed. As a result, he awakens in excruciating pain and there is no cure; he will be in physical agony permanently.
  • The reality TV show Family Plots
    Family Plots

    Family Plots was a reality television show that followed the ongoing events and the eccentric employees that work at the family-run Poway Bernardo Mortuary in Poway, California....
    , which was shown on the A&E Network
    A&E Network

    A&E is a cable television and satellite television television network with headquarters in Manhattan and offices in Stamford, Connecticut, Atlanta, Detroit, Los Angeles, Chicago, and London....
     often gave viewers a behind-the-scenes look into the embalming room. The embalmer working at the mortuary at the time, Shonna Wissmiller Smith, had become a minor celebrity.
  • Many horror film
    Horror film

    Horror films are movies that strive to elicit responses of fear, horror and terror from viewers. Their plots frequently involve themes of the supernatural....
    s dealing with animate mummies focus on gruesome aspect of Ancient Egyptian
    Ancient Egypt

    Ancient Egypt was an Ancient history civilization in eastern North Africa, concentrated along the lower reaches of the Nile in what is now the modern nation of Egypt....
     embalming practises, frequently having them embalmed alive as punishment for some transgression.
  • In the end of the Vincent Price
    Vincent Price

    Vincent Leonard Price, Jr. was an United States film actor, remembered for his distinctive voice, his 6-foot 4-inch stature and serio-comic attitude in a series of horror films done in the latter part of his career....
     film The Abominable Dr. Phibes
    The Abominable Dr. Phibes

    'The Abominable Dr. Phibes' is a horror film starring Vincent Price. Its art deco sets, black comedy and "over the top" performance by Price has made the film and its sequel Dr....
     the central villain rather ludicrously embalms himself to be forever with his dead wife in the final sequence. This does not stop his resurrection for the sequel.
  • There is a horror movie titled The Embalmer whose movie posters reads "...beauty after beauty dragged to a sunken crypt...petrified play-captives of THE EMBALMER".
  • In the film Kissed
    Kissed

    Kissed is a Canada psychological drama, directed and co-written by Lynne Stopkewich, based on Barbara Gowdy's short story "We So Seldom Look On Love"....
     the lead female character is a necrophiliac who is training to become an embalmer.
  • In the TV Show, CSI:NY (Season 4, Episode 1) a person is shown being embalmed with orange dish soap while he was still alive. This was to make him confess to a murder he witnessed.
  • Manga artist Mitsukazu Mihara
    Mitsukazu Mihara

    is an influential Japanese illustrator credited with helping shape the GothLoli look through her work in the "Gothic & Lolita Bible", as well as in other subsequent manga ....
     made a five volume series entitled "The Embalmer" ("Shigeshoshi"). It focuses on the difficulties the main character, an embalmer named Shinjyurou, faces in Japan, where embalming is generally looked down upon. In 2007, TV Tokyo
    TV Tokyo

    is a TV station with headquarters in Minato, Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan. The network is also known as , a portmanteau of "terebi" and "Tokyo." It is the key station of TXN ....
     aired a drama series based on the manga, starring Wada Masato as Shinjyurou.
  • In the film The Godfather
    The Godfather

    The Godfather is an Cinema of the United States crime film film based on the The Godfather by Mario Puzo and directed by Francis Ford Coppola from a screenplay by Puzo, Coppola, and Robert Towne, who was not credited....
    , Don Corleone (Marlon Brando
    Marlon Brando

    Marlon Brando, Jr. was an Academy Award-winning American actor whose body of work spanned over half a century. He is widely considered one of the greatest actors of all time, and was named the fourth AFI's 100 Years......
    ) asks for an extensive embalming as a return favor from an undertaker whom he had assisted earlier. The corpse is the Don's son Sonny (James Caan
    James Caan

    James Caan is an American actor. He is best-known for his Academy Award nominated role of Sonny Corleone in 1972's The Godfather, Paul Sheldon in Stephen King's Misery and for his role as Ed Deline on Las Vegas ....
    ) who had been brutally shot with dozens of machine-gun bullets.


Notable embalmings

  • It was rumored that after her death Diana, Princess of Wales
    Diana, Princess of Wales

    Diana, Princess of Wales, was the first wife of Charles, Prince of Wales. Their sons, Princes Prince William of Wales and Prince Henry of Wales , are second and third Line of succession to the British throne of the British monarchy and fifteen other Commonwealth Realms....
     was hastily embalmed to cloud tests that she may have been pregnant. However if this were the case an autopsy would still have easily been able to determine such an obvious condition and the rumour is just urban myth. The British inquest into her death, concluded in April 2008, revealed that the princess's remains were decomposing so rapidly in the August heat that the hospital holding her had no choice but to embalm her, to keep her in viewable condition when Prince Charles came to visit later that day.[Telegraph.co.uk, 7 April 2008]


  • Having died in the summer when heat would hasten decomposition, Paul VI (pope 1963–1978) decomposed at his lying in state, prompting Vatican officials to install fans around the body to disperse the odor.


  • Pius XII's (pope 1939–1958) botched embalming by a charlatan doctor -- which only sped up the rate of decomposition -- led to his body turning black and his nose falling off while lying in state, and the body disintegrated in the coffin. The Swiss Guards stationed around Pius XII's body were forced to change shifts every ten to fifteen minutes since the body's odor caused some guards to pass out. The doctor who performed the embalming had also taken photos of the Pontiff in his death throes and intended to sell them to tabloids. The Italian tabloids refused to buy the photos, and the doctor was banned from entering the Vatican City-State by John XXIII, who furthermore prohibited any photography of a deceased Pope until the body is properly vested and laid out.
  • Pope John XXIII
    Pope John XXIII

    Blessed Pope John XXIII , born Angelo Giuseppe Roncalli , known as Blessed John XXIII since his beatification, was elected as the 261st Pope of the Roman Catholic Church and monarch of Vatican City on 28 October 1958....
    's body is on display in an altar on the main floor of the Basilica of Saint Peter after having been exhumed from the grottoes beneath the main altar and has retained an extremely well-preserved state. If a body's remains do not decompose and this cannot be explained by science, it is often treated as a miracle.


However, the case of John XXIII's body did not enjoy the same acclamation, as it may have merely been due to embalming and adipocere
Adipocere

Adipocere or grave wax or mortuary wax is a water-insoluble material consisting mostly of saturated fatty acids. It is formed by the slow hydrolysis of fats in decomposing material such as a human cadaver by action of anaerobic bacteria....
 formation.

  • Murdered civil rights activist Medgar Evers
    Medgar Evers

    Medgar Wiley Evers was an African American African-American Civil Rights Movement activism from Mississippi who was murdered by Byron De La Beckwith, a member of the Ku Klux Klan....
     was so well embalmed that a viable autopsy
    Autopsy

    An autopsy, also known as a post-mortem examination, necropsy , autopsia cadaverum, or obduction, is a medical procedure that consists of a thorough examination of a Dead body to determine the cause and manner of death and to evaluate any disease or injury that may be present....
     was able to be performed on his corpse decades after his death and this helped secure the conviction of his killer.


  • Perhaps the most famous embalmed body of the 20th century is that of Vladimir Lenin
    Vladimir Lenin

    Vladimir Ilyich Lenin , born Vladimir Ilyich Ulyanov and also known by the pseudonyms V.I. Lenin and N. Lenin, was a Russians revolutionary, a Bolshevik Communism politician, the principal leader of the October Revolution and the first head of the USSR....
    , which continues to draw crowds decades after his death. Lenin's body is embalmed since his death in 1924 and is seen on public in Lenin's Tomb
    Lenin's Mausoleum

    Lenin's Mausoleum also known as Lenin's Tomb, situated in Red Square in Moscow, is the mausoleum that serves as the current cemetery of Vladimir Lenin....
    .


  • Less known, but much more well-preserved is the body of famous Russian surgeon and scientist N. I. Pirogov, died 1881. He was embalmed using the technique he himself developed. His body rests in a church in Vinnitsa
    Vinnytsia

    Vinnytsia is a city located on the banks of the Southern Buh, in central Ukraine. It is the Capital city of the Vinnytsia Oblast , as well as the administrative center of the surrounding Vinnytskyi Raion within the oblast....
    , Ukraine. Compared to the corpse of Lenin, which undergoes thorough maintenance in a special underground clinic two times a week, the body of Pirogov rests untouched and unchanging - it is said that only dust has to be brushed off of it. It resides at room temperature in a glass-lid coffin (while Lenin's body is preserved at a constant low temperature).


  • Eva Perón
    Eva Perón

    Mar?a Eva Duarte de Per?n was the second wife of President of Argentina Juan Per?n and served as the First Lady of Argentina from 1946 until her death in 1952....
     ("Evita") was embalmed at the request of her husband, Argentine President Juan Perón
    Juan Perón

    Juan Domingo Per?n was an Argentina general and politician, elected three times as President of Argentina, after serving in several government positions, including the Secretary of Labor and the Vice Presidency....
    , in order to make a Lenin-like shrine to her memory. A coup d'état toppled Perón, and his plan did not come to fruition. Sixteen years after her death, Eva Perón's body was exhumed and found to be in perfect condition, leading some sectors of Argentine society to call for her canonization
    Canonization

    Canonization is the act by which a particular Christian church declares a deceased person to be a saint and is included in the canon, or list, of recognized saints....
    .


  • Abraham Lincoln
    Abraham Lincoln

    Abraham Lincoln was the List of Presidents of the United States President of the United States. He successfully led the country through its greatest internal crisis, the American Civil War, preserving the Union and ending slavery....
     was embalmed after his assassination in 1865. In order to prevent anyone stealing Lincoln's body, Lincoln's eldest son Robert
    Robert Todd Lincoln

    Robert Todd Lincoln was an United States lawyer and politician, and the first son of U.S. President Abraham Lincoln and Mary Todd Lincoln. Born in Springfield, Illinois, United States, he was the only one of Lincoln's four sons to live past his teenage years....
     called for Lincoln's exhumation in 1901 to be buried in a concrete vault in the burial room of his tomb
    Lincoln Tomb

    Lincoln's Tomb in Oak Ridge Cemetery, Springfield, Illinois, Illinois, is the final resting place of 16th President of the United States Abraham Lincoln, his wife, Mary Todd Lincoln, and three of their four sons....
     in Springfield, Illinois
    Springfield, Illinois

    Springfield is the capital of the U.S. state of Illinois and the county seat of Sangamon County, Illinois with a population of 116,482 . Over 200,000 residents live in the Springfield Springfield, Illinois metropolitan area, which includes Sangamon County and adjacent Menard County, Illinois....
    . Fearing that his body would have been stolen in the interim, Lincoln's coffin was opened, and his features were still recognizable, thirty-six years after his death.


  • Rosalia Lombardo
    Rosalia Lombardo

    Rosalia Lombardo was an Italy child born in 1918 in Palermo, Sicily. She died on December 6 1920. It is thought that she died from a bronchial infection....
    , who died at age two on 6 December 1920 and was one of the last corpses to make it to the Capuchin catacombs of Palermo
    Capuchin catacombs of Palermo

    The Capuchin Catacombs of Palermo are burial catacombs in Palermo, Sicily, southern Italy. Today they provide a somewhat macabre tourist attraction as well as an extraordinary historical record....
    , Sicily before the local authorities banned the practice. Nicknamed the 'Sleeping Beauty', Rosalia's body is still perfectly intact. Embalmed by a certain Alfredo Salafia, she is in a glass case, looking very much like a surreal doll.


  • Mao Zedong
    Mao Zedong

    Mao Zedong was a China military and politics dictator. Mao led the Communist Party of China to victory against the Kuomintang in the Chinese Civil War, and was the leader of the People?s Republic of China from its establishment in 1949 until his death in 1976....
     was embalmed after he died of Parkinson's Disease
    Parkinson's disease

    Parkinson's disease is a degenerative disorder of the central nervous system that often impairs the sufferer's motor skills and speech, as well as other functions....
     on September 9, 1976.


  • Benigno S. "Ninoy" Aquino, Jr.
    Benigno Aquino, Jr.

    Benigno Servillano Aquino, Jr. , popularly known as Ninoy Aquino or Benigno S. Aquino, Jr., was a former Philippine Senate of the Philippines, governor, vice governor and mayor and a leader of the opposition to the rule of Ferdinand Marcos....
     (1932–1983), popular opposition leader to Philippine strongman Ferdinand Marcos, was not embalmed after his assassination. His mother decided against it so that the Filipino people can see "what they did to my son." Mourners saw the fresh exit wound on Aquino's chin where the bullet made its exit after coming in from the back.


External links