When it comes to burial or funeral urns, the practice is not a new one. In Missouri, cremation services offer you a wide selection of urns to contain the cremains of the deceased. They do so for less. Missouri cremation costs reflect the nature of the funeral type. In part, it is because of the method and the use of an urn.
Various cultures throughout the centuries have used burial urns to contain the remains of their loved ones. Today, it has become an integral part of the cremation process. Yet, where did it begin? When did it arrive in America? Have things changed over the centuries?
What is an Urn?
An urn is a practical object. Originally it was a vase featuring a narrow neck with a body curving downward to rest on a footed pedestal. It may consist of ceramics, metal, wood or other materials. It can be of any size. It may be elegantly decorated or plain.
A funeral urn, also referred to as a funerary urn, cinerary urn and burial urn, is the same object. It is a vase with a specific purpose - to contain the remains of the deceased. In some instances, it could be actual body parts such as the heart. In India, for example, archeologists discovered more than 160 burial urns. All of these, unlike current cremation services in Missouri, contained skeletal remains of humans. In most instances, however, the urn contains the cremated ashes of the deceased.
Origins of Funeral Urns
Burning the body to reduce it to its basest elements is cremation. Its quickly became an integral part of many cultures throughout the centuries. The process quickly acquired a symbiotic item - the funeral urn.
Funerary urns date back at least to around 7000 BC. The first known ones consisted of pottery. They were found in China in a Jiahu site, in Laoguantai, Shaanxi and in several Yangshao settlement areas. Many urns contained children although adults were cremated and put into one occasionally.
During the Stone Age, funerary urns were also common in Europe as well as the Near East. Archeologists have found them in caves. Bronze Age burial urns also have been located. They come from Hungary, northern Italy and similar European places. One was discovered in Norfolk, England. In certain communities, many funerary urns now appeared above ground in special storage spaces - somewhat resembling the later columbarium.
Ancient Greece and Rome preferred cremation to other forms. The Greeks chose to place the ashes in delicately decorated and beautifully colored pottery. They placed them with care but not in so elaborate and finely designed structures as the Romans. They placed their deceased in urns in niches in a columbarium.
Other cultures during and after the Roman Empire continued to place cremated remains in funerary urns. The Bavarians and Anglo-Saxons were two such people. Yet, the increased Christianization of the Western world saw a decrease in the practice. The belief of the Holy Roman Catholic Church forbade the practice. This was to remain the status quo until the 19th century when cremation and, therefore urns, saw a revival of interest. It was to result in a shake-up in the funeral business. In places such as Missouri, cremation costs began to reflect a simpler approach to burial.
Modern Revival of Cremation and Urns
The first step towards a return to cremation began when Professor Brunetti created a safe cremation chamber in 1873. Soon cremation societies sprang up in both England and the United States. Crematories appeared first in Woking, England, and Gotha Germany before setting up shop in Washington, Pennsylvania. Soon they were to appear all over the United States. Cremation services in Missouri also took shape.
People were drawn to the practice for a number of reasons - including the overall price. Cremation costs in Missouri are less expensive than those for a traditional funeral. In Missouri, cremation costs and services began to reflect the development of a growing interest in cremation and its creative companion - the burial urn.
In the early 20th century, Dr. Hugo Erichsen founded the Cremation Society of America later the Cremation Society of North America (1975). During this period, urns reflected the times. They were basic and elaborate, expensive and affordable. Cremation services in Missouri and elsewhere in the United States, offered their clients as wide selection as was then possible. Since then the choice has increased. Cremations costs in Missouri have also increased, but not as high as those for a traditional funeral.
Cremation Services in Missouri and Today's Urns
Burial urns are a personal expression of personality and preference. Coming in a vast array of materials from ceramics to wood; bronze to metal, they offer a unique opportunity to celebrate the deceased. Missouri cremation services providers can order one decorated with gems and jewels. They can help you find one suitable to any hobbyist. For the environmentalist, there are even biodegradable urns.
Talk to Missouri cremation services to discover what best suits the deceased. If cost is a question consider affordable cremation services in Missouri. It is possible to have a personal funerary urn and still keep cremation costs in Missouri down.