HW #55 - Culminating Project - Care of The Dead

I chose to learn about and experience the process of burial more thoroughly. I researched the history of caskets and coffins over the past 250 years, and attempted to build an eco-friendly, traditional coffin. (A coffin is a tapered hexagonal or octagonal box and a casket is rectangular. Over time, the casket has become more popular but both are used.) Below is a timeline documenting how coffins/caskets have been a part of the process of dying primarily in the US but also in Europe.

Timeline:

• 1750s: British coffin nails used to hold velvet padding inside and sometimes spell out the name and date of the deceased on the coffin lid.
• 1760s: British coffin locks came into use to keep thieves from stealing the goods inside and to keep medical students from performing autopsies.
• 1770s: British coffin furniture was made from tin, iron or brass.
• 1780s: Coffin furniture like coffin hinges became available to order in magazines
• 1790s: In Europe, A way of safeguarding against the dreaded premature burial was gaining popularity: the security coffin, designed to allow anyone who woke to find they had been prematurely interred to attract attention or escape. The coffin was fitted with a tube that a passerby could sniff to see if putrefaction had advanced.
• 1800s: Casket industry in US originated.  As steel caskets became common throughout the 1800's, hardwood, cloth-covered wood, metal (some with inner liners and glass sealing mechanisms) were common.
• 1830s: Morticians began digging graves instead of families of the deceased, and laws regarding the depth of graves began surfacing.
• 1840s: “Fisk” among the first airtight caskets introduced.
• 1850s: Iron coffins gained popularity
• 1860s: Coffins often made of English Oak and Elm
• 1870s: Unique model with full length glass top invented
• 1880s: General Ulesses S. Grant was buried in a metal casket with a full plate glass top.
• 1890s: Hardwood and varnish.
• 1900s: Hardwood, sometimes with fabric on insides.
• 1910s: Mahogany Casket.
• 1920s: Intricate hinges and lids were patented.
• 1930s: unique wooden “casket for three” made for a couple whose babe had died in preparation for their suicides.
• 1940s: Metal caskets with rubber gaskets were introduced. These gaskets create a tight seal when the lid is lowered to the base and locked, which was thought to prevent the body from decaying for longer.
• 1950s: more than 700 casket manufacturers in the US (about 20,000 in industry employment). More than half the caskets were cloth-covered. Hardwood were about 18%, metal were 25%. Children’s caskets represented 6% of the total market.
• 1960s: Metal caskets metal caskets were slightly less than half of the industry’s.
• 1970s: Nearly two-thirds of the caskets produced were metal. Also, oversized caskets.
• 1980s: Sales estimated at 1.8 million caskets per year.
• 1990s: Employment between 7800 to 9000. There are 211 Casket producers, and less than 300 funeral directors in the country. 
• 2000s: Eco-friendly burials emerged and Michael Jackson’s casket most expensive ever.
• Modern:

Non-gasketed Steel Caskets are normally made of 20-gauge steel (same thickness used in automobile body panels) or 22-gauge steel. Twenty-gauge steel is usually the least expensive metal caskets available and are usually square-cornered designs. Copper or Bronze may be found in square-cornered, round-cornered or urn shaped designs. Rather than gauge, copper and bronze caskets are measured by weight. A 32-oz. copper or bronze casket means that the copper or bronze used weighed 32-oz. per square foot. There are also 48-oz. copper or bronze caskets.             

Gasketed Steel Caskets are made from 20-, 18- and 16-gauge steel. They are continuous-welded at the seams and corners and may have seam-welded bottoms or use epoxies (plastic or paint or other synthetic adhesive) to ensure integrity and reduce the likelihood of entrance of outside elements into the casket.

Most Hardwood Caskets are made of solid wood, finished in a satin or gloss coat, and sometimes hand polished. Their design may be square-cornered, round-cornered or round-cornered urn shapes. Least expensive woods are poplar and willow, and pine, oak, birch, maple, cherry, black walnut and mahogany are more expensive. Other species of wood used for caskets are ash, elm, redwood, cedar, etc. While normally in the third cost quartile, hardwood caskets are sometimes the most expensive caskets manufactured. Solid hardwood caskets are manufactured like fine furniture. They are assembled by craftsmen; sanded for painting or staining. Some have hand-rubbed finishes.

Veneer-finished caskets are generally less expensive than solid wood caskets.
Stainless Steel Caskets are most often square-cornered or square-cornered urn designs. New products are being developed in round-cornered and round-cornered urn designs. 

Current percentages of different kinds of caskets manufactured for sale:

-12.5% Cloth covered caskets (including products used in cremation);
-14-15% Hardwood caskets (including products used in cremation);
-16-17% Non-gasketed steel caskets;
-45-46% Gasketed steel caskets;
-3% Copper or bronze caskets;
-3% Stainless steel caskets;
-3% Infant and children's caskets of various designs and materials;
-.5% Composite or fiberglass products.

I first considered building a casket, but realized that this project would not only be extraneously difficult, expensive and time-consuming, but also would result in storage struggles. I then endeavored to build a smaller casket or coffin to scale so that if I ever did want to build a coffin for myself or someone else, I would have a general idea of how to do so. Constructing a Coffin rather than buying one is beneficial because it teaches wood-working skills, it can therapeutically bring a mourning family together, it is less expensive, and it is more environmentally friendly than an industrially produced model. I found blueprints for a wooden, do-it-yourself coffin (posted below).

As you can see, the blueprint lists the measurements of every piece of the coffin. I divided every measurement by 4, so the final product would be roughly 1/4 the size of an actual coffin. The instructions called for about 12 boards of 8-12 foot long 1X10 inch lumber and basic hand-tools such as a saw (preferably a table saw), hammer, nails (or wood-glue if more eco-friendly), a work table, and a tape measure. Not knowing what "1X10 inch lumber" meant, I went to home depot and realized that this measurement referred to the volume. In other words, the thickness of the wood is 1", the width is 10", and the length is 8-12'. I planned to use a couple planks I bought there (each measuring about 8 feet long, 12 inches wide, and 1 inch thick) in addition to the pieces of pine I already had at home.

Not having a table fit for wood-working, I set up my saw, hammer, nails, glue, pencil, planks, blueprint, ruler and scaled measurements in my small bathroom. 45 minutes later, I saw on the edge of my bathtub with sweat on my brow, a rather sprained pinky finger, a bathtub full of sawdust, and perhaps 1/10 of the necessary sawing finished. I forced myself to acknowledge the mistakes I'd made.

Firstly, it is wishful thinking to consider a porcelain, slippery and narrow edge of a bathtub the equivalent of a work-table. Both I and the wood were sliding around while I sawed, with nothing to keep the wood or I still. Secondly, the saw was not a table saw. The instructions call for cutting the wood at particular angles to fit the pieces together, and this was not something I could do with a handsaw. If forced myself to admit that if I attempted this, I would end up with a bathtub full of sawdust AND blood. The handsaw was also old and had an awkward piece of metal opposite the sharp side of the blade. This piece kept the saw from going all the way through a given piece of wood. My other mistake was in my purchase; I had scaled every measurement down to 1/4 the original except the thickness of the wood. Thus, making the coffin to scale would require cutting the planks down to 1/2 or 1/4 the thickness (an impossibility with my saw, sprained finger and "worktable").

Plan B: I found some Balsa wood leftover from an interest in wood-carving. I knew Balsa was very soft and pliable and that I had enough of it if I used it wisely. I scaled the measurements to be even smaller than before, and started cutting. (I could not saw because the wood was too delicate, so I used little hand held wood-carving knives and even occasionally a cleaver from the kitchen). Because the wood was so delicate, I had to cut double the number of pieces and glue each of them together so that the final product would not break. I glued them together and ended up with the product posted below:

To attach the lid, I considered metal hinges but realized this would make the coffin quite eco-unfriendly and not as fit for cremation. I decided upon a leather hinge and a leather tie to keep it closed. Both the leather and the Balsa were unconventional materials for a coffin, but so are many materials used in modern eco-friendly caskets. Some are made of cardboard, banana leaves, bamboo or willow. In future coffin-constructing projects, I plan to make sure all my measurements are correct, have all the right materials, tools and workspace, and try to make the coffin lovelier as this one had a messy look to it.

I learned via this project that each measurement is extremely important. It also left me with a deep appreciation for the skills and dedication of people who make caskets by hand - like the Amish or some farmers, to name a few. This society seems to measure the amount of love and respect a family has for the deceased in terms of the beauty and expense of the casket. I used to think this is ridiculous, but now I feel that the exception is when people build caskets for dead family or friends. I think that this is truly a labor of love; it makes sense that someone would put a lot of creative effort into making the casket aesthetically pleasing as well as strong if that casket would hold the body of a loved one forevermore. Making a casket may be financially cheaper, but it is strenuously expensive. Perhaps I will use this casket to hold jewelry, or to bury the family fish in when he dies. Here is the finished product:

Sources:

• "The History of The Modern Casket." casketinfo.com. All County Funeral Home, 2007. Web. 15 May 2011. http://www.casketinfo.com/casketinfo/History.htm.
• "Owosso Casket Company." shiawasseehistory.com. Owosso Michigan, 1990. Web. 15 May 2011. <-http://www.shiawasseehistory.com/casket.html>.
• Wikipedia, . "Coffin." Wikipedia.org. Wikimedia Foundation, 15 May 20100. Web. 15 May 2011. <-http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coffin>.
• "The History of Caskets." memorials.com. Memorials, 2010. Web. 15 May 2011. http://www.memorials.com/Caskets-History-of-Caskets-information.php.
• Smith, Ken. "National Museum of Funeral History." roadsideamerica.com. Roadside America, 2011. Web. 15 May 2011. http://www.roadsideamerica.com/story/2226.
• Balfour, Edward. "The Golden Casket." thegoldencasket.com. The Golden Casket, 2010. Web. 15 May 2011. http://www.thegoldencasket.com/history.php.
• "Build Your Own Coffin." diycoffin.com. DIY Coffin, 2011. Web. 15 May 2011. http://diycoffin.com/.
• Evans, Diana. "Caskets Vs. Coffins." fcpr.fsu.edu. Florida Department of Natural Services, 2011. Web. 15 May 2011. <http://fcpr.fsu.edu/funeral/modules/management/productInfo/casketsVScoffins.htm
• "Business And Finance: Casket Circumstance." Time.com. Time Inc., 15 Sep 1930. Web. 15 May 2011. http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,788494,00.html.
• "National Museum of Funeral History." nmfh.org. NMFH, 2008. Web. 15 May 2011. http://www.nmfh.org/exhibits/casket/center.html.
• Sandy, . "R.I.P. Fact of The Day." mentalfloss.com. Mental_Floss, 2008. Web. 15 May 2011. http://www.mentalfloss.com/trivia/facts/archives/1871.
• Davison, Anita. "Funeral Procession of Charles." hoydensandfirebrands.blogspot.com. Blogger, April 17, 2010. Web. 15 May 2011. http://hoydensandfirebrands.blogspot.com/2009/07/17th-century-funeral-practices.html.
• Cox, Nancy. "Coffin." british-history.ac.uk. University of London and History of Parliamant Trust, 2011. Web. 15 May 2011. http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=58726#s3.