Chinese translations of Buddhist sūtras and Chinese Buddhist literature demonstrate how stūpas became acknowledged in medieval China and how clerics and laypeople perceived and worshiped them. Early Buddhist sūtras mentioned stūpas, which symbolize the presence of the Buddha and the truth of the dharma. Buddhist canonical texts attach great significance to the stūpa cult, providing instructions regarding who was entitled to have them, what they should look like in connection with the occupants’ Buddhist identities, and how people should worship them. However, the canonical limitations on stūpa burial for ordinary monks and prohibitions of non-Buddhist stūpas changed progressively in medieval China. Stūpas appeared to be erected for ordinary monks and the laity in the Tang dynasty. This paper aims to outline the Buddhist scriptural tradition of the stūpa cult and its changes in the Chinese Buddhist Canon, which serves as the doctrinal basis for understanding the significance of funerary stūpas and the primordial archetype for the formation of a widely accepted Buddhist funeral ritual in Tang China.

This thesis examines the failings in environmental-ethics present in the United States funeral industry, focusing on the lack of environmental ethical guidelines at an industrial and policy level. Utilizing an interdisciplinary approach through the lenses of environmental science, philosophical ethical considerations surrounding policy-based advocacy and ecocritical approaches to the concepts of reciprocity and harm reduction, this thesis makes recommendations to close the gaps in environmental ethical oversight. Focus is placed on mitigation of environmental harms resulting from changes in policy and legislation, and in-industry oversight, with an emphasis on the support of ecologically beneficial methods of the disposition of human remains. / Master of Arts / The funeral industry in the United States has developed in a way that eschews environmental consciousness in the services available to consumers. This thesis examines the historical development of the relationship between the funeral industry and the environment, and the way the rise of the corporate funeral model ignores environmental concerns, as well as presents contemporary environmental issues that impact the industry. Additionally, the thesis explores the gaps regarding environmental impact present in the ethical guidelines the funeral industry adheres to, and the lack of environmental accountability coming from both within the industry and from regulatory bodies and the United States government. Finally, this thesis provides recommendations for the industry, and associated advocacy groups surrounding corrections and policy and practice changes that will support more a more environmentally friendly version of the funeral industry. In this case, environmental friendliness is defined by practices which take pollution impacts into account, as well as consider the sustainability of resource use incurred by both traditional and emergent technologies.

Vindförbergs gravfält ligger i Ore socken, Dalarna, och klassificeras av många som ett insjögravfält. Dessa har varit aktiva under järnåldern till den tidiga medeltiden, och många frågetecken kvarstår ännu kring den eller de kulturer som etablerat dem. Den här uppsatsen undersöker de deponeringar av hornmaterial som påträffats vid Vindförbergs gravfält. Syftet är att undersöka dessas funktion och betydelse, skillnader mellan gravar med respektive utan deponeringar samt skillnader och likheter mellan Vindförberg och Krankmårtenhögen. Uppsatsen tillämpar osteologiska metoder, kompletterade med arkeologiska metoder, samt komparativa metoder. Den komparativa metoden har tillämpats gentemot Krankmårtenhögen, för att försätta de övriga resultaten i en större kontext. Studien har kunnat konstatera att hornen placerats medvetet på gravarna som statussymboler eller okända ritualistiska skäl. Studien har även kunnat konstatera att det finns vissa betydelsefulla skillnader mellan gravar med respektive utan deponeringar av horn, då främst gällande åldern då de begravda individerna avled. Vidare har studien kunnat konstatera starka likheter mellan Vindförbergs och Krankmårtenhögens respektive gravfält, vilket styrker en kulturell koppling trots vissa skillnader i mängden deponerat material. / Vindförberg's burial ground is located in Ore parish, Dalarna, and is classified by many as a inland lake burial ground. These have been active during the Iron Age to the early Middle Ages, and many questions still remain about the culture(s) that established them. This paper examines the deposits of horn material found at the Vindförberg burial ground. The aim is to investigate their function and significance, differences between graves with and without deposits, and differences and similarities between Vindförberg and Krankmårtenhögen. The essay applies osteological methods, supplemented with archaeological methods, as well as comparative methods. The comparative method has been applied to Krankmårtenhögen, in order to put the other results in a larger context. The study has been able to establish that the horns were deliberately placed on the graves as status symbols or for unknown ritualistic reasons. The study has also been able to establish that there are some significant differences between graves with and without deposits of horns, mainly regarding the age at which the buried individuals died. Furthermore, the study has been able to establish strong similarities between Vindförberg's and Krankmårtenhögen's respective burial grounds, which proves a cultural connection, despite some differences in the amount of deposited material.

Cemeteries are an integral part of the cityscape, which as a societal function are responsible for the interment of the deceased in a dignified manner. Cemeteries as a space imbued with cultural, historical, religious and emotional significance - as a site for grief, reflection and contemplation they also have a significant physical presence in the city. Cemeteries are a somewhat hidden issue in urban planning in Sweden today, but as a land intensive development that locks the land from future reuse it is paramount that the complexity is examined. The Burial Act (SFS 1990:1144) governs burial practice, services and the organisation structure of cemeteries in Sweden which creates an interesting set of conditions. The thesis investigates future cemetery planning in the context of Gothenburg, Sweden, as the city is faced with a shortage of burial space in the coming decade. Simultaneously, Gothenburg is growing and land for future development is highly contested. This provides motivation for why cemetery planning needs to be understood in an urban context. The thesis will use two case studies, first the case of Järva cemetery in Stockholm as inspiration for cemetery planning in current society and secondly the case of Gothenburg to guide the research regarding how to plan for cemeteries that are socially just. An extensive literature review and interviews with relevant actors, are used to gain knowledge of cemetery planning and the functions of cemeteries in a European context, as well as future trends regarding cemetery planning. The interviews are examined through the themes of physical considerations, qualities of cemeteries, diversity in burial provision and governance. Results of the interviews indicate the multifaceted nature of planning for cemeteries. The method of scenario planning is subsequently utilized as a tool to explore how a future cemetery in Gothenburg can be planned, developed and designed through four possible scenarios - small-peripheral, small-urban, large-urban and large-peripheral. A scenario analysis is carried out using a social justice theoretical framework to illuminate how a socially just cemetery development can be established and potential challenges regarding this. The concepts analysed through the theoretical framework are planning, ownership and management, finance, social infrastructure and environmental impact. The thesis concludes with a discussion of the cemetery scenarios analysis and providing recommendations for future cemetery planning in Gothenburg.

Horse-depositions were examined to explore the development of human-horse relationships in early Britain using a multidisciplinary approach (osteological, archaeological, historical and ethnographical) to interpret these relationships as part of Horseman identities in the Iron Age, Roman and medieval periods. Medieval Horseman-burials are an established phenomenon and considered an Anglo-Saxon import in Britain which expressed a general elite-warrior male status. However, Horseman-burials form an exclusive minority which suggest not a general warrior elite but specific subgroups and/or traditions potentially rooted in earlier practices. Husbandry, transportation-use and ritual practices were also investigated. Horses and horse-use were evaluated via stature and correlations with sex. The results indicated sexual dimorphism should be considered when interpreting horse stature. It is hypothesised that generally females were pastured breeding-stock while males were transportation-stock which received supplemental nutrition and care. Males were/are generally larger than females, and size disparity was probably heightened by such gendered horse-use practices. Overall, it appears females were 1.3m or less, and horses over 1.3m were males. Horse-depositional patterns in human, particularly funerary, spaces were analysed. Horse deposition often had ritual components and practices changed over time reflecting changing Horseman identities, particularly during the Roman period. Roman-British interactions, the destruction of native-elite chariot-warfare identities and the development of native-auxiliary groups refocused Horseman identities on mounted-warfare. This change from driver to rider, a more intimate relationship, appears reflected by the development of human-horse burials and Horseman identities linked to auxiliary-native cultural groups which incorporated Roman equites ideals with native-auxiliary and imported Eurasian Horseman traditions. / Arts & Humanities Research Council (AHRC). Financial support also came from the project partners, particularly author Bernard Cornwell, the Sutton Hoo Society. Additional financial support for equine osteological research was supplied by SYNTHESYS. / The appendices which accompany the thesis are not available online.

A scarcity of experimental studies covering the decomposition of dismembered body parts has created a gap in knowledge of the effect of dismemberment on the estimation of post-mortem interval (PMI) and their post-mortem history in a forensic context. The aim of this study was to record the decay of detached body parts in some depositional settings where they are likely to be disposed of: burial, wrapping and freezing. A series of controlled laboratory experiments was carried out using Sus scrofa body parts and pork belly, to understand how ambient temperature, soil moisture, and wrapping and freezing of body parts affected their decomposition. Rates of decay were subject to a higher temperature and soil moisture level in a burial microenvironment, with metabolic microbial activity confirming the results. Temperature was a predominant factor in the decay rates of wrapped body parts, with a raised ambient temperature causing even higher temperature in the wrapped microenvironment, resulting in accelerated decay rates. Freezing decelerated the decomposition of body parts, retarding microbial growth and activity and causing differential decomposition between body parts. Freezing demonstrated morphological changes in body parts specific to this microenvironment. Predominantly Gram-negative bacteria that may be associated with body microflora were involved in decomposition in all three microenvironments. Taphonomic, chemical and microbiological analyses carried out in this study have a potential for forensic application in the examination of dismembered remains that have been deposited in freezing and indoor settings. Further experiments are necessary to understand buried decomposition patterns in field conditions.

No description available.

Due to its sensitive nature, the graveyard is often an avoided problem space within the field of design. This becomes evident from the lack of exploration and analysis in this domain. Anyhow, it represents an opportunity to test how design can mediate between sacred places, technology and people. Moreover, as a very specific context, the graveyard encompasses peculiar ways of interacting and experiencing space that deserve to be taken into account. This work discusses the notions of space and place and how the field of interaction design can benefit from them. In doing so, it investigates the hidden dimensions of the graveyard that make it a complex structure where spatial, personal and socio-cultural dimensions are intertwined. While the fieldwork aims at analysing the graveyard in its different tones of meaning (identity, memorial, cultural differences, on-site interaction) the focus of the work are the practices of memory and the role that the past has in our relation with the deceased. The result of the design process is an interactive audio system composed of a playback circuit based on Arduino and boxed into a seashell. The device is designed to be placed on the grave and store audio content. Once activated, the audio seashell allows listening and eventually recording vocal traces related to the deceased’s past. Taking into account the observed practices, rules and conventions that shape the graveyard, the role of personal and collective rituals and the meanings of all the identified artifacts, the designed system supports the experience of recalling memories in respect to the atmosphere, tempo and rhythm that characterise the graveyard.

This thesis represents the first example of a pre-agricultural, pre-colonial land disturbance event in the archaeological record of North America. It demonstrates the critical importance of multivariate analysis and µ-XRF core scanning in determining precise chronologies for episodes of heightened clastic input from soil erosion, enhanced by human occupation, shellfish harvesting, and burial mound construction. / Serpent Mounds is a prehistoric (Middle Woodland Period, ca. 2000--1000 BP) burial mound complex located on the north shore of Rice Lake, in southern Ontario, Canada. The complex includes a 60m long and 10m wide sinuous earthwork ridge interpreted as a serpent effigy and eight smaller oval mound structures. Archaeological excavations determined seasonal site occupation for harvesting wild rice and shellfish and conducting mortuary rites. The timing of mound construction and site occupation is poorly constrained by limited radiocarbon dates, restricted to burials. The site is of high cultural importance as the only known effigy mound structure in Canada and is a sacred First Nations burial ground; thus all investigation must employ non-invasive techniques. High-resolution XRF Core Scanning and micropaleontologic analysis (testate amoebae) of 12 lake sediment cores was employed to investigate the timing of mound construction, and assess geochemical records of prehistoric land disturbance. Land disturbance is indicated by increased sediment flux, by rising abundance of minerogenic elements (K, Ti, Zr, Si, Fe) within a distinctive silt-rich gyttja unit. The event is also recorded in the thecamoebian assemblage, which is dominated by indicators of a eutrophic, turbid lake environment. Principal Component Analysis and Cluster Analysis of µ-XRF data identify distinctive chemofacies across several cores. AMS 14C dates for the prehistoric land disturbance episode correspond with the Point Peninsula occupation, indicating a protracted occupation period of \textasciitilde 750 years (2050 - 1300 cal BP) with two major peaks in soil erosion at 1900 and 1450 cal BP. The sedimentation rate (>1.5mm/yr) during the Middle Woodland phase of enhanced erosion was comparable to that during the 1838 CE dam construction at Hastings. The reconstructed Middle Woodland paleoshoreline and water levels indicate a shallow lake and wetland environment, with viable habitats for wild rice stands and shellfish resources. The results demonstrate that XRF Core Scanning and micropaleontological methods are important for the investigation of culturally-sensitive archaeological sites, including sacred burial grounds where conventional archaeological excavation cannot be undertaken. / Thesis / Master of Science (MSc) / Serpent Mounds is a prehistoric (Middle Woodland Period, ca. 2000 - 1000 BP) burial mound complex located in Rice Lake, Ontario. Archaeological excavation (1897 - 1970) determined the site was occupied by people of the Point Peninsula culture (ca. 2200 - 1350 BP) on a seasonal basis, for burial rites and shellfish gathering. Many questions remain with regard to the date of mounds construction, how long the site was occupied, and how occupation and construction activities impacted the local environment. The site has been designated as a National Historical Site and excavation is no longer permitted in the interest of site preservation and cultural value to First Nations. This study investigated the history of environmental changes associated with prehistoric indigenous and European land use changes using minimally-invasive methods, including sonar bathymetric mapping, XRF Core Scanning and microfossil analysis of lake sediment cores. Sonar data were employed to map the lake bottom relief (bathymetry) and to reconstruct past changes in lake levels and shoreline positions. µ-XRF methods measures changes in elemental abundance in lake core samples to identify human occupation phases and land disturbance. Microfossils (testate amoebae) track the ecosystem response to environmental changes associated with human occupation. The geochemical and microfossil data identified an interval of increased sediment delivery to Rice Lake, coinciding with the arrival of Point Peninsula peoples. The land disturbance is recognized in cores by an increase in zirconium (Zr), titanium (Ti) and other soil-derived elements. During this phase, lake levels rose gradually, wetlands expanded and wild rice was abundant resource available to indigenous peoples. Following European colonization in the 1820’s, and the construction of the Hastings Dam (1838 CE), lake levels increased rapidly by over \SI{2}{\metre}, causing a shift to a more nutrient-rich (eutrophic) lake environment and a decline in wild rice stands. Soil erosion associated with European land clearance is recorded by in a dramatic increase in the abundance of soil-derived elements.

Studien handlar om vikingatida kvinnogravar från Aska, Hagebyhöga och Kvarnbacken, Vadstena. Syftet med studien är att tolka variationen av religiösa föremål i båda gravarna. Gravarnas konstruktion, innehåll och religiösa föremål jämförs i syfte att analysera om det finns likheter och skillnader, tillsammans med en teoretisk utgångspunkt i rituell praktik och genusperspektiv. Endast en grav från vardera undersökta kontexter i Aska, Hagebyhöga och Kvarnbacken, Vadstena analyseras eftersom deras religiösa föremål är mer jämförbara i denna studie. Tidigare forskning och tolkningar tillämpas för ett bredare perspektiv i variationen av religiösa föremål. Jämförelser visar likheter i gravskick och föremål som exempelvis uppsättning pärlor. Skillnader är bland annat Frejasmycket och järnstaven från graven i Aska, Hagebyhöga. I Kvarnbacken, Vadstena är krucifixet särskiljande. Variation i religiösa föremål kan tolkas som en typ av förändring i rituell praktik i Kvarnbacken, Vadstena. Religiösa föremål i Aska, Hagebyhöga tolkas ha en generationsbunden betydelse men eftersom de begravs kan det tolkas som ett avslut på äldre traditioner för kommande generationer. / This thesis concern Viking Age burials from Aska, Hagebyhöga and Kvarnbacken, Vadstena. The goal of this thesis is to interpret the variety of religious objects in the graves. The formation of the grave, its content and the religious objects is compared based on the idea of ritual practice and gender perspective. The comparison is made to analyse differences and similarities which will be interpreted. The material consist of one Viking Age female burial from each place, based on the amount of religious objects and the contemporary dating of the graves. Previous research is applied to create a wider interpretive perspective on the variety of religious objects. Comparisons show, for example, that both graves contain a collection of beads. Distinctions is, for example, the Freja pendant and the iron rod in the burial from Aska, Hagebyhöga and the crucifix from Kvarnbacken, Vadstena. The variety of religious objects can be interpreted as a form of change in ritual practice from Kvarnbacken, Vadstena. The religious objects from Aska, Hagebyhöga can be interpreted as bounded by family traditions, which could indicate an end of older traditions, based on the fact that these objects is buried.