ossuaries
Skeletal remains containers
Ossuaries are containers or rooms for storing the bones of the dead.
After bodies decompose or are exhumed from temporary graves, the skeletal remains may be collected and placed in an ossuary—a chest, vault, or building.
The practice conserves burial space and sometimes serves ritual purposes.
Archaeological ossuaries provide evidence of ancient burial customs: The ossuary contained bones from multiple generations.
Putting a body underground
- cryptSubterranean burial vault
- mausoleumMonumental building for interment
- cemeteryPlace for interring remains
- graveyardPlot for interring the dead
necropolis · catacomb · tomb · exhumation · reburial · disinterment · columbarium · grave goods
Rigid internal support structure
vertebrae · mandibles · clavicles · pelvises · phalanges · metacarpals · metatarsals · patellae
Ceremonial set of actions
- consecrationDedicating to sacred purpose
- reliquaryContainer for sacred remains
- sanctityQuality of being inviolable
- chapelSmall worship room
altar · pilgrimage · devotion · blessing · saints · cathedral · liturgy · incense
Act of honoring memory
- epitaphText honoring the deceased
- tombstoneMemorial stone at grave
- memorialThing preserving remembrance
- tributeOffering of respect
mourning · eulogy · remembrance · veneration · legacy · ancestors · ancestry · heritage
Secure storage chamber
- collectionGathered set of items
- depositorySecure storage location
- museumPublic exhibit space
- archiveStored historical records
conservation · preservation · catalog · safekeeping · storage · curation · artifact · excavation
interment
Putting a body underground
- cryptSubterranean burial vault
- mausoleumMonumental building for interment
- cemeteryPlace for interring remains
graveyard · necropolis · catacomb · tomb · exhumation · reburial · disinterment · columbarium · grave goods · shroud
bones
Rigid internal support structure
ribs · vertebrae · mandibles · clavicles · pelvises · phalanges · metacarpals · metatarsals · patellae · scapulae
ritual
Ceremonial set of actions
- consecrationDedicating to sacred purpose
- reliquaryContainer for sacred remains
- sanctityQuality of being inviolable
chapel · altar · pilgrimage · devotion · blessing · saints · cathedral · liturgy · incense · priesthood
commemoration
Act of honoring memory
- epitaphText honoring the deceased
- tombstoneMemorial stone at grave
- memorialThing preserving remembrance
tribute · mourning · eulogy · remembrance · veneration · legacy · ancestors · ancestry · heritage · lineage
vault
Secure storage chamber
- collectionGathered set of items
- depositorySecure storage location
- museumPublic exhibit space
archive · conservation · preservation · catalog · safekeeping · storage · curation · artifact · excavation · archaeological
- cemeteriescemetery, graves, grave, headstones, headstone
- cemeterygrave, headstone, headstones, graves, tombstone
- Ancient Gravestombs, crypts, mausoleums, sarcophagi, royal tombs
- Biblical archaeologyDead Sea Scrolls, Masada, Jericho, ancient scrolls, bullae
- burial containerscoffin, casket, urn, cremation urn, funeral urn
- burial customsburials, tombs, grave offerings, funerals, funerary rites
ossuariescoffins
Boxes for burying bodies
caskets · sarcophagi · burial vaults · body bags · mausoleums
ossuariescradles
Rocking infant beds
cribs · incubators · bassinets · wombs · nurseries
ossuariesseed vaults
Secure botanical specimen storage
greenhouses · terrariums · vivariums · aquariums · conservatories
burial, mortuary, sarcophagus, ossuary, osseous, ossification, charnel house, sepulchre