Funerary Art - the new thing!

Some of you may be familiar with the late nineteenth century wave of funerary art. It was a way of commemorating the dead. Often pictures might be taken of recently deceased family members (especially children) and/or locks of hair clipped to be placed in lockets (or occasionally made into beads!).

In a mystery series written by Sarah Stewart Taylor, her detective Sweeney St. George is a professor of funerary art. The series is an entertaining way to learn a little bit about funerary art. Here's another fun place to learn about funeral customs: the Museum of Funeral Customs in Springfield, IL.

However, a new form of funerary art has just emerged as a possibility. Now, human remains can be formed into gemstones! That's right, burial and cremation are NOT your only options. You could become a ring or necklace instead! Really, you could.

There is a newly developed process that takes human (or animal) ashes and through intense pressure, forms those carbon molecules into a diamond. This is exactly how real diamonds were formed within the earth: burned animal or plant matter was compressed until diamonds formed. A company called LifeGem has the whole process explained on their website.

It gives an entirely new meaning to the words family heirloom, huh? Just hope that no one ever has to pawn you, I guess.

Seriously though, this doesn't necessarily represent a new trend; just a new way of commemorating the dead, particularly in our age of cremation.