If one were to look at burial practices throughout time, they might come to the conclusion that burying your loved one and providing them with a dignified burial is perhaps just human nature. In fact, it was once considered one of the defining characteristics that separated Homo sapiens from our now-extinct human ancestors. But the truth is that more recent findings have determined that even earlier human ancestors likely buried their deceased. It’s challenging to know just when this practice began, but this research suggests that it may date back nearly 500,000 years. Let’s take a look at how burial practices have evolved throughout time.
The First Burials
Scientists are divided on whether or not Homo naledi, an early human ancestor, intentionally buried their loved ones 500,000 years ago. But what we do know is that the earliest known intentional human burial happened about 100,000 years ago in a cave in Qafzeh, Israel. Though the gravesites of these early burials were simple pits dug in the ground, tools and food were found there, which suggests that family and friends may have been attempting to give their loved ones supplies to carry over into an afterlife.
This practice carried into ancient Egypt, in which the common people would be buried in desert graves alongside both supplies and gifts like jewelry. While the common people would be in relatively simplistic burial sites, pharaohs and other officials would be buried in elaborate tombs. However, like the common people, they would be buried with supplies and gifts, though far more than what a common person could afford.
The First Cemeteries
The idea of a single designated burial ground, or a cemetery as we know it today, began around the 5th century B.C. in ancient Greece. The Romans would introduce their own cemeteries, with roads surrounded by tombs and mausoleums on the outskirts of the city.
The rise of Christianity played a significant role in how burial practices transformed again, as the Church encouraged burial on consecrated grounds. While only clergy were initially allowed to be buried on these grounds, eventually, laity was allowed as well, paving the way for early Catholic cemeteries. Churchyards would go on to become the primary burial grounds in Europe throughout the Middle Ages.
Cemeteries Become Gathering Places
The Victorian era brought about garden cemeteries, which were more landscaped than their churchyard predecessors. Existing graveyards before this time had become overcrowded. The new idea of cemeteries was that it was a gathering place for the living in addition to being a “city of the dead.” These garden cemeteries were also considered rural cemeteries. It had become tradition that cemeteries would be in the most populated areas, but the rise of garden cemeteries changed that as they were built in more rural areas.
Families during this time would often use cemeteries as a public park, as such a place was very uncommon. They would picnic, carriage race, and go on strolls through the beautiful grounds. Over time, to preserve and protect the gravesites, the living and the dead were separated, often with a large gate that marked the entrance to the area where the dead rested.
Cemeteries of Today
The 20th century brought about shifting attitudes toward cemeteries. Other gathering places were popping up, and the populations of places with cemeteries were becoming more crowded. Some burial grounds were turned into public parks, further differentiating a park from a cemetery despite them being treated previously as one and the same.
Modern cemeteries use many aspects of the cemeteries of the past, with landscaped grounds, monuments and markers that are works of art, and spaces for loved ones to gather.