GREATER JOHANNESBURG’S CREMATORIA

Although burial was the usual mode of disposal of the body of the dead in early times, cremation has gradually been replacing it as the preferred method in many countries. In various religious like Judaism and Islam, however, there is still a preference for burial.

Cremation was brought from the East to the Mediterranean basin in about 2500-2000 BC. Previously, the practice was unknown in the area. The two methods of disposal, burial and cremation, continued to be used in tandem until Christianity became dominant.

Although there are cremations recorded in the Torah, Jews have always preferred to bury their dead and seldom cremate. Cremation largely replaced earth burial among the Romans, until the end of their dominance in the ancient world, when burial returned to favour.

The reason cremation is gaining favour in recent times is unclear. Neither land wastage nor sanitary considerations are likely to have been major factors.

Superstition probably operated both to encourage and discourage cremation. People who believed that their gods lived in the sky, are said to have burnt their dead to permit immediate communion between the deceased and the gods. Those who believed that their gods lived in the ground would bury their dead.

Conversely, where fire or the air is held sacred, people would probably refuse to pollute the elements by burning. Those who regard the corpse as unclean would often choose burning rather than burying, lest the corpse should pollute the soil.

Fire was considered a purifier, not so much in the physical as in a spiritual sense. When it destroyed the body, it destroyed all that was mortal to leave only that which is immortal. Burning was believed by some to be the most effective way of releasing the spirit of the deceased. Wandering tribes adopted this practice because burial inevitably resulted in neglect of the graves and in consequence, vengeful spirits might punish the survivors. Another advantage of cremation was that it allowed the remains to be carried from place to place.

The Christian Church has traditionally never encouraged cremation. The earthly Christians continued to use the method they had practised before conversion. Therefore, Jewish converts used the sepulchre, the Copts mummified the dead and others cremated. The trend away from cremation was hastened by two other factors. The first was the decline of the Roman Empire and the consequent disrepair of the crematoria. The second was the increasing power of the church, which, by the end of the fourth century, was able to enforce its views. In more recent times, many churches have relaxed their views on cremation, and the process is growing in popularity. Over time, buried bodies eventually become almost exactly the same as cremated ashes. Thus “ashes to ashes and dust to dust” is a real analogy. However, the process during the cremation only lasts about 90 minutes, while burial takes many years.

The council has three crematoria in the greater Johannesburg area, located at the Braamfontein, Brixton and Lenasia cemeteries. Although the exact methods have changed in modern times, the cremation process remains essentially the same. Most modern cremators use gas to heat the remains to between 700 and 1 000 degrees Celsius. At these temperatures, the natural combustion process destroys human remains.

There are a number of legal formalities that must be attended to before a cremation can be held, and it is often wise to allow a respected funeral director to handle the legal documents allowing for a cremation to go ahead.

Only a medical referee appointed by the crematorium authorities can give permission for a cremation to take place. The medical referee must be confident that the primary cause of death has been established beyond doubt, and that the cremation is not contrary to the wishes of the deceased. The referee usually relies on the application for cremation forms and a doctor’s medical declaration to confirm medical findings and the deceased’s wishes.

It is vitally important that medical implants such as pacemakers be removed before a cremation takes place. Such implants can explode at high temperature - putting crematorium staff in danger and damaging cremation equipment. In addition, the cremator runs at such a high temperature that most metals fuse with other material. Therefore, it is often recommended that the family remove any jewellery after death or prior to cremation.

Each cremator will only accept one adult coffin at a time and the cremains must be removed before the cremator is used again. In addition, all crematoria have some method of identifying cremains, and families can be sure they are receiving the right cremains.

The funeral director will also ask the next of kin how they would prefer the cremains to be disposed of. It is often wise to make a decision regarding this disposal as soon as possible.

MODERN TRENDS

Cemeteries should keep pace with the best thought of the times, with the best theories of religion, science and economics. They should be, as the name implies from its original Greek – sleeping places – places of rest, peace and freedom from intrusion.

The history of sepulture shows it is often futile to try to preserve one’s body or one’s name with the help of stone. Even if a man’s body is preserved as long as were those of the ancient Egyptians, it still finally disintegrates. These facts are recognised in the modern cemetery.

Much thought and research has gone into how best to design and operate a cemetery. A cemetery is often seen as a final resting place, but modern thinking indicates that it is best utilised when a cemetery becomes a park, a breathing place for the people of the city. The memory of past generations will almost certainly be sweeter if it is associated with trees than if it is connected with tombs and catacombs. As a result, the aim of many cemetery authorities is to ensure pleasing combinations of growing plants. Trees, shrubs, flowers and grass are part of these facilities, for the cemetery is really a memorial park.

It seems repugnant to our best feelings to use the same burial ground time and time again. However, this is frequently done in many European cities. The space available to the council for cemeteries is limited, and plans are under way to include a system of leasing graves.

Investigations show that the re-use of land for burial purposes is the only possible solution to the difficulties of obtaining land for cemeteries. Considering factors such as inflation, cost and availability of land, population growth and resistance to cremation, it is understandable that the provision of land for cemetery purposes is a cause of great concern to authorities throughout the world.

Many local and international authorities have introduced the re-use of cemeteries to avoid the high prices of land and maintenance costs of old cemeteries in future years. Introducing such a system on the remaining vacant land at the West Park Cemetery alone will have immediate advantages, and will extend the life of the cemetery considerably.

As there is strong public sentiment on this subject, the existing cemeteries in the city cannot be re-used for further burials, or used for any other purpose. All cemeteries must be maintained at ever-increasing costs – the question is, for how long? The Braamfontein Cemetery has been maintained since 1888, and the cost of maintaining such sites is enormous.

The trend has been growing both locally and internationally to lease the private rights for a fixed period. In such a system, the next-of-kin are made aware that the council has the right to re-use a public grave, and they are able to renew the lease of the grave.

Another modern trend has been the use of the mausoleum concept of aboveground burial. This system has been patented in South Africa by Cannata Bros., which developed the system in conjunction with the CSIR and Wits Medical School. A mausoleum is a unique burial option, which follows a tradition dating back thousands of years.

Although new to South Africa, the mausoleum concept is well accepted internationally, particularly in European and American communities.

A mausoleum is basically an aboveground burial chamber, in which the deceased’s coffin or ashes are housed at the time of burial. It comprises a structure of prefabricated units, each with back and sidewalls made of high-intensity reinforced concrete. The open front is sealed with a granite plaque at the time of burial. An ultra-violet protected sealant is used at the interface of adjacent units to ensure that the burial chambers are perfectly sealed. The front end is sealed with a concrete slab and clad in granite.

The mausoleum is an answer to urban development, where there is insufficient space in cemeteries to accommodate conventional, belowground burials. A mausoleum enables authorities to make use of rocky terrain or ground which may be unsuited to conventional burials. They can be designed to any size and specification, and are a practical and cost-effective alternative to conventional tombstones. Mausolea are generally clad with hardwearing stone or granite and, as a result, are weather-resistant and maintenance-free.

Aboveground burials do not necessarily require an expensive casket. In addition, mausolea may be opened up at any time. They are able to house any number of urns, or one casket and additional urns. Developed in accordance with the strictest standards, the design of the “classic” mausoleum includes an everlasting filter system, which ensures that the deceased’s remains are biodegraded in a natural and environment-friendly manner. An example of such a mausoleum can be seen at West Park Cemetery.

There has also been a trend in recent years for the provision of private cemeteries. The Fourways Memorial Park, which boasts landscaped gardens and adequate parking, differs considerably from many other cemeteries in Johannesburg. Security and maintenance have been major factors in the designing of the park, as have the careful planting of trees, shrubs and the installation of computerised administration systems.

Other forward-thinking design concepts include mass-grave gardens of remembrance and surface grave units that work in a similar way to the mausoleum concept. These concepts are designed to be constructed at the sides of existing cemeteries for economy of land. They are also able to be built on stony or hilly ground or even at worked-out stone quarries. Surface grave units are manufactured from concrete, are neat, durable and will last indefinitely. Even the utilisation of old, hardened mine dumps as mass gravesites has been proposed.

EXHUMATION

From time to time it is necessary for an exhumation (the removal of human remains from a grave) to take place. Such an exhumation is undertaken to: