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A sarcophagus is a stone container for a coffin or body. The word comes from Greek sarkophagos (σαρκοφαγος), which means "eater of flesh". Herodotus believed, erroneously, that sarcophagi (the Latin plural) were carved from a special kind of rock that consumed the flesh of the corpse inside.

Stone sarcophagus of Pharaoh Merenptah , Valley of the Kings Sarcophagi were usually carved, decorated or built ornately. Some were built to be freestanding above ground, as a part of an elaborate tomb. Others were made for burial, or were placed in crypts. A sarcophagus was usually the external layer of protection for a royal Egyptian mummy, with several layers of coffins nested within.

The word sarcophagus is often used in context of the Chernobyl nuclear disaster, to describe a concrete tomb structure that has been erected to isolate the remains of the collapsed atomic reactor from the environment.

See also

Death related
  • Coffin
  • Ossuary
  • Tomb
  • Burial
  • Funeral
  • Canopic jarAmong the ancient Egyptians, canopic jars were covered funerary vases, normally composed of clay, intended to keep the viscera of mummified corpses. All the viscera were not kept in a single canopic jar, but rather each organ in its own. In addition to hi

Places

  • Great Pyramid of GizaThe Great Pyramid of Giza (sometimes spelled Gizeh is the oldest and last remaining of the Seven Wonders of the World and the most famous pyramid in the world. It is presumed to have served as the tomb of the Fourth dynasty Egyptian Pharaoh Khufu (also kn
  • Cologne cathedral
  • Catacombs of RomeThe Catacombs of Rome are ancient Christian burial places in Rome, Italy. Etruscans used to bury their dead in underground chambers. Christians recreated the practice because they did not want to cremate their dead due to their belief in bodily resurrecti
  • Wentworth WoodhouseWentworth Woodhouse is a country house in the village of Wentworth near Rotherham, South Yorkshire, England. Set in a 150 acre (0. 6 kmē) estate, its 606 ft (185 m) long East Front is the longest facade in England. The building contains 240 rooms and cove
  • ClazomenaeClazomenae (modern Kelisinan , was an ancient town of Ionia and a member of the Ionian Dodecapolis (Confederation of Twelve Cities), on the Gulf of Smyrna, about 20 miles west of that city. Though not in existence before the arrival of the Ionians in Asia
  • Aachen Cathedral
      

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