A burial vault is an external enclosure for a coffin that prevents it from being crushed, making maintenance easier and the cemetery safer. They are rarely seen outside the US and increase funeral costs. Some religions and green cemeteries discourage their use. Advance research and funeral planning can save money and relieve the bereaved of important decisions.
A burial vault is a structure designed to protect a coffin. In essence, a burial vault serves as an external enclosure for a coffin. These protective structures are rarely seen outside the United States, although American manufacturers have certainly tried very hard to encourage overseas cemeteries to adopt the use of burial tombs. The term “burial grave” can also refer to an underground grave, especially outside the United States.
The idea behind a burial vault is that it prevents a coffin from being crushed, meaning that the ground above a grave will not subside over time as the coffin rots and eventually flattens, along with its contents, under the soil pressure. The graves are also resistant to the weight of heavy machinery from above. A similar concept, the grave lining, covers the top and sides of a coffin.
Apparently, using a burial grave makes a cemetery safer for visitors by ensuring the ground remains level. Cemeteries, however, encourage and sometimes even require the use of burial tombs for a much more practical reason: because they make maintenance much easier. Mowing lawns and performing other grave maintenance tasks is much easier when the ground is even, as is the case with graves.
Companies that manufacture tombs often advertise the “protection” the tombs provide, sometimes using language dangerously close to inaccuracy. While a burial crypt may prevent water seepage and slow the rate of decomposition, it won’t postpone the inevitable: The body in the coffin will eventually decay. Many companies stock a range of concrete, metal and plastic burial tombs, with various decorations designed to appeal to the emotions of family members, including rose-colored concrete for ‘the mother of the family’ or sports-themed tombs.
The use of a burial vault also substantially increases the cost of a funeral, as vaults can be equivalent in cost to a mid-range casket. Some religions such as Judaism discourage the use of vaults because they slow the rate of decay and eventual return to the earth, and also because they conflict with the modest funeral practices encouraged by religious officials. Green cemeteries, which offer natural burial to interested consumers, also disallow the use of burial graves, for the same reason.
People who don’t want to use burial grounds may want to research their local cemeteries to see which ones require vaults, so they’re prepared in case of death. Doing advance research and funeral planning can also save money and make things easier when the time comes, relieving the bereaved of important decisions.
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