Scotland, Ireland, Wales and England all have the same styles of coffin (anthropoidal shape, though ‘caskets’, straight sided and ‘st Albans’ shaped coffins are also broadly available). Traditionally Scottish coffins were adorned with silk lowering cords and tassels. This is adornment usually omitted when the committal is cremation.

Coffins destined for cremation are not fitted with metal furnishings. Instead they may be wood, wool or more commonly rigid polystyrene that has been electroplated brass or chrome. Yorkrem handles for example.

Shaun Craig hello, the music at the beginning is composed by Brian Crain. It’s called ‘at first light’

Debbie Rabe cremated remains are calcined bone fragments. They resemble greyish white gravel. I struggle to imagine what else cremated remains should look like and why you can’t accept they are cremated remains. Where is the logic in thinking otherwise?

I just thought it would be ashes. Not gravel. Thanks for response.

Where's the Ashes?

You are absolutely correct and are right to ask, this is a classic question. They are not ashes, they are generally known as cremains. These are the cremated remains that have been 'processed' post cremation. The remains after cremation are usually large bone fragments, these are raked out into a vessel called a Cremulator and mechanically reduced, there are many crematoriums who are open about the whole process and in particular, the post cremation process. Hopefully the following article, 'Behind the curtain', will answer your question: www.sevenhillsnacton.co.uk/assets/images/6_BEHINDTHECURTAIN.pdf. I would advise that the site does show graphic images but absolutely and honestly will give you the answer you seek. Perhaps if you are nervous you might like to have a trusted person check this information for you, but be assured, there are strict measures to ensure compliance in verifying that the remains are correctly identified.

Oh, but I don't think they burn the coffin with the person in America. That was in Brittan. So sad they have to cremate them along with the ashes of wood.

The heat is so intense that no wood ashes remain as they oxidise. In the U.K. coffins are lower priced than say caskets in the USA. Prices start from as little as £125. For the deceased person to be conveyed to the crematorium and a dignified ceremony to be held at the crematorium as well as safe and fast charging of the cremator, the remains must be in a safe, impervious, combustible container i.e. a coffin of wood or wood product- or even wool. Some crematoria allow the use of a ‘board’ on which the deceased person is placed upon and swathed in a fabric. If you watched the video in full you would see that all that remains following the Cremation is 5-7lb of calcined bone. The rest is oxidised/vaporised. There are exceptions, cardboard coffins for example leave a lot of ‘paper char’ but still, this makes for a very small proportion of the cremated remains.

Ksloozy Doo there isn’t any 24 hour wait as such, this is just the time frame in which the coffin has to be placed into the cremator following the funeral. Usually the coffin is placed into the cremator within moments of the mourners vacating the ceremony area but in cases were its an early morning funeral the cremator(s) may not be up to temperature or there may be a backlog due to cremator breakdown, slow cremations etc. It is the law in the U.K. that the coffin is placed in the cremator exactly how it is received upon the catafalque. If a post mortem examination is required it is done before the deceased person is released into the care of the funeral director/family. Usually embalming and other presentation work is carried out upon the deceased before they are ready for viewing in the funeral home.