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Preparation for death: stories
https://australian.museum/about/history/exhibitions/death-the-last-taboo/preparation-for-death-stories/

Read about how these people from different cultures prepare the bodies of their dead.

Disposing of the dead - Cremation
https://australian.museum/about/history/exhibitions/death-the-last-taboo/disposing-of-the-dead-cremation/

Cremation is the disposal of a corpse by fire. It is an ancient and widespread practice, second only to burial. Some ancient cultures believed that fire was a purifying agent, and that cremation would light the way of the deceased to another world, or to prevent the return of the dead.

Disposing of the dead - Preservation
https://australian.museum/about/history/exhibitions/death-the-last-taboo/disposing-of-the-dead-preservation/

The earliest deliberately preserved bodies are those of the Chinchorro culture of northern Chile which date back about 7000 years. Today, the preserved bodies of famous political leaders, such as Lenin and Mao Tse Teung, demonstrate the continuing urge to defy death in some way.

Burial - coffins and caskets
https://australian.museum/about/history/exhibitions/death-the-last-taboo/burial-coffins-and-caskets/

The word coffin is the general term for the receptacles in which a corpse is buried. Many people use the terms coffin and casket interchangeably. To the funeral industry, however, they are two different things.

Preparing the body for disposal
https://australian.museum/about/history/exhibitions/death-the-last-taboo/preparing-the-body-for-disposal/

Find out how bodies are prepared, covered, stored, enclosed and, finally, transported for disposal.

Autopsies
https://australian.museum/about/history/exhibitions/death-the-last-taboo/autopsies/

An autopsy is a detailed and careful medical examination of a person's body and its organs after death to help establish the cause of death.

Morgues and mortuaries
https://australian.museum/about/history/exhibitions/death-the-last-taboo/morgues-and-mortuaries/

Morgues are places where reportable deaths are investigated by a coroner, while mortuaries are the places where dead bodies are stored temporarily for a range of reasons, including autopsies and preparations for burial such as embalming.

Ching Ming
https://australian.museum/about/history/exhibitions/death-the-last-taboo/ching-ming/

The Ching Ming ('Clear Brightness') festival has been celebrated annually at Sydney's Rookwood Cemetery since at least the 1880s.

The Days of the Dead - Mexico
https://australian.museum/about/history/exhibitions/death-the-last-taboo/the-days-of-the-dead-mexico/

Mexicans celebrate Los Dias de los Muertos (the Days of the Dead), on All Saints' Day, 1 November, and All Souls' Day, 2 November, each year. On these days, the souls of the dead, following the fragrant trail of the cempasúchil (marigold) petals, return to earth to spend time with their relatives.

The AIDS quilt
https://australian.museum/about/history/exhibitions/death-the-last-taboo/the-aids-quilt/

The Australian AIDS Memorial Quilt was launched in 1988 with 35 panels. There are now 122 quilt blocks, each with around 8 panels, commemorating approximately 2,700 Australians who have died of AIDS-related illnesses.