The Orcadian prehistoric funerary rite and mortuary rite

FUNERARY AND MORTUARY RITES IN PREHISTORIC ORKNEY Name of Student Course Name of Professor University Date Funerary and Mortuary Rites in Prehistoric Orkney Humans never live alone without family; reflecting upon morbidity, funerals, and burials remain essential since they are the core phenomenon informing about past societies' ideologies, social stratification, and living content. Archaeological studies conducted in the secrecy of archaeological sites in pre-historic Orkney, the islands in Northern Scotland, have revealed considerable evidence of such ceremonies (Crozier, 2016). Left from the Neolithic and Bronze Ages, the custom items give an obscure op-ed on the funeral practices in which residents of Orkney dealt with death and celebration. With a large proportion of what these discoveries teach about history and the religious and cultural side of a past age, there is a price to be paid. Defining Funerary and Mortuary Rites Formal practices and routines performed on death, final burial depictions, and remembrance of the dead are commonly known as funerary and mortuary rites. Despite the prevalent confusion in these sayings, they represent different views. Funerary rites are those connected to the beliefs, customs, or practices associated with the disposal of the dead (Crozier, 2016). On the contrary, the mortuary practices encompass a greater scope of death-related actions. In a larger sense, customs, rites of funerary practices, and ideations that occur beyond the mere act of burial come within this category's scope (Crozier, 2016). In practicality, it is arguable that mortuary customs incorporate broader forms of cultural and ritual relationships with death. In contrast, the funeral rites are focused on the final place of burial of the deceased. Funerary Rites in Prehistoric Orkney Most of the performance of funerary rites has been documented by archaeological investigations of burial sites in Orkney. One of the significant locations appealing to tourists is the Tomb of the Eagles (Isbister Chambered Cairn), located on South Ronaldsay. In this chambered cairn predating the Neolithic age (c 3000 BCE), news of the moribund was found to be present next to the human remains along with the eagle talons and bones, indicating certain symbolic relations between the deceased and the eagles (Gooney, 2015). In addition, shedding light on the richness of the funeral rituals, the critical feature is that objects and animal carcasses were buried with both the deceased; the Quoyn...