Hanging coffins in China, Indonesia and the Philippines

October 5, 2017 10:09 PM

Longhu (Dragon and Tiger) Mountain is famous for being one of the birthplaces of Taoism, as well as a scenic region, including Danxia rock peaks and cliffs, where you can find numerous hanging coffins from the almost eradicated Bo people. For a longer look at the few remains of the Bo, here's a documentary on the mysterious hanging coffins of China (DocuWiki), which have undergone some preservation and additional studies in recent years. The Bo weren't the only ones to practice this sort of "sky burial," as noted in this article with more information on the Bo and other hanging coffins, which can also be found in the Philippines (CNN tour short) and Indonesia, where the practices live on.
posted by filthy light thief (6 comments total)

Fantastic post, as usual 💀
posted by Johnny Wallflower at 10:55 PM on October 5, 2017

I agree, lots of cool stuff here. I also had no idea about the MementoMoriOctober tag over there on the right, which is a very deep well. How did that get started?

This gives me a horror story idea. Imagine being buried alive, then after managing to pry off the lid, blue sky! Then you look down.
posted by adept256 at 11:40 PM on October 5, 2017 [2 favorites]

Thanks! And that's a great story idea, adept256!

Not sure how Memento Mori October started - Johnny madethe first post, and I joined him last year. I saw he started up again this year, so I joined again. There wasn't any decision via MeTa post for a themed month, so it may have just been Johnny Wallflower getting in the October spirit (or the October spirit getting into him?).
posted by filthy light thief at 4:46 AM on October 6, 2017 [1 favorite]

Interesting how the history of conquered peoples vanishes, but stubbornly hangs on. What an act of defiance to honor their previous existence, in spite of time's frequent erasures.
posted by Oyéah at 10:46 AM on October 6, 2017 [1 favorite]

MementoMoriOctober is entirely my own initiative. Please join in.
posted by Johnny Wallflower at 4:40 PM on October 6, 2017

A photo essay by Claudio Sieber, Guardian: Cleaning the dead: the afterlife rituals of the Torajan people
posted by Johnny Wallflower at 8:18 PM on October 12, 2017 [1 favorite]