Above-Ground Burial (Part I)

• Published in: Tradition (New York) 2023, Vol.55 (1), p.69-97
• Main Author: Bleich, J. David
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Bible; Cemeteries; Clergy; Inheritances; Jewish people; Medieval period
• ISSN: 0041-0608
• DOI: 10.54469/TV00F492Q

[...]burial is for an enduring, unspecified period of time. Thereupon, the king ordered that the body of the criminal be cut down and buried in order to prevent further dishonor to the monarchy.7 The Gemara, Sanhedrin 46b, records two possible goals accomplished by interment: 1) prevention of ignominy, i.e., visible putrefaction is a desecration of the Deity in whose image man is created and/or of all humans who will suffer that end; and 2) expiation of sin, i.e., burial and subsequent decomposition of the body is a form of atonement. Land for consecration as a burial site was not readily available.10 When a cemetery became filled to capacity and local civil authorities refused to allow expansion or purchase of an additional tract of land, the only solution was to expand vertically. Misgeret ha-Shulhan writes that he forbade the community that had consulted him to proceed with their plan despite the great need and refused to allow the practice even if the soil between the layers of graves would be "more than six tefahim.11 Layered burial was employed in Prague,12 Krakow,13 Kalish,14 Pressburg,15 Paris,16 Frankfurt am Main17 and Fez18 to name but a few cities in which this expedient became necessary.19 Visitors to Prague, in particular, cannot help but notice the very tall restraining wall surrounding the cemetery but are generally oblivious of the reason why ground level of the cemetery is several meters higher than the level of the road below.