Cremation Urns

Cremation Urns

The urn or personalized memorial will become the final resting place for your loved one. The selection of the urn typically complements the final placement, whether buried in a cemetery, placed in a niche, or placed as a treasured touchstone in the home or garden. It can also become an ideal medium to facilitate ceremonial scattering. The urn or personal memorial you select will provide dignity, respect and a lasting tribute.

Final Placement Choices

Urns are available in a wide variety of styles and materials. What's right for you will depend on your choice of final placement as well as personal tastes.

Scattering Urns

The selection of a cremation casket is just as important as the selection of the ceremony and will complement the tribute designed for the one being remembered. Before cremation, during the ceremony, and at the time of cremation, the casket or container is the resting place that gives dignity to your loved one. It may also be where you will see your loved one for the last time.


Cremation caskets are made of wood and available in a wide variety of styles that are suitable for services with a visitation, viewing or a gathering held prior to the cremation. The warmth, beauty and personality wood brings to fine furniture is well suited for the construction of caskets. Depending on your selection, cremation caskets can be personalized to fit your needs with accessories like custom tribute panels or custom embroidered interiors.

Burial Urns

With the growing number of cremations, more families are choosing to bury the cremated remains of their loved ones as a way to provide a permanent place for future visitation. Many families choose burial or entombment at a nearby cemetery because it allows them to visit the gravesite as often as they like. This helps them continue to feel close to the person who died, while still acknowledging the death. Your funeral director will know which cemeteries are nearby and would best meet your needs. He or she can help you purchase cemetery plots appropriate to your needs.

Monuments and Grave Markers

Also called headstones, grave markers are used in cemeteries to memorialize and identify the gravesite of the person who has died. To personalize the funeral service, you may want to personalize the grave marker. You can include a poem, a drawing or a short phrase that defines the person who died.

 

Monuments and grave markers are available in a variety of materials, including natural stone, concrete and bronze. Styles can range from very simple to very ornate, as single markers or companion monuments.

Cemetery Burial

Perhaps your family already owns a cemetery plot where the person who has died will be buried. If not, maybe you've noticed a nice local cemetery. Your funeral director will know which cemeteries are nearby and can help you purchase cemetery plots appropriate for your needs.

 

Traditionally, families have chosen to bury their loved ones in a cemetery. With the growing number of cremations, more families are choosing to bury the cremated remains as a way to provide a permanent place for future visitation.

 

Entombment also takes place at a cemetery. It is the placement of the casketed body in an above-ground structure called a mausoleum. When a casket is entombed, it is placed in an enclosure (called a crypt), and the front is usually sealed and faced with either marble or granite.

 

Many families choose burial or entombment at a nearby cemetery because it allows them to visit the gravesite as often as they would like. This helps them continue to feel close to the person who died, while still acknowledging the death.

 

Because so many aspects should be considered when purchasing a cemetery plot, you may want to consider discussing the options in advance. Questions you may want to consider include:

 

  • Does the plot meet my religious requirements?
  • Are there any restrictions I need to consider based on the type of monument or burial vault?
  • Does the plot include perpetual care and maintenance?
  • Are plots available in the same location to provide for burial of the entire family?

Personalize/Customize

To add a heartfelt and individual touch, your loved one's personalized life story message can be applied throughout the ceremony or gathering, as well as to the container, memorial urn and keepsakes you choose. Smaller urns, keepsakes, and remembrance jewelry can be given to family members and close friends.

Niche Urns

A niche is a recessed compartment typically found in a columbarium or mausoleum to hold an urn. The niche may be open-front, protected by glass (this option allows viewing of the urn), or closed-front, faced with bronze, marble or granite. Generally, the urn containing the cremated remains is placed inside the niche and the front is sealed. Many urn styles can be placed in a niche.

Home Display

You may want to memorialize your loved one in your home after cremation. Many urn styles provide a touching and discreet way to hold the memory of your loved one close. Urns are available in natural stone like marble, a variety of metals such as bronze and copper, and beautiful wood finishes like oak, cherry or mahogany. Cast acrylic and cast bronze statuary art urns are also available in a variety of styles. Products for memorials in the garden or landscape, including wind chimes, birdbaths and sundials, are also an option.

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