Raising the Dead Trivia Quiz

Answer: Pathologist

While a pathologist may often operate upon a corpse to gain evidence, especially in cases where there is doubt as to the cause of death or where other detective work on the corpse is needed, they do not oversee the funerals. The other three terms are all synonyms for the same thing.

Answer: Yes

In addition to burial, a mortician can also serve to enact cremation, upon the family's wishes.

Answer: Blessing the corpse

The mortician is not a priest or minister. Families can, if they wish, ask for such rites. However the funeral director deals exclusively with the mundane preparations such as burial or cremation. However, certain priests may be able to perform a mortician's duties if sought, though they are not categorized as professional funeral directors.

Answer: Decapitation

This was commonly practiced ritual during the major vampire panics, but also before that corpses were often decapitated so that the bodies could not rise as the 'undead' and prey upon villagers. Widely practiced in Western Europe during the Middle Ages, as well as in earlier times, this bloody ritual was seen as an absolute necessity, so that the spirits of the dead would not rise in malice.

In the case of people who had committed suicide further more drastic 'precautions' were often taken, such as burying at a cross-roads with a stake thrust through the heart at midnight.

Answer: Retort

The retort is a brick-lined chamber in which the body is placed for cremation. Refractory refers to the type of bricks used, while a body container is the mandatory container in which a corpse must be placed before cremation. The crematory is, of course, a furnace itself, which can reach up to 1800°F.

Answer: Just above the naval.

The trocar, a pointed, cylindrical object, is inserted just above the naval, two inches up and to the right, in order to pierce the hollow organs beneath the chest cavity. The organs are then drained to preserve the corpse.

Answer: Natural burial

Natural burial is seen in several Western cultures as not only respectful for the dead, but also often less expensive than to bury the corpse with a coffin. In addition, several cultures regard natural burial as necessary for the person to return to the natural cycle and have therefore always adhered to this practice.

Answer: Protection against scavengers

"Grave goods" refer to the items often included with the corpse upon burial, such as jewelry or clothes. In many religions, this is seen as necessary to reach the afterlife, or included to provide happiness in this afterlife. A person may also request to be buried with a specific item, for whatever reason.

In addition, some choose to use "grave goods" so that, in the future, archaeologists might be able to identify the time of burial and the cultural significance associated with the corpse and its' time period, essentially a time capsule.

They do not, however, do much in the way of protecting against determined scavengers.

Answer: Mortuary science

An actual science, mortuary science is studied at a university before the practitioner can gain the necessary license to participate in the career.

Answer: Restoration

The missing goal is preservation. Restoration would refer to the act of restoring the corpse to a former state. However, the mortician's job is to make the current state acceptable, rather than to alter it utterly.