The Wonderful World of Death Trivia Quiz

Answer: the Sea

In 1820, when the Essex was sunk by a whale, the survivors, in three small boats, decided to resort to cannibalism so that some could survive. When one member of the crew became unconscious, the rest decided to kill him and eat him. When they were rescued a few days later, the surviving crew members were charged with breaking The Custom of the Sea, since they didn't draw straws to see who would be murdered, and were charged with murder.

Answer: Sky

This was not a ritual to honor birds of prey. In the Buddhist religion, it is believed that once a person dies their soul leaves the body and the corpse is simply an empty shell. The Sky Burial is just a means of disposing of the remains. It is also practical since soil in the region of Tibet is hard to dig, and burying a corpse in the ground would be difficult.

Answer: Macabre

The procession conisists of a death-like figure leading a group of people towards the grave. The types of people included an emperor, a monk, a pope, a king, a young person, and a beautiful girl. Death usually addresses each of the members. Here is how Death addresses the Emperor:

Emperor, your sword won't help you out
Sceptre and crown are worthless here
I've taken your hand
For you must come to my dance.

Answer: Canopic

There were four jars with hieroglyphs on them and the head of a god on the top. The four gods represented Horus' four sons:

Imset (depicted as a human) was responsible for the liver.
Hapi (a baboon) for the lungs.
Duamutef (a jackal) for the stomach.
Kebechsenef (a falcon) for the viscera of the lower body.

Answer: Chinese

There are also stories of living relatives using the notes to bribe the King of Hell so he will not punish their deceased relatives so severely. The Chinese take Hell Bank Notes very seriously and they can be purchased in large denominations going as high as $500,000.

It is considered bad luck to give a Hell Bank Note to a living person or to keep them in the house where they can be seen.

Answer: Boiling the flesh off the bones

Since the knights were off fighting far from home, it would be difficult to transport the body back to his home so he could be buried. To make the transportation easier, the body would be boiled in hot water till the flesh came off. Then, the bones could be easily transported back to his home.

Answer: Seven

This custom is named so because of the period of a week that the mourning takes place in. It is also named Shiv'ah because the custom applies only to the death of seven first-degree relatives: father, mother, son, daughter, brother, sister, or spouse. Shiv'ah includes the men not shaving, keeping only minimum personal hygiene, covering the mirrors in a house, and sitting on low stools for the week.

Answer: Archimime

This was a not a form of mocking or insulting the dead, but was a form of respect for the recently deceased. Archimimes were not initially related in any way to death. They were performers at the theatre and at feasts, and then at funerals. They would imitate the gestures, movement, and speech of the dead.

Answer: Requiem

Over 2000 Requiems have been composed. As I said in my hint, Mozart's Requiem Mass is perhaps the most famous of them all, and was written shortly before his own death. Not all Requiems are related to the Catholic Church. Some are written for Lutherans or Hebrews. Today, many Requiems are War Requiems that are dedicated to people killed in various wars.

Answer: False

In fact almost 99% of Japanese deceased are cremated. This is because it is very difficult to find a funeral plot in Japan, especially in Tokyo. On average, a Japanese funeral costs $40,000. When the body is cremated, the family removes the bones with chopsticks, and places them in an urn.

They begin with the bones of the feet and end with the head. Eventually, the urn will be taken to a family grave and be buried.