The saying of Bulgakov's hero about the sudden death of a person today, in modern reality, is especially relevant. In a situation where it is necessary to repatriate the body for burial away from the place of death, the body of the deceased will be delivered in a specialized container. There are several ways of transportation: cremation of the body, after which the ashes are transported in an urn, freezing of the body in a refrigerator and in a metal box. The first option is most often not suitable for religious or ethical reasons, the second option is not always acceptable because of its high cost, and the third one is most often resorted to.
What is a zinc coffin? What is the history of its origin?
A box in the shape of a parallelepiped, made of galvanized steel, designed to transport the body over long distances, is the container that must be purchased for the deceased. It can also be equipped with a small transparent window. The zinc coffin is the last refuge for those who have a long way home to say goodbye to relatives. It consists of a coffin in the traditional sense, a steel liner and a container for transportation by various modes of transport.
For the first time they started talking about such coffins during the war in Afghanistan, when it was necessary to bring the bodies of dead soldiers home. The use of such a coffin is justified when the body of the deceased is mutilated or long time awaiting burial. At the same time, the coded term of the special services appeared - cargo 200, meaning the transportation of the body of the deceased and which became known to the population after 1979. The zinc coffin, together with its contents, did not exceed two centners in weight, so it was easy to calculate the weight of the cargo for air transportation without additional weighing in order to avoid overloading. Military transport aircraft used to transport the bodies of dead soldiers were symbolically called "black tulips" because of their mournful mission.
Why choose zinc coffin for 200 cargo?
Currently, the bodies of not only the military, but also civilians who died far from home and need to be repatriated are transported in this way.
The reasons why a zinc coffin is chosen are its low cost, low weight of the metal, and also its pliability. soft material when soldering. But in addition to all of the above, zinc has antiseptic characteristics that prevent the decomposition of the body of the deceased. Transportation in such a container provides for the preservation of the body of the deceased, because galvanization does not allow air to get inside, and this allows the body to be preserved for a long time. Deceleration of decomposition processes dead body allows you to open such a coffin after delivery and conduct a funeral rite traditional way. But in the case where the body was mutilated or was in a zinc container for a long time, then it is not recommended to open and violate the sealing of the coffin.
Transport procedure
To repatriate the body of the deceased, it is not enough to purchase a coffin made of zinc. It is necessary to carry out a number of measures provided for by the law on the transport of goods 200. This is a complex process that requires knowledge of a specific nature. An amateur cannot cope with it without the help of professionals.
One of necessary conditions is the soldering of a zinc liner, which serves to seal the box. Its implementation is mandatory according to the requirements of customs and sanitary control in order to avoid the appearance of putrid odors, which can cause discomfort to passengers and staff when transported by plane, train or car.
In order to transport the body by air and rail, and in some cases by car, it is necessary:
. buy a coffin with a galvanized liner and a wooden container;
. to embalm the body with high content reagents;
. seal the metal liner by soldering it;
. collect the necessary package of documents, which includes:
- death certificate;
- permission from the sanitary and epidemiological station;
- a certificate confirming the quality of sealing of the metal coffin lining;
- certificate of the absence of foreign objects in the coffin.
. the space between the coffin and the wooden container is filled with lime, wood shavings or soil.
The body is transported to luggage compartment. When passing customs inspection, cargo 200 has the highest priority.
Dimensions and cost
To know how much a zinc coffin costs, you need to understand that its cost is made up, among other things, of those procedures that must be done in order to transport the body without hindrance. The coffin itself in various ritual agencies costs from 10,000 rubles. To order, you need to know the dimensions of the deceased, because it often happens that relatives who have not seen the deceased relative for a long time do not know the exact parameters. To have correct information, you should talk to people who have seen the deceased recently.
The size of the zinc coffin affects the price. Knowing them, it is necessary to add 15 cm to the existing height of the deceased, rounding the length towards a larger ten. It is worth considering the size of the clothes worn by the deceased, how heavy he was at death.
Since ancient times, the earth has embodied the reproducing power of nature, so people compared it with a life-giving woman. The earth, fertilized by rain, gave rich harvests, fed humanity and allowed it to continue the race. Traces of her deification are reflected in ancient funeral rituals, where, the skeletons of which were later found by archaeologists, were laid in a grave in the pose of a newborn. Thus, we can safely say that they symbolized the transition of the deceased to the bosom of mother earth, where he can be reborn after death in a completely new quality.
Echoes of the funeral rite have been preserved in the tradition of putting on clean linen before death or imminent danger.
The land that received the dead man was considered miraculous, so the people who came considered it necessary to lay a hand on it, clearing themselves of future possible misfortunes. Today, from this protective pagan ritual, there remains the tradition of throwing clods from the excavated grave earth onto the coffin. This tradition is preceded by a litiya - a prayer service performed, which then sprinkles the coffin with fragrant from the censer. After lowering the coffin into the grave, the priest is the first to throw a handful of earth on it, overshadowing the coffin with a cross so that evil forces do not disturb.
Modern rite
Over time, the magical meaning of the above rites is practically lost, and the superstitions associated with them are gradually lost in the frantic pace of modern civilization. From ancient ritual cleansing those present, only the tradition of throwing a handful of earth on the coffin with the dead remained. However, it is no longer perceived in the vein in which it was perceived in ancient times - then, together with the deceased, the earth took on all the filth that was on a person.
Another lost ritual is the sealing of the grave with a cross drawn over it by a priest with a shovel.
Also, throwing earth on the coffin is intended to restore communication with already deceased relatives who are waiting for him in another world. From there, the clan sends help to relatives left on earth, and awaits reunion with them. In ancient times, it was customary to complete the funeral rite with a funeral feast, which takes place right at the burial site. Today it is not so popular, but the tradition of a glass of vodka and a slice of bread for the deceased has survived to this day.
The military is transported in zinc coffins to preserve the body of a dead soldier - galvanization prevents air from entering the coffin, which helps the body to survive.
zinc coffin
Coffins made of zinc or special galvanized ones are used when it is necessary to transport the body over long distances, or when the body, for a number of reasons, must be without burial for a long time. Naturally, such coffins or their versions made of galvanized boxes are used primarily during wars and military conflicts, when the bodies of the dead must be delivered to burial sites.In general, zinc was chosen here for two reasons: the first is its high tightness with a fairly low weight and cost. The second reason is that its oxides prevent infection and the smoldering process.
The corpses in sealed zinc are usually well preserved and do not cause inconveniences during transportation, such as bad smell decomposition. The use of zinc in the above cases is mandatory according to the sanitary standards of all civilized countries. A zinc coffin can be used many times, because it was not created, but for transporting corpses, and only if the body is severely mutilated, it is usually not opened and committed in closed coffin.
Cargo-200
Cargo-200 is set expression denoting a body in a zinc coffin. The expression came into our use with Afghan wars s. Then there was a need for a brief and accurate description of the zinc coffin with the body, and the description was not entirely clear to an outsider. Zinc coffins are always weighed before being sent on a flight to their home country, and their length-height-width is also measured to determine the so-called "flight weight" in order to calculate the allowable flight weight for the cargo hold. On average, this flight weight was two hundred kilograms per coffin. This is where the military term came from: “two hundredth”, cargo-200.There are cases when, during the Vietnam and Afghan wars, generals used cargo-200 to transport heroin - sealed coffins with drugs flew home, bypassing customs.
Transportation of cargo-200 is actually a very complicated procedure. Firstly, a coffin or a galvanized box must be soldered in special place.
According to sanitary standards, it is forbidden to put even fresh flowers in the coffin! At the airport, the coffin is necessarily translucent and registered through the cargo terminal.At the same time, in addition to a bunch of other papers, the obligatory “about soldering” should be attached, indicating that there are no extra items in the coffin.
Sources:
- how to bury soldiers
Farewell to a loved one
If you have to give a speech to a girlfriend or friend, more personal memories are appropriate. Do not talk about disagreements and quarrels, do not expose the deceased in an ambiguous light. If you feel strong enough in yourself, you can tell funny story about the deceased, supplement your speech with light, harmless humor, but you should be careful with this so as not to hurt anyone's feelings.
In a speech to a brother or sister, it is very important to express your readiness to express support for your parents, for them the death of a child is a monstrous loss. Therefore, it is very important to emphasize in your speech that they are not alone, that they have you as a support. Do not hold back your emotions in this case, do not try to joke if you do not find the strength in yourself.
If you are giving a speech at your spouse's funeral, be sure to talk about how you met, what you experienced together, how you coped with difficulties, mention plans that you did not have time to implement. Support his or her parents by speaking from the heart.
At the funeral of any of your parents, in your speech, first of all express your gratitude for everything that they gave you, for life lessons, upbringing, invaluable experience, for all the time that you spent together. Do not try to talk for a long time, no one expects this from you. Don't suppress your emotions.
In any case, at whose funeral you are giving a speech, be sincere. Do not use clichés or overly pretentious constructions, build your speech as simply as possible.
Zinc coffins have been produced for a little over a century: in 1905, the first batch of this metal was obtained by laboratory in Russia. The answer to the question why coffins are made of zinc is simple: its properties are suitable for transporting the body. Initially zinc coffins were very expensive. Nowadays, shipping boxes are made of galvanized steel, so the question of why coffins are made of zinc is not entirely accurate. This material is more accessible, and the production of zinc coffins has become massive. A box for transportation together with a galvanized coffin can weigh from 200 to 300 kg, so you will definitely need it.
The first zinc coffins
The first samples were available only to very rich people. So, killed in Petrograd in 1916, close to imperial family Elder Grigory Rasputin, by their order, was buried in a zinc coffin, because supposedly they wanted to transport his body to his homeland, to Tobolsk province. The grave was actually located in Tsarskoye Selo and later, by decree of the Minister of Justice A.F. Kerensky, it was opened and the body was burned. There are legends among the people that the interim government was looting burial places tsarist generals in order to get material for the needs of the military industry from ruined zinc coffins. In fact, this procedure would be meaningless: there is not so much zinc in galvanized steel, and people are rarely buried in zinc coffins.
Why are coffins made of zinc?
Usually sealed containers made of such material are used only for transportation. Zinc is a fusible material, so a box made of it can be easily soldered. A sealed container is used to transport the body over long distances. The body is embalmed beforehand, which preserves it the right time, and the lack of income fresh air slows down the decomposition process. The tightness of the seal prevents the appearance of bad smell, because zinc coffins are transported in the cargo compartment of a transport designed for ordinary passengers. For them, the presence on board of "cargo 200" (the second name of zinc coffins) should be invisible. Therefore, the meeting of the body transported in this way should be as discreet as possible, without religious rites and other actions that attract attention.
Why is a zinc coffin called "cargo 200"
"Cargo 200" zinc containers were named during the mass transportation of the dead Soviet soldiers from Afghanistan. This military term refers to the approximate weight of a coffin with an adult body placed inside. The estimated weight of 200 kg made it possible to determine the loading of the aircraft and avoid overloading. According to another version, cargo 200 got its name from the order number 200 of the Ministry of Defense, which regulates the transportation of military personnel. The expression "cargo 200" has firmly entered into use, because the delivery of the dead in zinc coffins from the places of military operations was massive. The planes carrying the sad cargo to their homeland were called “Black Tulips”.
The bodies of the killed soldiers were carefully prepared for shipment, placed in zinc coffins, and then in wooden boxes, which indicated the data of the fighter. In the hot climate of Afghanistan, decomposition began very quickly, the bodies could be mutilated beyond recognition. The tents in which the corpses were kept were considered not the most pleasant place, and meeting with the workers of such mortuaries, according to signs, promised death in battle. Such conditions for the delivery of the bodies of the dead (or what is left of them) leave no doubt as to why the coffins are made of zinc.
When buried in a zinc coffin
It is clear that if the remains of the deceased are severely mutilated (sometimes it was possible to find only fragments), then the zinc coffin will not be opened. In order for relatives to be able to identify the deceased, if possible, a special porthole was provided to make sure who was placed in the zinc coffin. The second case, when they are buried right in a zinc coffin, is when a person is a danger even after death. For example, the bodies of those who died of cholera or bubonic plague continue to be infectious. Another option is huge doses of radiation that led to death. American businessman Eben Byers drank over a thousand bottles radioactive water considered at one time to be curative. The error was discovered too late, and the body of the deceased from radiation sickness had to be buried in a zinc coffin. Such remains turn into a kind of mini nuclear reactor, which generates radiation even after death. The most serious cases require the arrangement of a grave of a special design. The body is wrapped in thick cellophane, placed in a zinc coffin, and then in a zinc sarcophagus. For maximum isolation of the remains from environment the grave is poured with concrete and covered with thick slabs.
Escort "cargo 200"
In order for the zinc coffin to be delivered by water, rail, road or air transport, several documents must be collected. For example, a certificate from those who soldered should confirm the absence of extraneous attachments. There are transport boxes designed only for transporting the body, as well as zinc coffins for transport and burial at the same time. There is also an alternative to zinc coffins: you can carry out the cremation procedure, because it is much easier to deliver an urn with ashes to your homeland. A more modern and costly method of transporting the body, if cremation is not possible for religious reasons, is freezing.
If you have any questions or need help transporting the body from another city, call our free hotline
Some are born, others die, and this course of life cannot be changed. Death is a sad event, but a worthy haven for a deceased person - a coffin where the body will find eternal peace.
Coffins intended for the transportation of the deceased, in particular by plane or train, are called zinc. A zinc coffin is used because of its ease of use, if a misfortune happened to a person away from home or burial place.
The main advantage of this design is that inside it the body of the deceased decomposes much longer, which will allow it to be safely brought to its destination. This is due to the base of galvanized steel.
The tightness that a zinc coffin has does not allow air to penetrate inside, which could give rise to the emergence of microorganisms on the body and inside the structure. As a rule, after arriving (or flying) to the city where the funeral ceremony will take place, the deceased is transferred to another coffin with the possibility of preliminary cremation.
Zinc coffin - purpose and use
A zinc coffin is a special sealed container designed to transport the body over long distances.
Zinc is a fairly light metal; it melts easily. The body, placed in a zinc coffin, sealed in an appropriate way, does not lend itself to rapid decomposition, therefore, this option is optimal for transporting the body of the deceased.
Since the body in a sealed container decomposes slowly, even after a long transportation in a zinc coffin, it can be opened for a funeral rite.
Types of zinc coffins
There are zinc coffins of various modifications. It can be a zinc box in which any wooden coffin is placed, upholstered with fabric or varnished.
Another option is a zinc coffin, which provides a bed for the deceased. The coffin is equipped with convenient carrying handles; the surface is carefully polished.
There is also a coffin with zinc liners. The appearance of such a product is not much different from ordinary coffins, and the polished surface of the tree gives the funeral attribute that appearance, which will emphasize the responsibility and sadness of what is happening.
If it is intended to transport the body and bury it according to all customs in hometown, a zinc coffin can be offered for rent exclusively for transportation.
Appointment of zinc coffins
Initially, the zinc coffin was used exclusively at the funerals of wealthy individuals. And during the war in Afghanistan, its purpose was to transport cargo 200 to remote distances (from there to the homeland), these coffins perform the same function now. Cargo 200 got its name because of the conditional mass of the coffin along with the body of the deceased.
Given the popularity of being used for the funeral of soldiers who died during the hostilities, it is not always recommended to open the coffin, because the body of a soldier can be badly damaged. Also, due to traveling long distances, the decomposition process can still begin. When the injuries of the deceased are present only on the body, a special window is cut out under the face in the sarcophagus, covered with glass. Such a zinc coffin will enable relatives to say goodbye to the deceased.
Funeral agencies offer a full range of funeral services, including the delivery of the body throughout Russia and the CIS countries. Staff will resolve issues. different nature, including difficulties in passing customs, meeting a load of 200 at the airport or railway station, and much more. A zinc coffin is useful in case of moving over long distances, mainly by air.
In case grief from loss loved one aggravated by the complexity of the need for long-distance transportation, you can contact the agency, where employees will prepare the entire package of documents necessary for transportation.
