Читать книгу The Element Encyclopedia of Native Americans: An A to Z of Tribes, Culture, and History - Adele Nozedar - Страница 80

Across the many tribes of Native American Indians, there were many different approaches to the disposal of the remains of a lost loved one. But it’s safe to say that the two main differences were whether the corpse was buried in the ground or left in the open air.

The latter was the preferred way among the Arapaho, Chippewah, Gros Ventre, Mandan, Siksika, and Sioux tribes. All these peoples placed the corpse either in the branches of a tree, or at the top of a framework that was specially constructed for the purpose. In northwestern America the body was put into a boat or canoe, the entire canoe then suspended in a tree.

The underground burial, though, was really the most widely used method. The corpse might be wrapped in matting made of cane, and buried in the ground. Some tribes embalmed the body prior to burial. Seminole and Creek Indians dug circular holes into which the corpse was inserted in a sitting position, whilst the Mohawk used the same method except the corpse would be squatting.

The buried bones of the tribes belonging to the Great Lakes region would be disinterred periodically and placed in a common pit.

Lots of tribes placed items near the burial place, such as weapons. The belief was that these worldly goods would be needed in the world that was to come. And sometimes the horse of the dead person was slain with him, so that the two might go into the afterlife together.

All tribes mourned their dead, but again, the methods of displaying that grief varied. Cutting the hair off, slashing the body or arms with blades, wailing and fasting; all these were ways of expressing grief to the rest of society. Among some tribes, if a person died in a tipi, then the tipi would be sealed up, marked as unlucky.

The Comanche, expert horsemen, placed the corpse on the back of a horse along with a (living) rider. The rider would then go in search of a suitable burial place, such as a cave. Once the body had been buried, stones were piled up to mark the spot.

If a member of the Creek tribe died while in bed, the corpse was buried underneath that bed.

Several prominent Native Americans, including Sitting Bull and Black Hawk, have been disinterred and moved to other places.