# Urn > Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Urn > Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Urn.md > Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Urn > Source revision: 1341561470 > License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/) Form of vase, often with a cover For other uses, see [Urn (disambiguation)](/source/Urn_(disambiguation)). [Ancient Roman](/source/Ancient_Roman) urn made of [alabaster](/source/Alabaster) An **urn** is a [vase](/source/Vase), often with a cover, with a typically narrowed neck above a rounded body and a footed [pedestal](/source/Pedestal). Describing a vessel as an "urn", as opposed to a vase or other terms, generally reflects its use rather than any particular shape or origin. The term is especially often used for **funerary urns**, vessels used in burials, either to hold the cremated ashes or as [grave goods](/source/Grave_goods), but is used in many other contexts. Large sculpted vases are often called urns, whether placed outdoors, in gardens or as architectural ornaments on buildings, or kept inside. In catering, large vessels for serving tea or coffee are often called "tea-urns", even when they are metal cylinders of purely functional design. Urns are also a [common reference](/source/Urn_problem) in thought experiments in [probability](/source/Probability) wherein marbles or balls of different colors are used to represent different results and the urn represents the "container" of the whole set of possible states. ## Funerary **Funerary urns** (also called **cinerary urns** and **burial urns**) have been used by many civilizations. After death, corpses are [cremated](/source/Cremated), and the ashes are collected and put in an urn. Pottery urns, dating from about 7000 BC, have been found in an early [Jiahu](/source/Jiahu) site in China, where a total of 32 burial urns are found,[1] and other early finds are in Laoguantai, [Shaanxi](/source/Shaanxi).[2] There are about 700 burial urns unearthed over the [Yangshao](/source/Yangshao_culture) (5000–3000 BC) areas consisting of more than 50 varieties of form and shape. The burial urns were used mainly for children, but also sporadically for adults.[3] The [Urnfield culture](/source/Urnfield_culture) (c. 1300 BC – 750 BC), a late [Bronze Age](/source/Bronze_Age) culture of central [Europe](/source/Europe), takes its name from its large cemeteries of urn burials. The discovery of a [Bronze Age](/source/Bronze_Age) urn burial in [Norfolk, England](/source/Norfolk%2C_England), prompted Sir [Thomas Browne](/source/Thomas_Browne) to describe the antiquities found. He expanded his study to survey burial and funerary customs, ancient and current, and published it as *[Hydriotaphia or Urn Burial](/source/Hydriotaphia%2C_Urn_Burial)* (1658). In ancient Greece, cremation was usual, and the ashes were typically placed in a painted [Greek vase](/source/Pottery_of_ancient_Greece). In particular, the *[lekythos](/source/Lekythos)*, the [shape of vase](/source/Typology_of_Greek_vase_shapes), was used for holding oil in funerary rituals. [Romans](/source/Ancient_Rome) placed the urns in a niche in a collective [tomb](/source/Tomb) called a *[columbarium](/source/Columbarium)* (literally, [dovecote](/source/Dovecote)). The interior of a dovecote usually has niches to house [doves](/source/Doves). Cremation urns were also commonly used in early [Anglo Saxon](/source/Anglo-Saxon_paganism) [England](/source/England),[4] and in many [Pre-Columbian cultures](/source/Pre-Columbian_culture). In some later European traditions, a king's heart, and sometimes other organs, could be placed in one or more urns upon his death, as happened with King [Otto of Bavaria](/source/Otto%2C_King_of_Bavaria) in 1916, and buried in a different place from the body, to symbolize a particular affection for the place by the departed. In the modern [funeral industry](/source/Funeral_industry), cremation urns of varying quality, elaborateness, and cost are offered, and urns are another source of potential profit for an industry concerned that a trend toward cremation might threaten profits from traditional burial ceremonies.[5][6] [Biodegradable urns](/source/Biodegradable_urn) are sometimes used for both human and animal burial. They are made from [eco-friendly](/source/Eco-friendly) materials such as recycled or handmade paper, salt, cellulose or other natural products that are capable of [decomposing](/source/Biodegradation) back into natural elements, and sometimes include a seed intended to grow into a tree at the site of the burial.[7][8][9] Besides the traditional funeral or cremation ashes urns, it may also be possible to keep a part of the ashes of the loved one or beloved pet in keepsake urns or ash jewellery, although this might be banned in some localities as the law of certain countries may prohibit keeping any human remains in a private residence. It is even, in some places, possible to place the ashes of two people in so-called companion urns. Cremation or funeral urns are made from a variety[10][11] of materials such as wood, nature stone, ceramic, glass, or steel. ## Figural A **figural urn** is a style of vase or larger container where the basic urn shape, of either a classic [amphora](/source/Amphora) or a [crucible](/source/Crucible) style, is ornamented with figures. These may be attached to the main body, forming handles or simply extraneous decorations, or may be shown in relief on the body itself. ## Trophies and fashion [The Ashes](/source/The_Ashes), the prize in the biennial [Test cricket](/source/Test_cricket) competition between [England](/source/English_cricket_team) and [Australia](/source/Australian_cricket_team), are contained in a [miniature urn](/source/Ashes_urn). Urns are a common form of [architectural](/source/Architectural) detail and [garden ornament](/source/Garden_ornament). Well-known ornamental urns include the [Waterloo Vase](/source/Waterloo_Vase). In [Neoclassical](/source/Neoclassicism) furniture, an urn was a large wooden vase-like container which was usually set on a pedestal on either side of a side table. This was the characteristic of [Adam](/source/Adam_style) designs and also of [Hepplewhite](/source/George_Hepplewhite)'s work. Sometimes they were "knife urns", where the top lifted off, and cutlery was stored inside. Urns were also used as decorative turnings at the cross points of stretchers in 16th and 17th century furniture designs. The urn and the vase were often set on the central pedestal in a "broken" or "swan's" neck pediment.[12] "Knife urns" placed on pedestals flanking a dining-room [sideboard](/source/Sideboard) were an English innovation for high-style [dining rooms](/source/Dining_room) of the late 1760s. They went out of fashion in the following decade, in favour of knife boxes that were placed on the sideboard. ## Tea A **tea urn** is a heated metal container traditionally used to brew [tea](/source/Tea) or boil water in large quantities in factories, canteens or churches. They are not usually found in domestic use. Like a [samovar](/source/Samovar) it has a small tap near the base for extracting either tea or hot water. Unlike an [electric water boiler](/source/Electric_water_boiler), tea may be brewed in the vessel itself, although they are equally likely to be used to fill a large [teapot](/source/Teapot). ## Gallery - Ancient Greek cremation urn c. 850 BC - Child funerary vase, Civitella archaeology museum in [Chieti](/source/Chieti), [Italy](/source/Italy) - The [Derveni Krater](/source/Derveni_Krater), one of very few large Ancient Greek bronze vessels to survive - A 1720s depiction of a fantasy garden urn; a detail of a larger English painting of a [Knight of the Garter](/source/Knight_of_the_Garter) - An ornate tea urn (late 18th century) ## See also - [Bridge spouted vessel](/source/Bridge_spouted_vessel) - [Columbarium](/source/Columbarium) - [Crematorium](/source/Crematorium) - [Funeral home](/source/Funeral_home) - [Pithos](/source/Pithos) - [Viewlogy](/source/Viewlogy) ## References 1. **[^](#cite_ref-1)** Hu, Yaowu. "Elemental Analysis of Ancient Human Bones from the Jiahu Site", in *Acta Anthropologica Sinica*, 2005, Vol. 24, No. 2:158–165. [ISSN](/source/ISSN_(identifier)) [1000-3193](https://search.worldcat.org/issn/1000-3193), p. 159. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-luan_2006_49_55_2-0)** Luan, Fengshi. "On the Origin and Development of Prehistoric Coffin and Funeral Custom", in *Cultural Relices*, 2006, No. 6:49–55. [ISSN](/source/ISSN_(identifier)) [0511-4772](https://search.worldcat.org/issn/0511-4772), pp. 49–55. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-wang_3-0)** Wang, Xiao. "On the Early Funeral Coffin in Central China", in *Cultural Relices of Central China*, 1997, No. 3:93–100. [ISSN](/source/ISSN_(identifier)) [1003-1731](https://search.worldcat.org/issn/1003-1731). pp. 93-96. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-4)** See, for example, the [Wold Newton](/source/Wold_Newton%2C_Lincolnshire) urns — [www.woldnewton.net](http://www.woldnewton.net/files/urns) [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20130706114136/http://www.woldnewton.net/files/urns) 2013-07-06 at the [Wayback Machine](/source/Wayback_Machine). 1. **[^](#cite_ref-5)** [Jessica Mitford](/source/Jessica_Mitford), *[The American Way of Death Revisited](/source/The_American_Way_of_Death)* ([Random House](/source/Random_House), 2011), [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [978-0307809391](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-0307809391), pp. 115-116. [Excerpts available](https://books.google.com/books?id=vT34JyxEeicC&dq=cremation+urn&pg=PA116) at [Google Books](/source/Google_Books). 1. **[^](#cite_ref-6)** Stephen R. Prothero, *Purified by Fire: A History of Cremation in America* ([University of California Press](/source/University_of_California_Press), 2002), [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [978-0520929746](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-0520929746), pp. 196ff. [Excerpts available](https://books.google.com/books?id=XqVOH9uzDDwC&q=biodegradable+&pg=PA197) at [Google Books](/source/Google_Books). 1. **[^](#cite_ref-7)** ["Biodegradable urns use human remains to grow trees"](https://web.archive.org/web/20130727063310/http://www.cbc.ca/newsblogs/yourcommunity/2012/10/biodegradable-urns-use-human-remains-to-grow-trees.html) [CBC News](/source/CBC_News), October 21, 2012. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-8)** Wall, Tim (May 17, 2011). ["RIP: Recycle in Peace"](https://web.archive.org/web/20160516005451/http://news.discovery.com/earth/plants/biodegradable-urn-110517.htm). *[Discovery News](/source/Discovery_News)*. Archived from [the original](http://news.discovery.com/earth/plants/biodegradable-urn-110517.htm) on May 16, 2016. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-9)** ["Biodegradable Urn Lets You Go Green, Even Six Feet Under"](https://newsfeed.time.com/2011/05/17/biodegradeable-urn-lets-you-go-green-even-six-feet-under/), *[Time](/source/Time_(magazine))*, May 17, 2011. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-10)** AHMAD, NAFEES (2026-02-04). ["Types of Cremation Urns: How to Choose the Right One | Hirfa"](https://www.hirfa.shop/blogs/types-of-cremation-urns-a-complete-guide-to-choosing-the-right-one). *www.hirfa.shop*. Retrieved 2026-02-04. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-11)** handi_shop (2025-01-09). ["Different Types of Cremation Urns | Guide to Choose the Right One"](https://handicrafts-shop.com/2025/01/09/different-types-of-cremation-urns-guide-to-choose-the-right-one/). *Handicrafts Shop*. Retrieved 2025-01-09. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-12)** Martin Pegler, *The Dictionary of Interior Design*. ## External links Wikimedia Commons has media related to [Urns](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Urns). - Getty. Art & Architecture Thesaurus. [Urns](http://www.getty.edu/vow/AATFullDisplay?find=urns&logic=AND¬e=&subjectid=300129425) Authority control databases International GND National United States France BnF data Other Yale LUX --- Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Urn](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Urn) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Urn?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.