Ready to cross the Styx
The Hereford Times
A Turner Prize-nominated funerary artist from Herefordshire has unveiled her latest creation - a sustainable boat-shaped coffin.
Carol Ashton, of the Purple Funeral Company, is known for her hand-painted coffins but decided to create a sustainable and unusual shaped coffin.
Carol said: “I wanted to get away from the austere and severe shape of normal coffins.
“The boat has much softer lines and is made of willow resembling a Moses basket. It is also sustainable which is a factor which is becoming more important to people.”
She added: “It can also be personalised with flowers weaved through the willow which looks really pretty.”
The boat-shaped coffin has been named the Styx by Carol in a nod to the River Styx in Greek mythology, which flowed between the land of the living and the land of the dead.
“People like being near water, whether it’s the sea, rivers, canals or lakes,” she said.
“Many people like the idea of being buried by the sea, but there is only one place off the coast where this is possible.”
Another alternative option is to be buried in the green burial site, set up by Carol and A W Hughes & Son funeral directors close to Offa’s Dyke. The Offa’s Orchard green burial ground only allows eco-friendly coffins and a fruit tree is planted on the spot instead of a traditional headstone.
Source - The Hereford Times