Certain Mortuary Aspects Of Northwest Coast Culture
Description:
Information about mortuary practices among the Carriers is meager but what is known involves cremation. The widow must lie beside the dead body in the house for 9 days, from sunset to sunrise before the body is cremated. If the group suspects the widow has contributed to her husband's demise, she must lie on the pyre and suffer until her body is covered with blisters. The she collects some of the liquid fat from the corpse and wets her face and body. [This entire article describes other mortuary practices just as graphic]. Footnotes.
People:
Alaska Native, American Indian, Carrier, Chitimacha, Choctaw, Eskimo, Haida, Kwakiutl, Nootka, Salish, Tlingit, Tsimshian