Funerals - Japanese Buddhist Customs - Part II

In this second of a two part series we're going to discuss Japanese Buddhist funeral customs continuing with the wake.

The next part of the Buddhist service is the wake. The service is presided over by a Priest. The Priest arrives at the location of the wake and is given green tea. At this time he speaks with the family to go over any last minute details. During this time the guests arrive and take their seats on the floor if at the home or in chairs if at a funeral home.

After everyone has arrived, the Priest turns to the altar, bows, lights incense and begins to read a sutra. During this reading the Priest gives a signal to the family to rise and go to the incense urn. From there they bow, offer up some incense, bow again and then return to their seats. After the family members are finished doing this, the remainder of the guests repeat the ritual until everyone has done so. The Priest then finishes the sutra at which time everyone bows at the altar and the wake service ends. Depending on the Buddhist sect that the members belong to they may then chant a "mantra". This is done in unison.

Even after the wake service is over, guests will continue to arrive in order to pay their respects. It is customary and proper for all guests to either attend the wake service, the wake itself or the funeral, but not all three. The family then gives each guest a present to show them their gratitude for coming.

That night the family stays in the same room with the deceased. In some sects a person who is not a blood relative of the deceased, like a son in law, may be asked to stay with the deceased for the evening. In other sects each next of kin takes turns staying with the deceased.

After the wake, the night before, is the funeral service itself the next day. At that time the body is transported to the temple and placed in front of the altar. A wooden tablet with the deceased name is placed in front of the altar. The name is assigned and inscribed by the Priest. It should be noted that the name given by the Priest could be different from the name the person had in life.

When it comes time to perform the service the Priest reads the sutra and part way through gives a signal to offer up the incense. This part of the service is the same as at the wake service, with each person taking part. The Priest then finishes reading the sutra and the people bow as he leaves the room. A representative of the family thanks the guests for coming after the Priest leaves.

After the people leave the casket is sealed. From there the body is taken to the crematorium where the body is cremated in what some consider a rather gruesome service where the body is partially burned, then taken out so that chop sticks can be placed with the body before cremation continues. After which, the bones, ashes and what's left of the chop sticks are placed in an urn and given to the family.

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A Quick Look at Jewelry Hallmarks

British Hallmarks are the best in the world.

Who says so, the rest of the World. Although to be fair, other countries have great hallmarks too, it is just that they are NOT so often seen.

A book on World Hallmarks for Gold or Silver items is a must for any serious collector or dealer, but they can be a little intimidating and time consuming. Is that mark a Cockerel or a Tree? Could it be made in Switzerland or Germany?

Thankfully for the rest of us, a small pocket book on UK Hallmarks is more than up to the task, coupled with that very useful plastic 10X eyeglass I keep on hinting for you to buy.

It will show you that the item has been tested and stamped, to prove it is - what it says it is (9ct or 18ct etc).

British Jewelry with a full UKHM (United Kingdom Hall Mark) is generally clearly stamped and readable after you clean it (check the website below for another complimentary article on 'How to Clean your Jewelry at Home').

Once you are aware of the marks, you will always feel just that little bit better when you buy that 'Could it be an Antique?' item at the local market, or from the guy in the Pub that everyone talks about but nobody knows.

Buyer Beware....

*Six marks on British Jewelry.*

Yes... Six?

# 1: The Maker's Mark (Usually some initials). Not all that important for everyday items, unless you want to collect Jewelry from one maker. Silver collectors may want to buy items from say, Bateman (I should be so lucky).

# 2: The second stamp is the Assay Office mark or 'Mark of Origin'. It tells you where the item came from. The most common is the LONDON Hallmark. A Leopard's Head. Sometimes this has a crown on the Leopard's Head (until circa 1821). Modern items do NOT have a crown on the Leopard Stamp.

The other most common Assay Office marks are from Birmingham (an Anchor). Once there were many Assay offices around Great Britain and Ireland, the Chester mark for instance. Now there are just three offices left in England, Sheffield being the last using a 'Rose' on gold Jewelry (DO NOT CONFUSE THIS WITH 'ROSE GOLD' JEWELRY) as that is a color, not a mark.

In Scotland there is Edinburgh, while in Ireland there is Dublin. Pity the poor Welsh are left out again!

# 3: The next is the Assay Quality mark and is shown as the 'Lion Passant' (which means 'looking ahead') and is a guarantee of quality. This was later changed to a 'CROWN' mark with a stamp showing the quality of Gold.... 9ct or 18ct etc.

# 4: Finally, and possibly the most important mark, was the Date letter mark. It changed each year so we can tell when the item was made.

Occasionally there is an extra mark.

# 5: An example was the Queen's Silver Jubilee in 1977.

Suffice to say if you see a Brooch with four or five marks and one of them is an Anchor with an 18 next to it and a letter 'C' next to that.... It's a safe bet it was made in Birmingham in 1927, or was that 1952, or 1902, or, or, or.....

Buyer Beware the man in the Pub.

As with most Jewelry items though, our advise has always been to buy the best QUALITY you can afford from a reputable dealer who will guarantee it.

Other than that, your plastic 10X eyeglass sure helps a lot....

P.S.
If you administer a website or publish an ezine, please feel free to use this article as long as you leave all links in place, do not modify the content and include our resource box as listed below. Although it's NOT compulsory I would personally appreciate it if you could send me an email at: gemmo1@online-jewelry-appraisals.com to let me know if and where you used it. If you need other great content - complimentary of course - then drop me a line at the email address given - 'cause I've got Quality Content and Gallons of the stuff....

(c)David Foard - All Rights reserved

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