Business
BY JOVANNA AGUILAR
National Museum of Funeral History acquires certi ed Shroud of Turin Founded by the late funeral director Robert Waltrip in 1992, the National Museum of Funeral History houses the evolution of funeral practices, museum president Genevieve Keeney said. The most recent addition is the Shroud of Turin, known to the Catholic community as the cloth Jesus Christ was buried in. Zooming in An imprinted image on the Shroud is believed to have been created by the light of the resurrection, but its authenticity remains a topic of debate, Keeney said. The museum will hold an exhibit in April featur- ing an artistic interpretation, including art pieces of the Shroud from di erent time periods, allowing attendees to draw their own conclusions. The history Led by Keeney, a funeral director and embalmer who joined the museum in 2006, the National Museum of Funeral History showcases exhibits dat- ing back to the earliest recorded history of burials. “[Funeral artifacts] tell how we have evolved and how we’ve been caring for our dead for hundreds of years. And so [Waltrip] felt it was important to capture, maintain and showcase the history of our industry,” Keeney said. Keeney said the History of Cremations is the most visited exhibit in the museum as it is the top burial method used in funeral practices today.
The Post-Mortem Photography wall features photos of the deceased. Photographing family members at the time of their death was a funeral practice used in American and European cultures in the 19th century.
PHOTOS BY JOVANNA AGUILAR COMMUNITY IMPACT
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415 Barren Springs Drive, Houston www.nm .org
The National Museum of Funeral History’s latest artifacts come from Egyptian funeral practices.
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SPRING KLEIN EDITION
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