An Urn Selection Guide from Our Crematory

The process of urn selection can be emotionally challenging for anyone, whether you’re planning your own eventual cremation and funeral or choosing an urn for a recently departed loved one.

To help simplify the process, our crematory developed this urn selection guide, which takes you through the four primary steps of choosing an urn.

Here are those four simple steps:

Consider where you will place the urn

The final resting place of your loved one’s remains will likely influence the kind of urn you purchase for them. Some people will scatter the ashes, others will bury the urn and others will keep the urn in their home or in a columbarium niche.

If you intend to scatter the ashes, there’s no need to get an expensive urn, as the urn will only temporarily hold those ashes. With burial, you’ll have a wide range of choices. There are green urns that decompose over time, but if you want something more permanent, you could also use a cultured marble urn.

For home or columbarium display, the style and design will likely be more important to you. You should also consider the dimensions to ensure the urn will fit in the desired location.

Choose an urn of the proper dimensions

Adult cremation urns will typically hold the ashes of a single person who weighed 220 pounds or less, but you can purchase extra large urns for large individuals or medium-sized or keepsake urns for dividing ashes into smaller amounts among multiple people.

The specific dimensions are also important, especially if you will be placing the urn in a columbarium or church. You need to know how much space you have to work with. A rectangular urn may be the best bet to make the best use of compact spaces.

Consider the style and material

You can find urns in a wide range of materials, such as wood, brass and marble. The appearance of the material may be all you consider, which is fine—especially if you’re looking for a particularly unique or artistic urn style. Certain materials will last longer, such as marble, cultured marble and ceramic. Cultured marble can be permanently buried without an urn built in many circumstances, and it can also be taken on a plane, as it can be x-rayed.

The material and style you use will correspond with your intent for the urn, as described in the first section above.

Consider the personal touches

Personalizing the urn can be a great way to give an artistic tribute to your loved one. You can add engravings with images or words that were meaningful to them. You can choose urns in a favorite color or material or even include a photo on the urn. All of these personal touches can be especially meaningful if the urn is to be displayed.

For more tips about urn selection when working with a crematorium, contact ICS Cremation & Funeral Home, and we’ll be happy to answer your questions.

Categorised in: Urn

This post was written by Writer