On the Portuguese island of Madeira, burial is a very precise and singular affair. A catholic country, like its older sibling Portugal, Madeira has never undertaken the practice of cremation and has, like many other countries, found a lack of space allotted to graveyards to be something of a problem.
Although the pope has now declared cremation is to be allowed for catholics, Madeira has yet to see a crematorium built anywhere on the island, and are still dealing with the problem of space in their own way.
When traveling around the island it's impossible not to notice how small the majority of churchyards are. And on wandering the little rows of graves, walkways lined with Cypress trees and each headstone featuring a handful of family portraits and inscriptions, it's hard to imagine how they cope. The names and photographs blossoming above the headstones can't possibly be a true indication of the people buried in these pretty little cemeteries. Can it? And if not, where do they keep their dead?
The answer to that question can be found either inside the church or tucked away behind the graveyard. There a stack of boxes like an oversized filing cabinet will stand, unmarked and without celebration, perhaps a bit sad. But apparently, this is the chosen method of storing the remains of loved ones by those who can afford it. The alternative, it seems, is something most people would rather not consider.
It is after five years of being buried beneath the headstone with the inscription and photograph for all to see, that families have to face the fact that the departed loved one has to be moved. With more people dying, there simply isn't the space to keep digging fresh graves and so the people of Madeira at this point have a choice to make. They can either pay to have the remains moved and placed in one of the afore mentioned boxes either in the church or somewhere near the other graves. Or the grave will be dug, a new coffin lowered into the space and the remains already there will simply be pushed aside.
It might sound a bit crude, but actually, it isn't all that different to disposing of the ashes after cremation, most of which are scattered, but sometimes buried.
When the island of Madeira finally gets itself a few crematoriums it is likely this practice will cease, and no doubt the majority of people will see that as a good thing. But it is a quirky little custom. An usual solution to a common problem of overcrowding in graveyards. And one which may well be remembered with some fondness.
