Often, death is thought of as a grim inevitability, an unavoidable event that we will all meet at the end of our lives. When we or are loved ones come to the end of our paths we will more likely than not be buried or cremated, as there are few other alternatives. But what if you don’t like the idea of either of these choices?
Designers in Italy, Anna Citelli and Raoul Bretzel have developed an alternative which they hope to make a reality as soon as possible. The Capsula Mundi Project aims to extend lives by turning the deceased into trees.
The project works by encapsulating the deceased in the fetal position, burying them and placing a tree or seed of their choice above them that will be fed by the bodies’ nutrients.
“As designers we have asked ourselves what is our role in front of a society distant from nature, satisfied and over loaded with objects,” Anna Citelli and Raoul Bretzel write on their website. “No designer ever thinks of a coffin but this becomes a way of reflecting on how distant we are from mother nature.”
Although the law prohibits the concept from becoming a reality in Italy right now, Citelli and Bretzel are hoping that in the future they will be able to create “memory forests” where loved ones will be trees rather than symbolized by gravestones.
Images: Capsula Mundi Official Facebook
Featured photo credit: Capsula Mundi | Facebook via facebook.com
