A pauper's funeral or pauper's burial is a funeral ceremony paid for by local governmental or religious authorities, typically because the deceased's estate is not enough to cover the costs, or because the cadaver has remained unidentified for an extended period of time. There has traditionally been a significant social stigma attached to receiving pauper's funeral, for a variety of reasons.
History
editCorpse disposal subsidised by public funds have occurred since antiquity.
1600-1832
editReferences
edit- Laqueur, Thomas, "Bodies, Death, and Pauper Funerals", Representations, No. 1. (Feb., 1983), pp. 109-131. (JSTOR link)