FAR EASTERN UNIVERSITY

A RESEARCH AND CASE STUDY ON COLUMBARIUM

AND MORTUARY BUILDINGS
SUBMITTED BY:

MODINA, PATRICIA ANNE M.

MARANAN, YLAIZA KEITH C.
MERCADO, DISHELLA KRISHAE R.
AR 38 / DESIGN 531
WS / 3:00 PM- 8:00 PM

SUBMITTED TO:

AR. A. D. SARMIENTO
DATE:

SEPT. 23, 2015

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I.

INTRODUCTION:
A funeral home, funeral parlor or mortuary, is a business that provides interment and funeral services for the dead
and their families. These services may include a prepared wake and funeral, and the provision of a chapel for the
funeral.
Funeral homes arrange services in accordance with the wishes of
surviving friends and family, whether immediate next of kin or an executor so
named in a legal will. The funeral home takes care of the necessary paperwork,
permits, and other details, such as making arrangements with the cemetery,
and providing obituaries to the news media.
Cremation is a major part of the cemetery and funeral industry, and has

Columbarium Of San
Francisco

been increasing

at a rapid rate each year because as the baby-boomer generation increases in age, they are demanding more burial
opportunities for themselves and their loved ones.
Many cultures prefer to bury their dead in cemeteries or single graves, but this requires a lot of land. Cremating
the dead and storing the ashes in a building or other chamber is often a more practical solution. This kind of structure,
called a columbarium, has a long history and continues to be used today.

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A consistent part of our

Interior of a columbarium in Oakland,

California (Julia Morgan's Chapel of the
Chimes)

Detail
of the columbarium
at Pre Lachaise
A modern Chinese-style
columbarium
at Nan
Cemetery,
Paris.
Tien Temple in Wollongong, Australia.

cemetery and funeral home design has

included special considerations for cremation. It is called a columbarium. A columbarium is a place for the respectful
and usually public storage of cinerary urns in example urns holding a deceaseds cremated remains. The term comes
from the Latin Columba (dove) and originally referred to compartmentalized housing for doves and pigeons called a
dovecote.

II.

BACKGROUND:
Roman columbaria were often built partly or completely underground. The Columbarium of Pomponius Hylas is a
particularly fine ancient Roman example, rich in frescoes, decorations and precious mosaics. The Western concept of
the columbarium originated in ancient Rome, where the word originally referred to a dovecote, a similar structure for
housing pigeons. Columbaria for housing the remains of the deceased originated with the Romans about 25 B.C., and
were typically in underground vaults. Some were built by the rich for their current or former slaves, while others were
maintained by societies called collegia that reserved the spaces for their paying members.
A columbarium is an underground chamber, which the Romans used for preserving the ashes of the dead. During
the 1st and 2nd centuries CE, hundreds of columbaria lined the consular highways leading out of Rome, although

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now only some two dozen are extant. Carefully organised, with neatly
stuccoed ceilings, frescoed walls, and mosaic floors, columbaria are not to be
confused with catacombslong rambling underground galleries with crude
recesses, which have been gouged out of the living tufa rock and used for
inhumation. Since a columbarium represents a self-contained environment, it
is ideal for evaluating the funerary rites and commemorative customs of
ancient Romans who banded together for a common purpose: the eventual
cremation, preservation, and memorialisation of their earthly remains.

Columbarium of Freedmen
Vigni Codini

The widespread use of columbaria is a phenomenon of the city of Rome, although small columbaria may also be
found in Etruria and Campania. Their mass construction seems associated with Augustus reforms of Romes archaic
burial laws. Columbaria represent an acceptable economic means of serving the needs of an ever-growing population
of slaves and freed slaves.

III. DESIGNING A COLUMBARIUM IN MODERN TIMES:

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Today's columbaria can be either free standing units, or part of a

mausoleum or another building. Some manufacturers produce columbaria

that

are built entirely off-site and brought to the cemetery by a large truck. Many
modern crematoria have columbaria. Fine examples of these are the
columbaria in Pre Lachaise Cemetery in Paris and Golders Green
Crematorium in London.
Columbaria are often closely similar in form to traditional Buddhist

Golders Green Crematorium

in London

temples, which from ancient times have housed cremated ashes. In Buddhism, ashes of the deceased may be placed in a
columbarium (in Chinese, a naguta ("bone-receiving pagoda"); in Japanese, a nokotsudo ("bone-receiving hall")), which
can be either attached to or a part of a Buddhist temple or cemetery. This practice allows for the family of the deceased to
visit the temple for the conduct of traditional memorials and ancestor rites.
A consistent part of cemetery and funeral home design has included special considerations for cremation. For
example, some specifically designed niche sections (for cremains) on a separate level from garden crypts (for casket
burials) in the Mausoleums. Some also developed numerous columbarium complexes, an ossuary and memorial wall,
and scatter garden to be incorporated throughout the cemetery to provide veterans with multiple options should they
choose cremation.

There are quite a number of modern columbarium established in the metropolis. Although they still serve the same
purpose as that of a traditional columbarium, a modern columbarium has added luxuries that may attract consumers.

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1.

Clean lines and sleek outer structure Traditional columbarium in

Manila are usually located inside churches, temples or cemeteries.
These structures, however accustomed we are to seeing them,
may still give off an uninviting vibe. Even though the intricate and
heavy designs that surround these places may seem mesmerizing
to some, it can still possess an aura that is far from the
mainstream interpretation of peace, which is light.
Modern columbarium is designed to express this meaning of
peace at the same time, blend with other contemporary buildings

Ming Palace
Crematorium

that are present in the city. Most of them have a simple exterior painted with earthy colors, surrounded by
green grass, if not the city pavements. Some may even appear as one-story structures, while others go as high
as hotel buildings. Without the signage that will label the structure as a columbarium, one may not be able to
guess that the place actually houses urns of the dead based on its exterior.

2.

Bright interior Compared to modern columbarium, traditional ones normally have dim lighting. They depend
on natural light to illuminate the whole place and have standard lights (florescent or yellow light) to brighten up
the place at night. With this, designers of modern columbarium included pin lights that are often used in the
interior museums. Not only does this brighten the place, but it also gives a sense of ease to visitors who fear
visiting tombs.

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Ming Palace
Crematorium

3.

Advance facilities Modern columbarium offer more advance

facilities compared to traditional columbarium. More often than not,
these structures are fully air-conditioned. The centralized airconditioning system adds to the comfort of visitors especially
during hot summer days. Moreover, these establishments are
equipped with elevators and escalators if ever they are more than
one-story high. Modern columbarium also has state-of-the-art
communal comfort rooms just as those in malls or hotels.

Sanctuarium possesses the faade of

The cremation urns or boxes are usually a specific size and

are placed inside the lined columbarium niche. The door is
then closed and locked. Niche doors may be decorated with
the deceaseds photo, or symbols of their life.

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IV. DESIGN SPACES REQUIREMENTS:

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Chapel
Lobby
Information Center
Remembering Chapel
Viewing Reception
Memorial Walls
Niche Section

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Lounge
Offices
Cremation Chamber/ Crematorium
Galleries
Storage
Flower & Souvenir Shops

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V.

CASE STUDY:
18. LOCAL:
19. St. Thereses Columbarium Located at Newport City, Villamor, Pasay City, St. Thereses Columbarium
houses an estimate of 38,000 imported vaults in air-conditioned

and

alfresco areas. It also features amenities such as security access and

basement parking. An Ecclesiastical museum featuring a life-sized
artwork on the life of St. Therese and a solemn Remembering chapel
where masses are held in daily remembrance of the dead.
Furthermore, unlike any other, St. Thereses houses a digital
archive of the memories of the inurned persons for future viewing

by

the families and friends of the departed.

20. It is apparent that modernity has taken over the present and generation and will most likely take over the
generations to come. Though this may be the case, we can be certain that the past will keep influencing the present
to create a better future.
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The St.

Thrse
Columbarium houses close to 38,000 imported vaults or niches. Each vault can fit up to four urns. The Columbarium
has five (5) main areas: La Chapelle des Roses or the Remembering Chapel, La Vie de Sainte Therese or The Life of
Saint Therese, Les Murs de Lisieux (The Walls of Lisieux), Les Murs d' Alencon (The Walls of Alencon) and Les Murs
de Carmel (The Walls of Carmel). The Columbarium also features an Ecclesiastical Museum where art about the life
of St. Thrse are displayed.
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LOBBY
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REMEMBERING CHAPEL
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LE
MURS
DU

LISEIUEX
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INTERNATIONAL:

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Sacred Heart Columbarium- Calgary,

Alberta

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The Holy Land Columbarium was completed in May,

2011. There are over 2000 niches that hold 1, 2 and 3 urns
each.
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78. Holy See Columbarium was completed in June, 2013. There are over 830 niches holding 2 urns each, while the end
niches hold up to 4 urns.
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Sacred Heart Columbarium offers a variety of niche locations, all peacefully designed. Colourful stain
glass windows brighten the rooms, and comfortable seating is provided throughout.

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VI. REFERENCES:
111.

http://www.thefreedictionary.com/columbarium

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Columbarium
http://www.ehow.com/about_5070959_columbarium.html
http://www.ancient.eu/article/764/
https://mortusmagazine.wordpress.com/2012/03/20/modern-columbariums-in-the-philippines/
http://www.columbariumcalgary.ca
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