Blowing in the wind? Identity, materiality, and the destinations of human ashes./Autant en emporte le vent ? Identite, materialite et devenirs des cendres humaines

This article asks whether the recent UK-based practice of removing ashes from crematoria has led to entirely new, innovative rituals of disposal, or whether contemporary practice is an appropriation of late nineteenth-century Romantic values and beliefs. Drawing on findings from a major empirical study among both professionals and lay people involved in the removal of ashes, it explores the potentiality of ash remains as a mobile material residue of the corpse, and considers whether they enable disposal strategies which no longer reflect concerns with space and place--particularly those associated with traditional burial grounds.