Burial in the ground by hollowing out a trench in the earth for the body or covering it with rocks or dirt dates back at least to the Middle Paleolithic Period. Grave burial, or inhumation, may be simple or elaborate. Some Eskimo people cover…

…Urnfield Period was replaced by inhumation graves with magnificent displays of wealth. During the Late Hallstatt Period these changes were most dramatically reflected by the group of so-called princely graves in west-central Europe. These were immensely rich burials in large barrows, in which the construction of grave chamber and barrow…

…of Rome both cremation and inhumation were practiced simultaneously, but by the 2nd centurybce the former had prevailed. Some 300 years later, however, there was a massive reversion to inhumation, probably because of an inarticulate revival of the feeling that the future welfare of the soul depended on comfortable…