Did You Know?

[vivaelvis]

Did you know that Elvis didn't want to be burried underground and was the reason for him being originally burried in a mosoleum? When he was moved to Graceland there were talks of building a above gorund mosoleum, but the cost was too much for Vernon and the family to finance that they decided to bury him in a cript. Elvis' grave was dug out just like any other, six feet under, but instead of being covered with dirt as most are, the casket was placed inside of a thick concrete-like capsule and closed up, then dirt was placed on top of the capsule and the marker then on top of the ground.

So, if they were to ever dig him up one day, there would be no damage to the coffin or the remains. Elvis would still be intact.

[Lisarose]

I found it interesting that Elvis isn't buried beside his mother. Gladys ended up on the far right, I'm sure, too that I'm reading into this something that just isn't so, still it's interesting to me...

[vivaelvis]

The story goes that Vernon requested to be buried between his wife and Elvis. But most of the time this is how fmailies are buried so maybe it's nothing.

[debtdbruno]

I read this too in the Robert Colton book on his funeral/embalming etc..............excellent book

[Tigerman1975]

I read this too in the Robert Colton book on his funeral/embalming etc..............excellent book

What is the name of this book? I'd like to check it out.

[debtdbruno]

50826http://www.amazon.com/King-Dead-Robert-R-Holton/dp/0964648458

This is the silly price this book can go for..................

[KPM]

Actually the idea that a concrete liner was used in Elvis's grave is not out of the ordinary, almost all graves have a burial vault or grave liner that is made usually of concrete-it protects the coffin from the weight of the dirt used to fill the grave in-and from moisture.

[vivaelvis]

Actually the idea that a concrete liner was used in Elvis's grave is not out of the ordinary, almost all graves have a burial vault or grave liner that is made usually of concrete-it protects the coffin from the weight of the dirt used to fill the grave in-and from moisture.

True, but that wasn't the case for Elvis' burial. He had requested (I think) in his will to be buried above gorund. I may be wrong about the source. But this was the reason behind the mausoleum burial. Elvis wasn't buried with a concrete liner. He was buried in an underground decay proof chamber in the Meditation Garden..

[kathy parkinson]

No disrespect to you, but can we have proof of this information please, thank you.

[vivaelvis]

Kathy it's in the book provided above in this thread. I don't have this particular bok but I can say that I saw this on a documentary and it brought to my attention.

[kathy parkinson]

Thank you.

[monk37]

well, unless the body was preserved like Lenin......then Memphis is humid and hot people.

When I was there in 87, I was also struck by Elvis not being beside his mom, but clearly, Vernon wanted to be between the two, so that's how the layout was.

In 87, there was still room for 2 more spaces, but in more recent photos, that extra greenspace is gone.

I thought the plaque for Jesse was nice to have included.

[JRtherealJR]

vivaelvis,

Can you explain why you think that Elvis' body would not have decayed? Human remains inside a coffin will still decay whether there is earth surrounding the coffin or not.

Someone else mentioned Lenin and how his body has been preserved. But it is not that simple- Lenin's corpse requires daily work to moisturise the features and inject preservatives under the clothes. And once every every 18 months the corpse is removed and undergoes a special chemical bath.

So preserving a body requires constant upkeep.

Finally, in taking into consideration the feelings of all af the members on here, I will not be attaching a picture of Elvis in his casket here. Even if some members have stated that they have no problem with the Elvis coffin picture, I want to give Elvis the reverence he deserves especially in death and treat the coffin picture as something of quiet dignity and not as something to just be paraded all over the intetnet whenever the subject of Elvis' death is mentioned.

[KPM]

True, but that wasn't the case for Elvis' burial. He had requested (I think) in his will to be buried above gorund. I may be wrong about the source. But this was the reason behind the mausoleum burial. Elvis wasn't buried with a concrete liner. He was buried in an underground decay proof chamber in the Meditation Garden..
I have a copy of Elvis's will-and there is no request for burial above ground, actually he does not really specify where or how he is to be buried-he does mention in Item I in his will that his executor should pay all burial costs...that is really the extent of any mention of his burial.
Elvis's will does leave many details about what should be done after he is dead to the "complete freedom and discretion....." of Vernon his named executor.
There is no decay proof chamber-bodies decay over time even in the best of air tight situations.
You said he was put in a "thick concrete like capsule" well no matter how you cut it-that describes a grave liner or the high end liner which is called a burial vault. It indeed does in some forms look like a capsule that the coffin fits into.

[Tigerman1975]

50826http://www.amazon.com/King-Dead-Robert-R-Holton/dp/0964648458

This is the silly price this book can go for..................

Thanks debtdbruno!

[Tigerman1975]

Thats rediculous. I may have to wait on that one.

[vivaelvis]

I have a copy of Elvis's will-and there is no request for burial above ground, actually he does not really specify where or how he is to be buried-he does mention in Item I in his will that his executor should pay all burial costs...that is really the extent of any mention of his burial.
Elvis's will does leave many details about what should be done after he is dead to the "complete freedom and discretion....." of Vernon his named executor.
There is no decay proof chamber-bodies decay over time even in the best of air tight situations.
You said he was put in a "thick concrete like capsule" well no matter how you cut it-that describes a grave liner or the high end liner which is called a burial vault. It indeed does in some forms look like a capsule that the coffin fits into.

That's why I added "I think" becaue I wasn't certain about the will.

[vivaelvis]

vivaelvis,

Can you explain why you think that Elvis' body would not have decayed? Human remains inside a coffin will still decay whether there is earth surrounding the coffin or not.

Someone else mentioned Lenin and how his body has been preserved. But it is not that simple- Lenin's corpse requires daily work to moisturise the features and inject preservatives under the clothes. And once every every 18 months the corpse is removed and undergoes a special chemical bath.

So preserving a body requires constant upkeep.

Finally, in taking into consideration the feelings of all af the members on here, I will not be attaching a picture of Elvis in his casket here. Even if some members have stated that they have no problem with the Elvis coffin picture, I want to give Elvis the reverence he deserves especially in death and treat the coffin picture as something of quiet dignity and not as something to just be paraded all over the intetnet whenever the subject of Elvis' death is mentioned.

Just something I heard. I think the idea came from how the Big Bopper's body was preserved and to this day is still intact. Elvis was buried where busg and insicts couldn't penetrate the coffin.

[KPM]

Just something I heard. I think the idea came from how the Big Bopper's body was preserved and to this day is still intact. Elvis was buried where busg and insicts couldn't penetrate the coffin.
The Boppers body did not get any special preservation method, he was buried in typical fashion-his body was exhumed in 2007 at his sons request to make sure of the cause of death.
The man who handled the exhumation had this to say about that day:
As I watched the excavation of the Big Bopper's grave — a watery grave if ever there was one — all I could do was hope that the burial vault surrounding the casket had worked the way it was supposed to. Burial vaults come in two basic designs, reflecting two basic materials. One type is a rectangular box, several feet deep, made of concrete and capped with a flat concrete lid, sealed with a rubber gasket. The National Concrete Burial Vault Association (NCBVA) — yes, there really is such an organization — has one article on its web site titled "Why a Concrete Burial Vault?" (because it's really strong, is what the answer amounts to) and another titled "Here's How Concrete Vault Protection Withstands Different Types of Loads......