Bier
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
A bier is a stand on which a corpse, or coffin containing a corpse, is placed to lie in state or to be carried to the grave.[1]
In Christian burial, the bier is often set up in the center of the nave with candles placed around it, and there it remains during the funeral.
The bier is a flat frame, traditionally wooden but sometimes made of other materials. In antiquity it was often simply a wooden board on which the dead was placed, covered with a shroud. In modern times, however, the corpse is almost never carried on the bier without being first placed in a coffin, though the coffin is sometimes kept open.
A bier is often draped with cloth, to add to the dignity of the funeral service. The modern funeral industry uses a collapsible aluminum bier on wheels, known as a "church truck" to more conveniently move the coffin in and out of the church or funeral home for services.
[edit] References
- ^ The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (American Heritage Publishing Co., Inc., New York, 1973), s.v., "bier"