The body of Benedict XVI, Pope Emeritus Joseph Ratzinger, who died on December 31 at the age of 95, before being exhibited in the Vatican, was subjected to thanatopraxis, a special treatment which allows preserve – for a period of 10 to 15 days – the appearance and the fabrics of the deceased.
It’s kind of “temporary embalming”which becomes necessary when the body is to be publicly exposed: it is the same procedure to which Pele and, in 2005, Pope John Paul II were subjected.
The body of Benedict XVI will be exhibited in St. Peter’s Basilica until 5 Januarythe day when the funeral will be celebrated: a team of doctors led by Dr. Andrea Fantozzi, president of the Italian Thanatopraxy Association (Ait) and the Italian National Institute of thanatopraxy (Init).
The technique is defined, on the Init portal, «a “post-mortem” treatment» which «consists in the hygienic conservation care of the body after deathbut above all it is a treatment that aims to create a highly hygienic process in the funeral and cemetery sector».
In the hours following death, the body undergoes a rapid transformation: the leakage of organic liquids and nauseating vapors make the wake more traumatic and potentially dangerous. Thanatopraxis serves to avoid this situation: «this is possible through ainjection into the arterial system of a preservative fluid and a series of aesthetic treatments that allow you to preserve an intact image of your loved one, thus eliminating the decomposition process for a few weeks”.
Nothing to do with permanent embalming: thanatopraxy guarantees the “return to body powder” in body powder in a maximum time of 10 years (while, normally, without any treatment, it takes about 40 years, in some cases also 80).
Thanatopraxis comes also used in forensic medicine: by temporarily blocking the decomposition of the body, it fixes the tissues and lesions as in a histological preparation, allowing investigations to be carried out more easily. The same applies in the case of exhumations made necessary by judicial investigations: the results of the examinations on the body will be more reliable on a treated corpse.
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Source: Vanity Fair
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