RELIGION AND SPANISH COLONIALISM IN THE PHILIPPINES by ...

Jar burials, an example of which is shown in Figure 5, entailed multiple reburials using
jars of varying sizes; smaller jars were used with each subsequent burial (Dakudao 1992: 136).
Jars used for burial were locally made earthenware. In the primary stages of jar burial, the entire
body was placed within a large jar (Dakudao 1992:137). As the body decomposed, it was
reburied within progressively smaller jars. In the secondary stages, only the skeleton which was
sometimes painted with hematite was placed within a jar smaller than used previously (Dakudao
1992:137). Jars were also used to hold the ashes of the dead. The practice of cremation in the
Philippines is thought to have been a result of contact with China (Dakudao 1992:138). The
ashes and the skeletal remains were buried directly in pits or burial jars, some of which were
made in China and brought to the Philippines through trade (Dakudao 1992:138).
Figure 5 Example of burial jar with cover (from Dizon 2000:118).
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