Was just thinking about this recently–
When I die, can I will my bones to my family? Can my body be processed and my bones cleaned and such and returned to my family to keep?
Some discussion. If I’m reading correctly, I think this is from California law:
REsponse says:
♬ Well, when I die don’t you bury me at all
Just nail my bones up on the wall
Beneath these bones let these words be seen
This is the bloody gears of a rockin’ machine ♬
But the Californian law says that the only remains you can move or remove, from the authorized ( undertaker , cemetery, crematorium, morgue,etc ) are to be thoroughly cremated appropriately.
The reason it doesn’t prevent possession is due to existing graves and crypts, basically,
but does make it illegal to to go disturb existing graves and crypts, without authority (such as development), or to create new ones.
So what about specimens for medical teaching or research? Seems you can openly buy real human bones, skulls and complete skeletons for such purposes. In most cases I believe the bodies are sold (with agreement before death) to companies in countries like India, who then prepare them and resell them.
This company claims to be selling real human bones and skeletons:
http://www.skullsunlimited.com/products_by_order.php?id=82
Need answer fast??
I just had hip replacement surgery and the Dr. said I could not have the part of the femur they removed.
I’ll bet that doctor has quite a collection by now.
This reminds me of the true story of a French officer who was injured in combat and who had either a leg, an arm or a hand (I don’t recall which one it was) amputated. He kept the detached limb, buried it properly and visited the (partial) grave every year.
I wish I could find the cite for this story.
It was his hand. It still isn’t buried.
He isn’t by any chance Eastern European is he? " Dr. Hip Czech, you have a call on the white hospital phone. " 
I’m pretty curious about this part of it myself. Does this mean that legally my body is not my property?
You remove my hip, by god it’s MY HIP.
No?
I fear the answer involves HIP- PAH laws…
He told me that policy, hospital I guess, required it go to the pathology lab and then be incinerated with all the other stuff. I was going to make a plaque.
why would your family want your bones ???
Capitaine Danjou’s wooden hand is indeed to this day still very much revered in the French Foreign Legion, but it is not what I was thinking about.
Halloween decorations.
Aren’t their some Japanese? or Chinese? burial customs that require the family to have the bones.
On a kinda related note, I had a bunch of hardware screwed into my ankle a year ago. I’ve lately been noticing some symptoms - none too bad - but am aware of the possibility that at times hardware needs to be removed. If that were to happen, I wonder if I could get the plates and screws the removed?
Improv legend Del Close bequeathed his skull to the Goodman Theater Company in Chicago, for use in productions of Hamlet, but according to Wikipedia the skull that was eventually handed over came from a medical supply company. It’s probably really hard to find someone to prepare human bones in that way.
Where do the medical supply companies get them?
My aunt has had several total hip replacements. Early on, she had a prosthesis that had been removed returned to her. My uncle had a neighbor make a display stand for it.