# Is it legal to have a Viking-style burial at sea? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [September 25, 2004, 10:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-legal-to-have-a-viking-style-burial-at-sea/266025 "2004-09-25T10:41:55Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![duffer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/duffer/32/1026_2.png) [@duffer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/duffer)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2004, 10:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-legal-to-have-a-viking-style-burial-at-sea/266025/1 "2004-09-25T10:41:55Z")
When I woke up today, for some reason I had a thought about the Vikings placing a body into a ship, setting it ablaze, and sending it to sea. (Trust me, you do NOT want to know how my brain works.) Anyway, I got to thinking. Let’s say someone is an avid sailor, owns a boat, hell they even love it so much that’s the primary residence. Then they die and don’t want to be buried on land. Here’s the question. Is it legal in any way to put the body on the boat, towing it to sea and having a big ole bonfire? I understand, at least in the US, it’s probably illegal to do in the 12 miles of maritime claim. (I think it’s 12 miles) But that could be wrong. If not, what would the rules of international waters be? And are there any countries that would allow this as long as it was well-known to officials instead of the mob finding new ways of disposing bodies? ---
**Author:** ![HeyHomie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/heyhomie/32/207_2.png) [@HeyHomie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HeyHomie)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2004, 2:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-legal-to-have-a-viking-style-burial-at-sea/266025/2 "2004-09-25T14:02:31Z")
We’ve discussed this before, and I don’t think any firm conclusions were reached. The gist of the problem is this: once you’re 12 miles out (I thought it was 11) you’re in international waters. Just because you’re in international waters doesn’t give you a free hand to do as you please; ergo, you might be violating some international law by doing this. As to _what_ international law… ya go me. I don’t think anyone on the SDMB knows, either, because IIRC previous threads on this subject never yielded conclusive information. ---
**Author:** ![duffer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/duffer/32/1026_2.png) [@duffer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/duffer)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2004, 2:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-legal-to-have-a-viking-style-burial-at-sea/266025/3 "2004-09-25T14:12:38Z")
I had no idea this was already covered. Thought it was something only my twisted mind would think of. OK, let’s take this in a different direction if it can’t be answered. Who would I ask? Coast Guard? The UN? I really am curious enough to ask the “Powers That Be” if this is legal or illegal and in what context. Anyone want to suggest who I’d call on Monday? ---
**Author:** ![AskNott](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asknott/32/5790_2.png) [@AskNott](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AskNott)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2004, 2:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-legal-to-have-a-viking-style-burial-at-sea/266025/4 "2004-09-25T14:52:45Z")
Funeral-biz laws vary by state, but mainly you’d be in violation of laws about polluting the water. When my dad’s ashes were poured into Tampa Bay, it probably violated environmental laws. No one was prosecuted. ---
**Author:** ![aegypt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/76d3ee/32.png) [@aegypt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aegypt)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2004, 7:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-legal-to-have-a-viking-style-burial-at-sea/266025/5 "2004-09-25T19:20:04Z")
I suppose you could always say it was an accident. Funny what a carefully dropped match can do sometimes. ---
**Author:** ![Larry\_Borgia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/larry_borgia/32/156_2.png) [@Larry\_Borgia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Larry_Borgia)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2004, 7:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-legal-to-have-a-viking-style-burial-at-sea/266025/6 "2004-09-25T19:24:43Z")
My guess is even if it was illeagal, I doubt you’d go to trial for it, if you did it far enough offshore. Still, I wouldn’t do it without asking around. ---
**Author:** ![GorillaMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/50afbb/32.png) [@GorillaMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GorillaMan)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2004, 8:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-legal-to-have-a-viking-style-burial-at-sea/266025/7 "2004-09-25T20:35:19Z")
Do laws exist governing the export of a corpse? Given that that’s what you’re doing, if you’re going into international waters. ---
**Author:** ![Crandolph](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/7cd45c/32.png) [@Crandolph](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crandolph)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2004, 8:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-legal-to-have-a-viking-style-burial-at-sea/266025/8 "2004-09-25T20:41:03Z")
> [@duffer](#): > > OK, let’s take this in a different direction if it can’t be answered. Who would I ask? Coast Guard? The UN? You may be violating the Convention on the Prevention of Marine Pollution by Dumping of Wastes & Other Matter (London, Mexico City, Moscow and Washington), 1972. The [Inernational Maritime Law Institute](http://www.imli.org/) may have answers. You might also want to check to see if Iceland or another Scandinavian country would allow this is their waters owing to tradtion. The Icelanders reroute highways for the “hidden folk,” so it may be an option…? ---
**Author:** ![Blalron](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/35a633/32.png) [@Blalron](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Blalron)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2004, 8:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-legal-to-have-a-viking-style-burial-at-sea/266025/9 "2004-09-25T20:42:15Z")
> [@AskNott](#): > > Funeral-biz laws vary by state, but mainly you’d be in violation of laws about polluting the water. When my dad’s ashes were poured into Tampa Bay, it probably violated environmental laws. No one was prosecuted. I can’t imagine why. Could there really ever be so much human ash being dumped into the ocean that it could cause any appreciable impact on the environment? ---
**Author:** ![mangeorge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d78d45/32.png) [@mangeorge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mangeorge)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2004, 9:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-legal-to-have-a-viking-style-burial-at-sea/266025/10 "2004-09-25T21:06:26Z")
I was thinking of doing the same thing, only in a small plane and with explosives. I’ll match you twisted mind for twisted mind any day, bub. 😉 Scattering ashes and scuttling boats are both legal, but doing either for fraud is not. Don’t remember where I read this, but I did. I don’t know about doing both at the same time, though. Peace, mangeorge ---
**Author:** ![Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/46a35a/32.png) [@Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tim_T-Bonham.net)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2004, 9:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-legal-to-have-a-viking-style-burial-at-sea/266025/11 "2004-09-25T21:09:09Z")
> [@Blalron](#): > > I can’t imagine why. Could there really ever be so much human ash being dumped into the ocean that it could cause any appreciable impact on the environment? Because our laws apply, regardless of whether it would “cause any appreciable impact on the environment”. It’s pretty unlikely that I would cause any appreciable impact on the environment by just throwing an old mercury thermometer in the trash, but it’s still against the law. Because if everybody did that, it _would_ cause an appreciable impact. ---
**Author:** ![GorillaMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/50afbb/32.png) [@GorillaMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GorillaMan)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2004, 9:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-legal-to-have-a-viking-style-burial-at-sea/266025/12 "2004-09-25T21:14:49Z")
> [@](#): > > Human remains may be buried at sea in accordance with regulations based on the Marine Protection, Research and Sanctuary Act. Burial at sea refers to both the sinking of bodies or inurned cremains, as well as the scattering of cremains on the water’s surface. You must contact the U.S. Navy, the U.S. Coast Guard, or the civil authority under whose jurisdiction the water burial falls, so as to ensure that you obtain the necessary burial permits. … > > Cremated remains are not subject to these depth requirements provided that the burial takes place 3 nautical miles or more from land… > > Burial in inland waters is subject to conditions specified in the Clean Water Act, and a permit will be required from the appropriate state agency. A water burial must be reported to the Environmental Protection Agency Regional Administrator within 30 days of its occurrence. … > **[About Funeral Pre-Planning - Got Trouble](https://gottrouble.com/about-pre-planning/)** > > Many Americans are coming to view the planning of their own funerals as a part of estate planning. Such planning may or may not involve pre-paying for the arrangements. As a point of reference, life expectancies are rising in this country. According... ---
**Author:** ![Shirley\_Ujest](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/45deac/32.png) [@Shirley\_Ujest](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shirley_Ujest)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2004, 2:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-legal-to-have-a-viking-style-burial-at-sea/266025/13 "2004-09-26T02:01:57Z")
So, Viking Burial At Sea is iffy. Howzabout a nice Trebuchet of the Dead. Is it legal to fling dead people ( if it is their wishes?) Thing of the fun! ---
**Author:** ![DocCathode](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/doccathode/32/18773_2.png) [@DocCathode](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DocCathode)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2004, 5:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-legal-to-have-a-viking-style-burial-at-sea/266025/14 "2004-09-26T05:27:18Z")
> [@Crandolph](#): > > You might also want to check to see if Iceland or another Scandinavian country would allow this is their waters owing to tradtion. The Icelanders reroute highways for the “hidden folk,” so it may be an option…? I don’t see how the Huldefolk enter into this. Unless, the boat had a lot of iron in it. Huldefolk would, however, be a concern when interring the body in a burial mound. The entrances to the realm of the Huldefolk are often found in such places. ---
**Author:** ![Already\_in\_Use](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a9adbd/32.png) [@Already\_in\_Use](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Already_in_Use)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2004, 6:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-legal-to-have-a-viking-style-burial-at-sea/266025/15 "2004-09-26T06:13:23Z")
> [@Crandolph](#): > > You might also want to check to see if Iceland or another Scandinavian country would allow this is their waters owing to tradtion. The Icelanders reroute highways for the “hidden folk,” so it may be an option…? Eh, I doubt Iceland would, since more standard Christian funerary practices are generally used, in my experience. Then again, there are the revivalists of the Norse religion. But still, Vikings also had regular burial, sometimes with marker stones arranged to look like the outline of a ship. I think the burning ship is still the best way to go, though. ---
**Author:** ![rfgdxm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c0e974/32.png) [@rfgdxm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rfgdxm)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2004, 6:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-legal-to-have-a-viking-style-burial-at-sea/266025/16 "2004-09-26T06:15:22Z")
> [@AskNott](#): > > Funeral-biz laws vary by state, but mainly you’d be in violation of laws about polluting the water. State laws are totally irrelevant in international waters. ---
**Author:** ![flodnak](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/838e76/32.png) [@flodnak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/flodnak)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2004, 7:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-legal-to-have-a-viking-style-burial-at-sea/266025/17 "2004-09-26T07:40:28Z")
> [@Crandolph](#): > > You might also want to check to see if Iceland or another Scandinavian country would allow this is their waters owing to tradtion. The Icelanders reroute highways for the “hidden folk,” so it may be an option…? How much of a “tradition” the flaming-ship Viking funeral ever was is, to put it mildly, in dispute. Historians know of one written account of such a funeral, which was written by an outsider and contains a number of known inaccuracies. On the other hand, a large body of physical evidence exists to indicate that the Vikings often buried their dead, including finds of the graves of obviously wealthy and important people buried in their ships. (The Viking ships preserved in the museum in Oslo were grave goods; those in the museum in Roskilde in Denmark were not, they are believed to have been purposely sunk to restrict access to a harbor.) I don’t think claiming “tradition” in this matter would impress the authorities of any Scandinavian country terribly much. On the other hand, rerouting a road to avoid angering trolls or hulder has some practical value; they can be mean little b\*\*\*\*\*\*\* when they want to be 😉 ---
**Author:** ![duffer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/duffer/32/1026_2.png) [@duffer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/duffer)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2004, 10:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-legal-to-have-a-viking-style-burial-at-sea/266025/18 "2004-09-26T10:43:22Z")
> [@mangeorge](#): > > I’ll match you twisted mind for twisted mind any day, bub. 😉 Oh, trust me, after your little kitchen experiment I’ve long ago stopped trying to match you. You did clean that pan, right? :dubious: **Shirley** , great idea! I almost want to start an IMHO thread to figure out how big the trebuchet would have to be to get it out past the 3 mile mark. ---
**Author:** ![Shirley\_Ujest](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/45deac/32.png) [@Shirley\_Ujest](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shirley_Ujest)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2004, 12:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-legal-to-have-a-viking-style-burial-at-sea/266025/19 "2004-09-26T12:43:20Z")
I think the most fun with the Trebuchet would be the things people would want their carcasses flung at. I would suspect the following locales to be prominent: The White House IRS Headquarters Detroit Lions Home Field during a game. (Which might help their offense.) Their ex’s house. ---
**Author:** ![Shalmanese](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/45deac/32.png) [@Shalmanese](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shalmanese)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2004, 12:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-legal-to-have-a-viking-style-burial-at-sea/266025/20 "2004-09-26T12:46:16Z")
if your dead, why exactly are you worried about prosecution? :dubious: [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-legal-to-have-a-viking-style-burial-at-sea/266025.md?page=2)