Caskets

Cremation Urns

Cemeteries

Burial Vaults

Alternative Resting Places

Embalming

Wood Thickness and Hardwood Caskets

This is a good time to review two terms used in the measurement of lumber: quarter and board foot. A quarter simply equals one-fourth of an inch, so a board four quarters thick is one inch thick.

Board foot is more complex. One board foot is equal to 144 cubic inches of wood. The best way to visualize it is to imagine a piece of wood one inch thick, 12 inches wide, and 12 inches long.

Caskets vary in thickness from four quarters to 12 quarters. Most caskets are four quarters thick; higher-end caskets and caskets with intricate designs tend to be the thickest.

The amount of lumber used to construct a casket can vary greatly. Some of the smaller shell caskets use as little as 150 board feet of lumber, while the largest caskets produced use 250 board feet of lumber.