How longer does it take for a corpse to rot?

Question

How long does it take for a dead human to turn to a skeleton? Just curious.

Answer 1

Many factors play into this. If a body is embalmed, it significantly retards decomposition. Based on what type of chemicals and how good of a job the embalmer did also plays a role. I have seen people that have been embalmed and been exhumed 2 months later and have very, very mild decomposition, and vice versa, be very decomposed. The type of casket you are in, type of vault and environmental factors also make a big difference. If you are in an unsealed casket and a plain concrete vault, surely you will decompose faster because the elements can enter the casket sooner. Sorry, but there is no real, concrete answer to this question, but I hope this helps!

Answer 2

It can vary very, very widely. At a University in Knoxville, TN, they have a "body farm", where donated fresh cadavers are left under various conditions to investigate this range and apply the information gathered to forensic applications. There are bodies left on grass, on soil, on grave, clothed & unclothed, left in water, encased in cement, and so on, to document the various rates and modes of decomposition.

The fastest decomposition usually occurs in water at elevated temperatures.


P.S. Yes, Saint Hell is absolutely right, "Stiff" by Mary Roach is an excellent book that covers this subject!

Answer 3

it dpends on how the body is kept. If its kept in hot or cold area. A body can turn to a skeleton in as little as a month to as much as many years.

Answer 4

depends on the condidtions it is kept in, temperature acidity abount of water. in acid soils the calcium in the bones will be dissolved leaving no skeleton.


give it about 3 months and you should be grand

have you considered feeding the body to pigs?

Answer 5

depends on alot of environmental factors and and how big the body is.

Answer 6

There's a book titled STIFF that might interest you...