Is It Legal to Keep Your Loved One’s Skull Following Their Death?

So, is it cool if you keep a loved one’s skull after they die? Is it legal?

Maybe it’s a little something to remember them or just some super realistic Halloween decoration. You should probably know the rules behind this before you attempt to acquire said skull.

Rules Of Obtaining A Loved One’s Skull

Before we go any further here, I want you to know that this isn’t some weird attempt to make information more readily available for satanic rituals or something like that. It just might be nice to have this info in case of an emergency.

Maybe it will save someone time when trying to get their hands their great-grandpa’s skull.

In any event, it is very much NOT ok to keep a loved one’s skull.

Each state has its own “abuse of corpse” laws. While the law may differ from state to state, none of them allow for a funeral home to handover a skull to surviving relatives.

Mortician Caitlin Doughty covered the topic in her 2019 book, Will My Cat Eat My Eyeballs?

“Because of abuse of corpse laws, nobody’s body can be claimed as property,” Doughty wrote. “‘Finders keepers’ doesn’t apply here.”

From her experience as a funeral director, Doughty explained most people in the industry wouldn’t have the skills to prep a skull to be handed over anyway.

Great, Now What Should I Do With This Human Skull?

While you can’t “claim” a human skull, there is nothing saying you can’t own one (well, besides the one currently attached to your body). It’s all about how you acquire the skull.

According to ABC News, selling human remains is legal in the U.S., but there are some restrictions.

READ MORE: He Claimed He Made a Guitar Out of His Uncle’s Skeleton, But Was It a Hoax?

Jon-Pinchaya Ferry not only operates The Bone Museum in New York City, but he also sells skeletal remains online. He got the attention of ABC News a couple years ago after amassing a following on TikTok.

The outlet says Ferry told them “the bones come from ‘medical sources that were used for medical education.'”

Ferry’s videos routine get thousands of views has he takes more of an educational approach over making a sales pitch.

“We fight to create an environment that not only prioritizes education, but informs customers and defeats social stigmas,” Ferry says on his website.