Capsula Mundi: The Biodegradable Burial Urn Changing Green Funerals
Capsula Mundi offers an eco-friendly, biodegradable urn that turns ashes into a tree, reimagining memorials for a sustainable future.
Capsula Mundi: Rethinking Burial for a Sustainable Future
In recent years, increasing environmental awareness has motivated individuals and families to seek earth-friendly alternatives across all aspects of life—including funeral and burial practices. Among the innovative solutions gaining global attention is Capsula Mundi, a biodegradable urn that transforms the ashes of loved ones into a nourishing source for growing trees. This Italian-designed urn is not only an environmental statement but also a symbolic return to nature, challenging conventional attitudes toward death and commemoration.
What Is Capsula Mundi?
Capsula Mundi is an Italian project founded by designers Anna Citelli and Raoul Bretzel, seeking to disrupt traditional funerary customs through the introduction of biodegradable urns and burial pods. Their signature product, the egg-shaped urn for cremated remains, allows ashes to be buried with a tree seedling or sapling planted above. This approach turns human remains into nutrients for new life, closing the natural life cycle and offering a lasting, living memorial in the form of a tree.
- Designer origins: Developed by Anna Citelli and Raoul Bretzel in Italy
- Philosophy: Emphasizes humanity’s connection to nature and the environment
- Product range: Currently, only the biodegradable urn for ashes is available; the full-body burial pod remains in development
Capsula Mundi’s Egg-Shaped Urn: Features and Materials
The Capsula Mundi urn stands out due to its elegant, minimalist egg-shaped design. Its form is intended to symbolize the cycle of life, rebirth, and transformation. The urn is produced in Italy using advanced environmental technologies and respectful handcrafted techniques, making each piece unique.
- Material: Biodegradable polymer (bioplastic) derived from renewable, plant-based sources
- Size: 29 cm (11.4 inches) tall, 22 cm (8.7 inches) wide
- Volume: 3.5 liters internal capacity — suitable for most adult cremation ashes
- Weight: Approximately 1.4 kg (50 oz)
- Color options: Available in brown, white, and sand, each with subtle tonal variety due to the natural materials and manual finishing
- Design highlights: Even surface, tactile feel, and a shape inspired by nature’s own forms
- Tree is not included: Customers choose and source a tree sapling of their preference locally
Sand Capsula Mundi: A Closer Look
The ‘Sand’ variant, in particular, features a beige-gray tone with evenly distributed sand particles, lending each urn a natural, earthy appearance. Every urn is distinguished by subtle differences in surface and shading, a result of handcrafted production processes. The variability in the finish makes each urn unique and personal in its artistry and symbolism.
| Model | Material | Dimensions | Weight | Color/Tone |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sand | Biodegradable polymer | 29cm x 22cm | 1.4 kg | Beige-gray |
| White | Biodegradable polymer | 29cm x 22cm | 1.4 kg | Pearly White |
| Brown | Biodegradable polymer | 29cm x 22cm | 1.4 kg | Earthy Brown |
How the Capsula Mundi Urn Works
The process for using the Capsula Mundi urn is simple yet meaningful, designed to foster a personal connection between memory, the deceased, and the cycles of the natural world:
- Add the ashes: Unscrew the bottom plate of the pod. Pour in the cremated remains. Reseal the urn securely.
- Bury the urn: Dig a hole at least 70 cm (28 inches) deep and 30 cm (12 inches) wide. Place the urn upright at the bottom of the hole.
- Add the sapling or seed: A tree of your choice (sapling or seedling) should be positioned directly above the urn.
- Refill and nurture: Cover the site with soil, return the ground to a natural landscape as desired, and ensure the sapling is well watered and cared for during its crucial early growth period.
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Over time, microbes in the soil begin to break down the bioplastic urn and gradually disperse the ashes. This method prevents concentrated alkaline salts from the ashes harming the young tree. The buried urn is eventually assimilated into the soil, allowing the tree to benefit from all minerals released and thrive.
- Biodegradation timeframe: Varies from several months to a few years, depending on soil conditions and climate
- Regulation: Legal for burial in many nations, including the US and Canada, subject to local cemetery or land use rules
Why Choose a Biodegradable Urn? The Environmental Argument
Traditional burial practices, such as embalming, using hardwood, and metal coffins, or concrete vaults, all significantly impact the environment—consuming virgin resources and land, and potentially leaching chemicals into the soil. Cremation, while omitting the use of caskets and embalming, still generates carbon emissions and results in highly alkaline ashes, which can inhibit plant growth if released directly into soil.
The Capsula Mundi urn is designed to address these environmental and ceremonial limitations:
- Promotes sustainable forestry: Instead of consuming wood for coffins, it plants new trees
- Reduces land usage: Woodland memorial sites transform single-use graveyards into renewable, living forests
- Zero synthetic or toxic residues: All materials are biodegradable and safe for soil microbes and plants
- Remembrance through nature: Provides a long-term, tangible, and green legacy
Cultural Significance and Symbolism
Capsula Mundi is more than an ecological advance—it encourages society to reconsider inherited cultural taboos surrounding death. The project’s founders view their invention as both an artistic and spiritual intervention, seeking to reconnect people with nature and the cycles of life and death.
- Egg shape: Represents rebirth and the cyclical character of life
- Tree memorial: Living trees as headstones, allowing families and friends a place to visit, nurture, and witness the cycle
- Forest cemeteries: Ultimately, clusters of these urns can grow into restorative woodland sanctuaries—sacred forests that serve both as remembrances and ecological reserves
Availability and Practical Details
- Product availability: The Capsula Mundi cremation urn is available for purchase globally, while the body pod is still in the research and development phase
- Price: Approximately $370 USD (about €370 or $462 CAD)
- Shipping: International free shipping included; the customer must source their own tree sapling
Each urn is unique to the individual; the natural variations in color and texture, created by artisanal processes, ensure no two Capsula Mundi urns are identical. While the tree is not included in the package, this offers families the opportunity to select a species that has personal significance, will thrive locally, or has ecological benefit for the region.
Legal and Regulatory Considerations
The Capsula Mundi urn is legal for burial in most countries, but users are responsible for complying with local land use and internment rules. Laws typically allow burial on private property with landowner permission, in designated green burial sites, or in segments of cemeteries set aside for eco-friendly practices. Cremated remains can also be interred at sea or in other suitable locations, as regulations permit.
- In Canada and the United States, Capsula Mundi urns generally fit green burial criteria: biodegradable container, no embalming or preservatives, tree planting for future habitat restoration
- Always confirm with local authorities or cemetery managers before interment
A Brief Glimpse into the Future: The Body Pod
The Capsula Mundi body pod—a full-body, egg-shaped burial container made from plant-based bioplastics—remains a vision for the future as of 2025. Intended to hold the deceased in a fetal position, it would enable a direct ‘green’ burial with a memorial tree above. However, this larger pod requires changes in burial law and practice in many countries; its eventual approval could further revolutionize sustainable death care.
Comparing Capsula Mundi to Traditional Memorials
| Capsula Mundi | Traditional Burial | Traditional Cremation |
|---|---|---|
| Biodegradable, plant-based urn | Hardwood/metal vaults and coffins | Standard urn, often metal or ceramic |
| Trees planted as memorials, restoring habitat | Loss of trees for coffins, land cleared for cemeteries | Ashes may scatter but don’t benefit the ecosystem directly |
| Minimal environmental impact | High materials and land use impact | Energy used in cremation, risk of soil harm from ashes if not integrated |
| Symbolizes renewal and cyclical life | Emphasizes permanence and separation from nature | Frequently lacks enduring place for remembrance |
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
What is included with the Capsula Mundi urn?
The package includes the biodegradable urn and instructions. The tree sapling or seed must be sourced separately by the customer.
How long does the urn take to biodegrade?
Biodegradation ranges from a few months to a few years, depending on soil and climate. The breakdown is catalyzed by natural soil microbes and moisture.
Where can I legally bury a Capsula Mundi urn?
It is legal in many jurisdictions to bury biodegradable urns in cemeteries, on private land with permission, or at sea—subject to local regulations.
Can I use Capsula Mundi if I haven’t been cremated?
Only cremated remains may currently be used in the available urn. The full-body pod is not yet available commercially.
Does direct burial of ashes harm trees?
Direct burial of ashes can raise soil pH and harm plants. The Capsula Mundi urn is designed to slowly diffuse the ashes, avoiding concentrated toxicity and promoting healthy tree growth.
Conclusion
The Capsula Mundi biodegradable urn is reshaping the way people around the world think about death, remembrance, and environmental stewardship. By turning personal loss into an investment in the planet’s future, it provides both comfort and purpose to sustainable-minded families. As attitudes evolve, and more ethical, green alternatives become accessible, the vision of a living, restorative forest-cemetery may soon be possible across the globe—turning memories into enduring green legacies for generations to come.
References
- https://www.capsulamundi.it/shop/shop/sansand/
- https://eirene.ca/articles/what-is-capsula-mundi
- https://coconbenelux.com/en/product/sand-capsula-mundi/
- https://www.dezeen.com/2019/03/31/capsula-mundi-egg-shaped-burial-pod/
- https://www.capsulamundi.it/en/
- https://www.afterglow.life/cremation-urns/biodegradable-capsula-mundi-urn
- https://agoodgoodbye.com/tools-of-the-trade/casket-pods-for-green-burial-from-capsula-mundi/
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