sarcophagus

/sɑrˈkɑfəgəs/

Other forms: sarcophagi; sarcophaguses

If you want to go out in style, buy yourself a sarcophagus — a very fancy coffin usually decorated with elaborate carvings. If King Tut could arrange it, so can you!

Sarcophagus comes from the Greek word sarkophagos meaning "limestone used for coffins." But the Greek literally translates to mean "flesh-eating." Seems a bit gruesome, doesn't it? This translation makes sense when you figure that limestone was used in coffins because it quickly decomposed the body. These stone coffins are usually decorated with a sculpture or inscription and date back to the ancient civilizations of Egypt, Rome, and Greece.

Definitions of sarcophagus

1. noun

   a stone coffin (usually bearing sculpture or inscriptions)
   type of:

   casket, coffin

   box in which a corpse is buried or cremated