the mark of the dead

The Book of the Dead, used by the ancient Egyptians as a set of instructions for the afterlife, is considered to be one of the first illustrated manuscripts. In the earlier versions, the scribe designed the manuscript. If it was to be illustrated, blank areas were left that the artist would fill in as best he could. Then, the vignettes became more important and dominated the design.*

today we deal with the dead in a different way

We've lost that magic connection we used to have with our dead. 

The simplicity and functionalism of today's design of the dead speak for themselves (a sort of factory of the dead). 

 Holland Cemetery, Oklahoma

______________________
*check this link for a detailed discussion of many of the illustrations.