At Beijing’s Babaoshan Funeral Home, China’s only all-female cremation team works in searing heat, defying gender stereotypes while gaining a deeper understanding of life and death. The five women, whose average age is 28, carry out their duties with precision and composure, guiding the dead through their final farewell. Known as the Fire Roses, the team formed in 2022, with Yun Xiaolin as its first member. Yun had originally enrolled in a cabin crew programme at her parents’ urging, but dropped...
As Chinese cemeteries become increasingly expensive many people are buying flats to store the ashes of their loved ones, triggering a discussion which has divided public opinion. Chinese families have long placed great importance on burial practices, with securing a respectable grave regarded as an essential act of filial piety. However, as rapid urban development limits available land and an ageing population drives up demand, burial space has become increasingly scarce, giving rise to...