Estimating a relationship between tombstone cost and longevity using cemetery data in Medellín City in Colombia

Abstract

Recent studies in the West suggested that tombstone cost is associated with longevity. The main goal of this study was to investigate the association between tombstone cost and life expectancy in a large cemetery in Latin America. Age at death was obtained from 2,273 consecutive death certificates held at the San Pedro Cemetery Museum in Medellín, Colombia. Subjects died between 2020 and 2022. Tombs are arranged in galleries in the cemetery, and tombstone cost is based on the material from which the tombstone was made its position in the gallery, and its ornamentation. Approximately 76% of the tombstones were low cost, 16% medium cost, and 8% high cost. Analysis of variance was used, and the assumption of equal variance was not violated. Because the data did not show a normal distribution, it was necessary to apply non-parametric techniques to assess statistical differences. The Kruskal-Wallis's test was employed for this purpose. Longevity was similar in the low-cost group and medium-cost group: 61.5±23.9 versus 61.6±24.6 years [estimated mean (95% confidence interval)]. Longevity was lower in the high-cost group: 55.8±25.8 years. The inverse association between tombstone cost and longevity would suggest that people in Medellín are inclined to spend more on tombstones when commemorating the tragic death of a young person.