Information about the deceased individual can now be obtained through the scanning of a barcode.
Chinese mourners now have a new way to remember their loved ones who have passed on by scanning QR codes that are displayed on tombstones.
These barcodes will allow the family members of deceased people to memorialize the individual online.
Through the use of QR codes that are displayed on a tombstone, smartphone users can scan and learn more about the individual’s past and what they did while they were alive. This new high tech feature is now available on tombstones located at the Shengjiang cemeteries. According to Hu Yefeng, the cemetery manager, there are already over 10 people who have signed up for the brand new service to have the barcodes added to the tombstones.
Equally, not everybody is happy that the QR codes are being displayed on the grave markers.
While many find that the QR codes are an innovative idea and a great way to remember more information about a deceased individual, others feel that it is disrespectful. The idea is that people can use their mobile devices to scan the barcodes so that they can be taken to a special website created specifically for that individual, in which life stories, photos, videos, and other content have been added by the family members of that person.
This concept is not unique to this cemetery in China. QR codes have started appearing on grave stones around the world. Many of the cemeteries that use these barcodes are located across the United States. They are proving to be quite a popular feature among individuals who would like to be able to memorialize their loved ones in a way that provides more information than is possible on a simple grave marker.
Instead of simply displaying the year of birth and death, as well as the person’s name and possibly a small phrase, QR codes can lead to websites with an ever growing wealth of information about the individual. They can also include stories about him or her, or copies of letters of documents that the person wrote. Some of these sites also include books of condolences, where others may leave their sympathies for the family.
