Museum lifts lid on one of the strangest coffins in the world

WHEN it is time to travel to that final resting place, you might as well do it in style.

And what could be more snazzy than a coffin in the shape of a Mercedes.

The quirky coffin has been unveiled as a centrepiece display at the Capital's Royal Museum, which is set to re-open in summer 2011. The exhibit from Teshi, in Ghana, was displayed for a brief period nine years ago, but has since been in a private collection.

Now museum chiefs hope that it will be one of a number of quirky items which will pull in the crowds in the wake of the venue's 50 million refurbishment.

Sarah Worden, curator of African collections, said: "Here in Scotland, we associate funerals with black clothes, sombre music and plain wooden coffins.

"But over in west Africa, on the coast of Ghana, funerals are often a much more colourful, noisy affair, a celebration of the life of the departed. In Ghana, people like to go out in style.

"Relatives spend up to a year's salary on elaborate, imaginative works of art that reflect the status, profession or passions of the deceased, from boats to birds, fish to flying machines, corncobs to crabs."

The coffin, which is thought to date back to the 1950s and was designed and built by Ghanaian artist Paa Joe, was brought to the UK in 1998. Carved from wood and painted white with silver, black and orange details, it comes complete with silver headlights, wing mirrors, an aerial and the trademark Mercedes badge.

The 2.18m coffin will go on display in the new People and Possessions gallery, which focuses on life from the cradle to the grave.

Museum bosses have already revealed several new features built during the redevelopment.

The project to transform the museum includes the creation of two hands-on discovery centres, a larger gallery for international touring exhibitions and new education facilities.

More than two million objects have had to be packed up and removed before work could begin. The project is being jointly funded by the Heritage Lottery Fund and the Scottish Government, with a further 12m coming from fundraising.