The (non)-eternal memory: The life and death of spontaneous shrines

Abstract

Spontaneous shrines mark the places of commemoration in urban space. In contrast to cemeteries, which are taken care of by relatives of the deceased, spontaneous shrines are constructed by strangers, and several groups at once might believe themselves responsible for the offerings. Disposal of such an object becomes a problem, as public utilities cannot simply clear it. The problem came to the fore during the online discussions concerning the clearing of shrines constructed in memory of the 2018 fire in Kemerovo, Russia. The vernacular memorials have a complex addressee. Firstly, they address to the community consolidated by the commemorative rite itself, and secondly, to a supernatural addressee (the victims). The paper covers the problems of who is entitled to decide the fate of a memorial and which models were discovered during the 2018 discussion. The materials that the paper is based on includes interviews and observations conducted by the author under the “Monitoring of Current Folklore” project (RANEPA), as well as data on some other urban and rural practices.