Japan Strikes Gold From Cremated Ashes

Japanese cities are profiting from the sale of precious metals sifted from cremated ashes, it was revealed today, as the country attempts to cash in on a potentially huge "urban mine" of gold, silver and palladium.

Several cities, including Tokyo, have earned millions of yen from the sale of rare elements found in capped teeth and artificial bones, the Asahi newspaper said.

The Tokyo metropolitan government made 3.2m yen (?24,700) in 2007 from the sale of 700g (1.5lb) of gold, 500g of palladium and 1.9kg of silver retrieved from cremated remains.

The city earned 90,000 yen from coins placed in coffins before cremation, the report said.

One of Japan's biggest crematoriums, in the central city of Nagoya, collected 12kg of metals worth more than 10m yen.

The precious metals are being retrieved from ashes and bone fragments left behind after the family of the deceased have completed the ritual of packing some of the bones into an urn for burial.

While the practice has ugly historical precedents ? the Nazis routinely searched for gold in the ashes of murdered concentration camp prisoners ? the Japanese authorities have the law on their side.

In 1939, the supreme court ruled that any leftover ashes not taken away by bereaved relatives belonged to the municipality; any income they generate is considered part of the city's miscellaneous income.

According to one estimate, 1,850 tonnes of bones and ashes were produced by cremations in Japan in 2007.

Although one local council said it had stopped searching for precious metals after complaints that it was profiting from the dead, most families are unaware of the practice.

Japan has a huge quantity of discarded mobile phones, PCs, televisions and MP3 players, which, if properly tapped, could turn it into a major producer of precious metals.

About 20m mobile phones containing minute quantities of silver, gold, palladium and other precious metals are replaced in Japan every year, but only a tiny percentage are recycled.

While the government is encouraging the stripping down of gadgets, experts have mixed feelings about profiting from crematoria treasure hunts.

"There's nothing illegal about it, so it's not something we can condemn outright," said Yuji Moriyama, of the Japan Society of Environmental Crematory. "But personally, I think it's wrong. We're talking about human beings, not mobile phones.

"Human remains should be treated with just as much respect as they were before cremation. Whatever ashes and bones are left should be packed up and taken to the nearest Buddhist temple to be blessed and looked after properly."