‘21 Grams’ is a memory chest designed by Dutch designer Mark Sturkenboom, which contains a dildo with a gold-plated urn compartment for storing 21 grams of ashes of a deceased partner.
The wooden box packs an assortment of items that would rekindle intimate memories of a lost one—apart from the blown-glass dildo, it comes with a scent diffuser to hold his favorite perfume, an iPhone dock at the base, a drawer to hold keepsakes, a hidden compartment for a ring, all safely locked away with a gold-plated brass key that can be worn as a necklace.
The idea came about when he was helping an elderly lady with her groceries. He said, “She has an urn standing near the window…She always speaks with so much love about him but the jar he was in didn't reflect that at all.”
The name of his project was inspired by an early 20th-century belief that a human soul weighs 21 grams—Sturkenboom hopes to open a new window for the way we reminisce about someone, and an outlet for people who are struggling to cope with grief.
What do you think of the 21 Grams project?
[via Dezeen, Mark Sturkenboom]