[5] During the Inquisition in Spain, bodies undergoing preparation for burial were sometimes scrutinized for signs that they had been washed, since this was seen as a marker of secret Jewish practice (crypto-Judaism).
The ritual washing of the dead is believed to be one of the factors which resulted in the rapid spread of Ebola virus in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone in 2014.
[13] Antigone speaks of washing the dead in accordance with the Greek custom, although she was limited to pouring water on the body of her brother Polyneikes.
In the 1995 film Braveheart, a young William Wallace watches as women bathe the bodies of his father and brother, who were killed in battle against English troops during the 13th century.
An episode of the HBO series Six Feet Under shows Nate Fisher's body being "slowly and methodically" washed by his mother and brother.