Hanging coffins

The most famous hanging coffins are those which were made by the Bo people (now extinct) of Sichuan and Yunnan.

The sparse descriptions of them in Chinese records describe them as being a prosperous farming culture who were also accomplished horsemen.

This is due to the belief that people should leave the world in the same position as they entered it, a tradition common throughout the various pre-colonial cultures of the Philippines.

They must have performed acts of merit, made wise decisions, and led traditional rituals during their lifetimes.

Most people interred in hanging coffins are the most prominent members of the amam-a, the council of male elders in the traditional dap-ay (the communal men's dormitory and civic center of the village).

[7] The more common burial custom of the Kankanaey is for coffins to be tucked into crevices or stacked on top of each other inside limestone caves.

The Kankanaey believe that interring the dead in caves or cliffs ensures that their spirits (anito) can roam around and continue to protect the living.

[10][11] Like the hanging coffins of the Philippines, liang tokek accounts for only a minority of the region's funerary practices.

They were part of burial complexes which include other kinds of interment practices, usually differing based on the social class and age of the dead.