Pastoral putrefaction down on the Body Farm William Bass started the Body Farm to study how bodies decompose October 31, 2000 Web posted at: 3:42 p.m. EST (2042 GMT) KNOXVILLE, Tennessee (CNN ...

Putrefaction, or the decomposition of organic matter without oxygen by bacteria, fungi or other organisms, can turn parts of a body's skin green about 18 hours after death, according to the book ...

Black Putrefaction occurs between 10 and 20 days after death when the exposed body turns black, further bloats and releases fluids and more odors.

The late Pontiff’s body was visited by thousands of people over three days while lying in state at St. Peter’s Basilica in Vatican City.

A twisted Maryland mom and daughter dismembered the family's grandmother with a chainsaw -- then grilled the body parts to get rid of them -- following a fight about a credit card, cops said.

Woman Who Grilled Mom's Remains, Cut Her Up With Chainsaw Sentenced Candace Craig, 46, was convicted of murdering her mother, 71-year-old Margaret Craig ...

This incorruptibility is a sign of holiness — that the body's owner was too pure to undergo the usual putrefaction process, according to Catholic tradition.

A surprising number of patients have been mistakenly declared dead in recent years, raising questions about what it truly means to die.

But we’ve learned quite a lot of fascinating things about the human body this year, too, in relation to topics ranging from eye and uterus transplants to vitamin D levels and aging.

They revealed ancient Egyptians used a wide variety of substances to anoint the body after death, to reduce unpleasant smells and protect it from fungi, bacteria and putrefaction.

The putrefaction process The last phase of the body's decomposition process is known as putrefaction or purification. "This stage is where the body breaks down, returning to its natural state.