Sirsnapalot Loc: Hammond, Louisiana

Billy Graham will be the fourth private citizen to be honored since 1852 and the 32nd of all Rotunda Honors. His pine coffin will rest on the same platform, cataalque, that was used for President Abraham Lincoln's casket. The simple wood casket was made by inmates at the Louisiana State Penitentiary.

Sirsnapalot Loc: Hammond, Louisiana

Convicted murderer Richard Liggett led fellow inmates at Louisiana State Penitentiary, the country's largest maximum-security prison, to design and build the casket over a decade ago.

Liggett was serving a life sentence for second-degree murder and died in prison in 2007.

The simple casket is lined with a mattress pad and has a wooden cross nailed to the top. Brass handles are on the side.

Graham's son Franklin, president of the Billy Graham Evangelist Association, saw the caskets being made during a tour of the prison in 2005. The caskets were normally made for inmates who could not afford them. He asked the inmates to build caskets for his parents.

ELNikkor

Thanks for sharing this.

ricardo7 Loc: Washington, DC - Santiago, Chile

Too bad he didn't fill it years ago.

SueScott Loc: Hammondsville, Ohio

Beautiful craftsmanship using unassuming materials - a fitting tribute to Rev. Graham.