A warning has been issued about leaving items in coffins with loved ones A CREMATORIUM has asked families to resist the temptation to leave personal items in a coffin. Placing personal items with the people that have died is a custom that dates back thousands of years and exists throughout many cultures. Historians have found that ancient Egyptians, Romans, Vikings and Anglo-Saxons all did this and the bereaved continue to have an understandable compulsion to follow the practice today. But Crematorium and Memorial Group, which operate Wear Valley Crematorium, in Bishop Auckland, is asking families not to leave such personal items in the coffin without asking first as they may unintentionally pose a safety or environmental risk.