A toe tag is a piece of cardboard attached with string to the big toe of a

deceased Death is the irreversible cessation of all biological functions that sustain an organism. For organisms with a brain, death can also be defined as the irreversible cessation of functioning of the whole brain, including brainstem, and brain ...

individual in a

morgue A morgue or mortuary (in a hospital or elsewhere) is a place used for the storage of human corpses awaiting identification (ID), removal for autopsy, respectful burial, cremation or other methods of disposal. In modern times, corpses have cus ...

. It is used for identification purposes, allowing the mortician,

coroner A coroner is a government or judicial official who is empowered to conduct or order an inquest into Manner of death, the manner or cause of death, and to investigate or confirm the identity of an unknown person who has been found dead within th ...

, law enforcement, and others involved in the death process to correctly identify the

corpse A cadaver or corpse is a dead human body that is used by medical students, physicians and other scientists to study anatomy, identify disease sites, determine causes of death, and provide tissue to repair a defect in a living human being. Stu ...

. It usually bears the decedent's name, a case number if law enforcement is involved, and some descriptors like hair and eye color. In many places, actual toe tags are no longer used due to hygiene concerns but have been replaced by wrist and/or ankle bands that serve the same purpose.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Toe Tag Death customs Funeral-related industry Toes

See also

References