A tomb is a house, chamber or vault for the dead. The original purpose of a tomb was to protect the dead and provide the deceased with a dwelling equipped with necessities for the afterlife. Tombs probably arose from the prehistoric practice of burying the deceased in their own homes. Eventually, tombs were replaced with graves and funerary urns, and the practice of building tombs died out during the Renaissance. Some of the most famous tombs in the world include the pyramids of Egypt, the Taj Mahal, the Thirteen Tombs of the Ming Dynasty, the Church of the Holy Sepulchre and the Prophet’s Mosque in Medina.