Myrrh

Myrrh is a precious gift, a gift fit for a king (Ps. 45:8; Song 3:6), but it's also associated with death (Mk. 15:23; Jn. 19:39). I've been trying to think of an equivalent. It's not quite like getting a bomb or a death-warrent for your birtday. Maybe Damien Hirst's sculpture, For the love of God, captures something of the sense of it. Maybe an ornimental casket for ashes might do the same.