Chavez Joins Lenin And Mao In Glass Casket Eternity

Like the giants of the socialist governments of yesteryear, the late Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez's body will be embalmed and permanently displayed in a glass casket at the Museum of Revolution.

Chavez died Tuesday at the age of 58 after a two-year battle with cancer. His body is currently on display while the nation of Venezuela observes a seven-day mourning period.

The tradition of displaying socialist leaders began with Vladimir Lenin, founder of the Soviet Union, upon his death in 1924.

The practice was repeated with his successor, Joseph Stalin, in 1953, though the Georgian strongman’s body was later removed removed from Lenin’s tomb in 1961 at Premier Nikita Kruschev’s urging.

Other communist leaders such as Mao Zedong in China, Ho Chi Minh in Vietnam and both successive patriarchs of the “Kim Dynasty” in North Korea (Kim Il-sung and Kim Jong-il) have also been put on permanent display.