Toasting to the end of classes in countless ways has become a late May ritual for most Bowdoin students.
No matter how wild or innovative the festive events of today's students have become, however, the celebrations are most certainly trumped by an unusual 19th century end-of-the-school-year tradition: a funeral.
The morbid celebration on campus involved the yearly burial of "Anna Lytica." But who is "Anna Lytica," and why did she need an annual funeral?
"'Anna Lytica,' otherwise known as analytical geometry, was a calculus class," said Daniel Hope of Special Collections. "We suspect it was a class the whole school was required to take in their junior year at the College."
According to "Tales of Bowdoin," the annual springtime event was called "Obsequies of Calculus" and was often celebrated in a school-wide fashion. The parade of mourners began in the mathematics room, where that year's students of analytical geometry disposed of their "Anna Lytica" books in an eight-foot coffin.
After the textbooks were ceremonially placed in the casket, the coffin was then transported to the Chapel.
An orator would offer a eulogy in honor of the death of the textbooks, ending with the motto, "The shortest distance between two points is a straight line."
Following the memorial service, a procession assembled, and was led by the members of the junior class.
The procession included the school's band, the Bowdoin Artillery and a eulogist, in addition to the junior, sophomore and freshmen classes. The procession took students from Park Row to Pleasant St and the coffin was transported by what the students called a "dump cart."
The books were then taken from the coffin, burned, placed in an urn, and returned back to the coffin.
The casket was then buried in a different location on campus each year.
The site of each year's internment was marked by the "Anna Stone" acting as the gravestone for that year's class, and simply contained the inscription "Calculus dx/dy=0."
"The students were remarkably official," said Hope. "[The students] went through a lot of trouble to get programs [for the funeral]. They took stuff seriously."
Although our 19th century counterparts did not take the task of planning the somber occasion lightly, they were sure to include many jokes during the ceremonies.
According to Hope, the classes included many Latin inside jokes in their programs.
"The men selected to carry the coffin were called 'tanned gents' instead of tangents," said Hope.
While the tradition ended in the early 20th century because calculus classes were no longer required of all students, "Anna Stones" were placed around campus. But, with new buildings and reconstruction, these markers were either destroyed or taken away as time passed.
"There are three [Anna Stones] that exist on campus," said Hope. "Two are from back in the 19th century, and one is newer."
According to Hope, former Dean of Student Affairs Craig Bradley tried unsuccessfully to revive this tradition.
His "Anna Stone" can be found outside of first year brick Appleton Hall.