I did a bit of research on the internet regarding the mock coffin and the prayers for the dead in November and it was a Pre Vatican II custom in which Latin Tridentine Masses for the dead were offered during the month of November which is the month dedicated to the Holy Souls in Purgatory. When there wasn't a funeral with a body present, the mock coffin or catafalque would be covered in black and placed in the nave of the church with non bleached wax candles surrounding it. The priest also in black vestments would offer prayers for the deceased person the Mass was being offered for and he would incense the catafalque at the conclusion of the Mass. I was talking to an elderly woman I know about this custom and she told me that she remembers seeing these Masses with the catafalque when she lived in Cuba before the communist take over in 1959. She was the one who told me that the mock coffin was called a catafalque or tumba. I did a google search with "Pre Vatican II catafalque masses for the dead in November" and got some information. I also clicked on 'Images' and saw pictures of the ritual. The Free Dictionary online describes the catafalque as: 2. Roman Catholic - A coffin - shaped structure draped with a pall, used to represent the corpse at a requiem mass celebrated after the burial. Before Vatican II, stipends were offered for these much requested Masses and that's probably why I saw them on a daily basis when I used to go to Mass during the month of November.