NY Office of Mental Health/eBay

It may never have crossed your mind what happens to morgue fridges when they're past their sell-by date.

It had never crossed mine either, until I came across a frisson of news from the New York Post.

For here was the announcement that New York state's Office of Mental Health had chosen eBay to sell an old morgue fridge. A Norlake Scientific 4 Drawer Morgue Refrigerator, to be precise.

Perhaps eBay bid the lowest to stage this macabre auction.

The listing has uplift at its core.

It doesn't try to lean on celebrity. There is no mention of whose body might have temporarily rested within.

There is simply a picture of the fridge, shot in an almost golden light, and the information that its condition is "used."

You might think that this is some mere gimmick. You might also think that morgues smell of rose petals.

For there have already been 43 bids for this artifact. The highest, as I write, stands at $860.

One cannot help speculating who might be bidding. Might it be a butcher, thinking this fridge would be perfect for resting meat?

Perhaps it is someone with a more macabre purpose who intends to use this fridge to cool beer for their Halloween party.

Heather Groll, a spokeswoman for the state's Office of General Services told the Post: "Every once in a while, we get an unusual item -- and this would be that."

Yes, this is definitely that.

Some may be delighted that, despite the delicate nature of this fridge's original life, no background checks are required in order to bid. Indeed, there are no restrictions at all as to whose house or business will be the resting home for this fine object.

Should you be tempted to bring a mortifying chill into your life, please be prepared with your own transport.

Should you already be walking around your house wondering where you might put it, may I tell you that it is 6 feet wide, 8 feet deep and 6 feet high.

Oh, and you also have to dismember it before taking it away, as it won't fit through the door where it currently resides.

I feel sure that in a world where so little furniture could be called original, this piece will adorn many a home with the appropriate melange of classicism, romanticism and existentialism.