What qualifies as ‘‘death blood’’? An eighth [of a log of blood] flowed out of a dy-ing person while he was still alive, and an eighth [flowed out] after he died. These are the words of R’ Akiva. R’ Yishmael says: A quarter [-log of blood that flowed out] while [the person] was alive and a quarter [-log that flowed out] after his death [were combined, and from this mixture] a quarter [-log] was taken. R’ Eliezer the son of R’ Yehudah says: Both of these are like water. What is ‘‘death blood’’? When there is a hanged person whose blood was flowing out and a quarter [-log] of blood was found beneath him, [the blood] is tamei. But if a corpse’s blood was dripping, and a quarter-log of blood was found underneath it, [the blood] is tahor. R’ Yehudah says: Not so; rather, that which flows out is tahor, and that which drips is tamei.

An olive-sized piece of corpse [in a room] must have an opening of one hand-breadth and a [whole] corpse must have an opening of four handbreadths to prevent tumah from spreading to the [other] openings. But to allow tumah to spread, one [square] handbreadth [suffices]. [If it is] larger than the volume of an olive, it is treated as a [whole] corpse. R’ Yose says: A spinal column and skull are treated like a [whole] corpse.