Matthews International Corporation Annual report pursuant to Section 13 and 15(d)

SUMMARY OF SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES (Details)

v3.8.0.1

SUMMARY OF SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES (Details) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2017 USD ($) memorial vase	Sep. 30, 2016 USD ($)	Sep. 30, 2015 USD ($)
Trade Receivables and Allowance for Doubtful Accounts [Abstract]
Period past due for which a finance charge may be applied	30 days
Revenue Recognition [Abstract]
Number of memorials \| memorial	330,716
Number of vases \| vase	221,713
Research and Development Expenses [Abstract]
Research and development costs \| $	$ 16,362	$ 14,793	$ 13,033
Minimum
Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets [Abstract]
Useful lives of intangibles	2 years
Maximum
Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets [Abstract]
Useful lives of intangibles	20 years
Buildings \| Minimum
Property, Plant and Equipment [Abstract]
Useful lives of PPE	10 years
Buildings \| Maximum
Property, Plant and Equipment [Abstract]
Useful lives of PPE	45 years
Machinery and equipment \| Minimum
Property, Plant and Equipment [Abstract]
Useful lives of PPE	3 years
Machinery and equipment \| Maximum
Property, Plant and Equipment [Abstract]
Useful lives of PPE	12 years

- Definition

The number of memorials held in storage under the pre-need sales program.

+ References

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The number of vases held in storage under the pre-need sales program.

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The period past due (in days) for which a finance charge may be applied to trade receivables.

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- Definition

Useful life of finite-lived intangible assets, in 'PnYnMnDTnHnMnS' format, for example, 'P1Y5M13D' represents the reported fact of one year, five months, and thirteen days.

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Useful life of long lived, physical assets used in the normal conduct of business and not intended for resale, in 'PnYnMnDTnHnMnS' format, for example, 'P1Y5M13D' represents the reported fact of one year, five months, and thirteen days. Examples include, but not limited to, land, buildings, machinery and equipment, office equipment, furniture and fixtures, and computer equipment.

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- Definition

The aggregate costs incurred (1) in a planned search or critical investigation aimed at discovery of new knowledge with the hope that such knowledge will be useful in developing a new product or service, a new process or technique, or in bringing about a significant improvement to an existing product or process; or (2) to translate research findings or other knowledge into a plan or design for a new product or process or for a significant improvement to an existing product or process whether intended for sale or the entity's use, during the reporting period charged to research and development projects, including the costs of developing computer software up to the point in time of achieving technological feasibility, and costs allocated in accounting for a business combination to in-process projects deemed to have no alternative future use.

+ References

Reference 1: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 730
-SubTopic 10
-Section 50
-Paragraph 1
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6420194&loc=d3e21568-108373

Reference 2: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 985
-SubTopic 20
-Section 50
-Paragraph 1
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6501960&loc=d3e128462-111756

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