Matthews International Corporation Quarterly report pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d)

Quarterly report pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d)

Debt (Details)

Debt (Details) In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	6 Months Ended			3 Months Ended				6 Months Ended								6 Months Ended
Debt (Details) In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	Mar. 31, 2012 USD ($)	Mar. 31, 2012 EUR (€)	Sep. 30, 2011 USD ($)	Mar. 31, 2012 Interest Rate Swaps [Member] USD ($)	Mar. 31, 2011 Interest Rate Swaps [Member] USD ($)	Mar. 31, 2012 Interest Rate Swaps [Member] Cash Flow Hedging [Member] USD ($)	Mar. 31, 2011 Interest Rate Swaps [Member] Cash Flow Hedging [Member] USD ($)	Mar. 31, 2012 Interest Rate Swaps [Member] Cash Flow Hedging [Member] USD ($)	Mar. 31, 2011 Interest Rate Swaps [Member] Cash Flow Hedging [Member] USD ($)	Mar. 31, 2012 Designated as Hedging Instrument [Member] Interest Rate Swaps [Member] USD ($)	Sep. 30, 2011 Designated as Hedging Instrument [Member] Interest Rate Swaps [Member] USD ($)	Mar. 31, 2012 Designated as Hedging Instrument [Member] Interest Rate Swaps [Member] Current Liabilities: Other Current Liabilities [Member] USD ($)	Sep. 30, 2011 Designated as Hedging Instrument [Member] Interest Rate Swaps [Member] Current Liabilities: Other Current Liabilities [Member] USD ($)	Mar. 31, 2012 Designated as Hedging Instrument [Member] Interest Rate Swaps [Member] Long-Term Liabilities: Other Liabilities [Member] USD ($)	Sep. 30, 2011 Designated as Hedging Instrument [Member] Interest Rate Swaps [Member] Long-Term Liabilities: Other Liabilities [Member] USD ($)	Mar. 31, 2012 Interest Rate Swap 1 [Member] USD ($)	Mar. 31, 2012 Interest Rate Swap 2 [Member] USD ($)	Mar. 31, 2012 Interest Rate Swap 3 [Member] USD ($)	Mar. 31, 2012 Interest Rate Swap 4 [Member] USD ($)	Mar. 31, 2012 Interest Rate Swap 5 [Member] USD ($)	Mar. 31, 2012 Interest Rate Swap 6 [Member] USD ($)	Mar. 31, 2012 Interest Rate Swap 7 [Member] USD ($)	Mar. 31, 2012 Interest Rate Swap 8 [Member] USD ($)	Mar. 31, 2012 Domestic Revolving Credit Facility [Member] USD ($)	Sep. 30, 2011 Domestic Revolving Credit Facility [Member] USD ($)	Mar. 31, 2011 Domestic Revolving Credit Facility [Member]	Mar. 31, 2012 Credit Facility With European Bank [Member] USD ($)	Mar. 31, 2012 Credit Facility With European Bank [Member] EUR (€)	Sep. 30, 2011 Credit Facility With European Bank [Member] USD ($)	Sep. 30, 2011 Credit Facility With European Bank [Member] EUR (€)	Mar. 31, 2011 Credit Facility With European Bank [Member]	Sep. 30, 2011 Lines of Credit with Italian Banks [Member] EUR (€)	Mar. 31, 2012 Matthews International S.p.A [Member]	Mar. 31, 2011 Matthews International S.p.A [Member]	Mar. 31, 2012 Matthews International S.p.A [Member] Lines of Credit with Italian Banks [Member] USD ($)	Mar. 31, 2012 Matthews International S.p.A [Member] Lines of Credit with Italian Banks [Member] EUR (€)	Sep. 30, 2011 Matthews International S.p.A [Member] Lines of Credit with Italian Banks [Member] USD ($)	Sep. 30, 2011 Matthews International S.p.A [Member] Lines of Credit with Italian Banks [Member] EUR (€)	Mar. 31, 2012 Saueressig [Member]	Mar. 31, 2011 Saueressig [Member]	Mar. 31, 2012 Saueressig [Member] Credit Facility With European Bank [Member] USD ($)	Mar. 31, 2012 Saueressig [Member] Credit Facility With European Bank [Member] EUR (€)	Sep. 30, 2011 Saueressig [Member] Credit Facility With European Bank [Member] USD ($)	Sep. 30, 2011 Saueressig [Member] Credit Facility With European Bank [Member] EUR (€)
Line of Credit Facility [Line Items]
Line of Credit Facility, Former Borrowing Capacity	$ 300,000
Maximum amount of borrowings available	15,171	11,400																						400,000				25,000
Interest rate on borrowings, based on leverage ratio																								LIBOR plus a factor ranging from 1.00% to 1.50%
Maturity date																								March 2017
Annual commitment fee range on unused portion																								.20% to .30% (based on the Company's leverage ratio)
Maximum available for issuance of commercial and standby letters of credit																								25,000
Outstanding borrowings	3,138	2,400	661																					250,000	250,000		31,489	23,600	31,593	23,600		493,000			8,403	6,300	11,611	8,700			10,823	8,100	11,159	8,300
Weighted-average interest rate on outstanding borrowings (in hundredths)																								2.89%		2.85%	2.45%	2.45%			1.78%		3.15%	3.40%					6.10%	6.37%
Derivative [Line Items]
Effective Date																September 2007	May 2008	May 2011	October 2011	November 2011	March 2012	September 2012	November 2012
Amount																25,000	20,000	25,000	25,000	25,000	25,000	25,000	25,000
Fixed Interest Rate (in hundredths)																4.77%	3.72%	1.37%	1.67%	2.13%	2.44%	3.03%	1.33%
Interest Rate Spread (in hundredths)																1.25%	1.25%	1.25%	1.25%	1.25%	1.25%	1.25%	1.25%
Maturity Date																September 2012	September 2012	May 2014	October 2015	November 2014	March 2015	December 2015	November 2015
Interest rate cash flow hedges [Abstract]
Unrealized gain (loss) on fair value of interest rate swaps	6,825
Unrealized gain (loss) on fair value of interest rate swaps, after tax	4,163
Unrealized gain (loss) expected to be recognized over the next 12 months	1,596
Derivatives, Fair Value [Line Items]
Liability derivatives										6,825	7,161	2,616	2,061	4,209	5,100
Derivative Instruments, Gain (Loss) [Line Items]
Amount of loss recognized in income (loss) on derivatives						(733)	(701)	(1,420)	(1,459)
Amount of gain or (loss) recognized in AOCL on derivatives						(661)	(24)
Amount of gain or (loss) reclassified from AOCL into income (effective portion)				$ (866)	$ (890)
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Weighted-average interest rate on outstanding borrowings (in hundredths)																								2.89%		2.85%	2.45%	2.45%			1.78%		3.15%	3.40%					6.10%	6.37%