Some iconic classic cars from American manufacturers were used during the funeral of former North Korean dictator, Kim Jong-Il this week.

According to the New York Times, the hearse bearing the coffin of the leader was a Lincoln Continental, believed to have been built in the middle of the 1970s.

Two more Lincolns followed in the cortege, the second of which features an enormous portrait of the deceased on its roof for the amassed crowds to see.

It was clear from the footage released by the North Korean state media, that the vintage vehicles were in top condition, although commentators noted the irony of a man who hated America being carried to his final resting place by US motors.

North Korean researcher, Kongdan Oh, said that the Lincoln Continental was favoured in certain areas of Asia because it is seen as representing robustness and power. However, she also pointed out that it could be seen as a clear sign of how North Korea itself has been kept in a kind of time capsule, which makes these 1970s vehicles almost appropriate, rather than anachronistic.

Kim Jong-Il's father Kim Il-Sung was also carried in Lincoln Continentals at his funeral and it is thought that these cars are indeed the same ones used for the son.