Death And The Victorians
In London there is a company called Necropolis who specialise in relocating graves from old churchyards and crypts. Some of the sites are dilapidated and other burial places need to be removed for redevelopment. There are several pictures in this film which show some of the amazing archaeological discoveries found during and grave clearance process. Usually a body will decompose quickly once buried, but very occasionally decomposition will be completely halted leading to mumification. This offers archaeologists a fasinating and important glimpe into the past and gives us a clearer picture of the lives of our ancestors, ie dieases that effected them, how well they were nourished etc. Many of the diseases that people used to die of such as smallpox, tuberculosis, cholera, typhoid to name but a few have since become obsolete in Britain, so great care must be taken when moving these bodies as it can be quite a dangerous and hazardous job, Also the original coffins are usually rotten so the human remains need to placed in a modern casket for transferal to the new burial site. Other pictures in this video are sad reminders of lives that have come and gone and of our own mortallity..
