Medieval Funeral Directors, Hellmouths, and Churchyards
Before cemeteries had gates and grave liners, the dead were protected from hell itself. This was necessary because Medieval Europeans believed that hell’s many front doors were literally...
Repositories of Bones, Part Two: The Winding Underworld of Catacombs
Narrow subterranean corridors interlace for miles, linking vestibules, chambers, and hidden entrances. Ceilings and temperatures down here are chilly, and damp dimness pervades the disorienting, psychologically confrontational environment....
Guillotine Deaths Were Way Creepier Than We Thought
Decapitation by guillotine was popular during the French Revolution, and was thought to be a merciful method of execution. Believed for centuries to be instantaneous and thereby humane,...
Repositories of Bones, Part One: Ossuaries
Ossuaries can be, of course, elaborate and ornate places, sites of unique tribute to the deceased. The artistic displays of relocated human bones in ossuaries are often stunning...
Buried Before Death: The History Behind a Cultural Nightmare
Gruesome tales go back centuries—exhumed coffins with bloodied scratch marks, mangled fingers, even corpses found entirely outside their caskets. It sounds almost too horrible to be believed. Has...
The Odor of Imminent Death
Final responders know that death has its own particular odor, unique as a fingerprint. Once experienced, it’s not often forgotten: decomp-specific volatile organic compounds (VOCs) make the scent...
Have Human Mortuary Practices Been Around for 245,000 Years?
Have human mortuary practices been around for 245,000 years? This may be the case. New archaeological evidence suggests that our ancient ancestors may have started burying their dead...
Dogs With Jobs: Sniffing Out the Missing Dead
What would people do without dogs? They’re casual companions and emotional supporters; dogs fight beside us in battle, catch drug traffickers, backup law enforcement and border patrol, and...
Restlessly Dead: Cadaveric Spasm
Sometimes they shift. Some huff or groan. It’s expected… sort of; over time, studies have revealed that cadavers are more “restlessness” than we thought. Movements follow generally predictable...
The Last Thing You’ll Hear: What the Brain Still Listens for as Life Fades
By the time my grandmother died after a series of strokes, she’d been unresponsive for about a week. My mother wouldn’t leave Grandma’s bedside — not to eat,...