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....
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,...
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...
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...
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? This may be the case. New archaeological evidence suggests that our ancient ancestors may have started burying their 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...
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...
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,...
For the tricky business of breaking down biological remains, few contenders pull the weight of mushroom-based products. As we’ve recently covered in some detail, America has had its...