Why were cages placed over graves in English cemeteries? (4 photos)
Even today, in old cemeteries in England, you can find burials that are covered with mysterious metal gratings. Local residents gave them the name “mortsafe”.
But why and why were these cages installed on the graves?
From whom were these bars protected? Or maybe, on the contrary, people were trying to protect themselves from the local inhabitants?
Superstition or not?
Many may think that such structures were installed by superstitious people. This explanation seems especially plausible in the context of past centuries, when hoaxes were very popular. Therefore, one could assume that people installed such cages in order to protect themselves from possible resurrected “zombies.”
In fact, the explanation is somewhat different. At first glance, it is also, to some extent, associated with mysticism, but in reality it turns out to be deeply cynical and practical. Such lattice structures were installed not at all against zombies and other “evil spirits,” but against “resurrectionists.” And now we are not talking about magicians and sorcerers.
Costs of developing medicine
At the beginning of the 19th century, medicine was actively developing in Great Britain. Scientists and doctors began to study the human body more carefully in order to advance the medical field to a new level, diversify and deepen the theoretical base. It was necessary to study new diseases, create medicines and formulate new treatment methods.
All of the above - especially the study of the structure of the human body - was very difficult to achieve without studying biological material.
Legislative side
UK regulations allowed use in medical experiments only on homeless and executed people during their lifetime. However, there was still a lack of biological material - it was not every day that a criminal was sentenced to capital punishment.
As a result, a criminal “business” was formed. Particularly cynical and unscrupulous looters simply dug up graves and sold the material to doctors who did not shy away from such disgusting acts. Most of all, fresh graves were subjected to such manipulations.
Protection from burglars
It was against such looters that cages were installed over tombstones, which were called “mortsafes.” Iron bars prevented excavation.
However, such protection was far from cheap, so only well-off people could afford it. Sometimes the mortsafes were removed after the expiration of the period during which there was no longer any point in carrying out excavations.
But not everyone removed iron cages, so they can still be seen now, in the 21st century.