Comments on: A Brief History Of London Crypts

By: Michael O'Beirne

Michael O'Beirne — Sun, 04 Jul 2021 11:30:48 +0000

That was a very interesting piece of little-known London history.

The grandest tomb I have seen is of Napoleon in the crypt of the Dome of Les Invalides, Paris, interred in a sarcophagus of six coffins and guarded by 12 statues.

Many of the great and grand of France can be found in the crypt of the Pantheon, including Voltaire, Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Victor Hugo, Marie and Pierre Curie and Emile Zola.

The huge cemetery of Pere Lachaise is well worth a visit. It includes the graves of Oscar Wilde, Chopin, Bizet and Jim Morrison of The Doors.

St Denis used to contain the burials of most of the French kings and queens. It was ransacked during the Revolution and all the remains were scattered, but after the restoration of the monarchy the bones were gathered together and interred in a new mass grave in the crypt. In a small side crypt I spotted a couple of ancient coffins overlooked by the mob.

Some of the Russian Romanov tsars and spouses are interred in the Cathedral in the massive Peter & Paul fortress on Zayachiy Island, St Petersburg.

By: S. L.

S. L. — Sun, 12 Oct 2014 10:01:29 +0000

We learned about the Spitalfields site when I did an archaeology degree. Many archaeology workers emptying the crypt suffered emotional stress and withdrawal symptoms as they had to work in bodysuits in hot confined conditions. I believe that smallpox was a cause of some of the deaths, and the state of some of the bodies was distressing to the workers as they still had clothing and hair attached. The emotional side of modern archaeology is a factor that we don’t really think of much as we tend to think that digging up bodies results in a set of neatly dried bones. This article touches ona fascinating subject though, and one which we learn so much from. Thank you for posting it.

By: Caroline Murray

Caroline Murray — Sun, 28 Sep 2014 14:07:11 +0000

I have just caught up with this post, and the mention of the crypt of St Martin’s jogged my memory. The crypt of St Martin’s in the Fields had already been cleared of coffins before Sheppard’s initiative of 1915. In 1859, Frank Buckland (son of the geologist William), who had a great reverence for John Hunter the anatomist, who was buried there, attempted to locate his coffin to have it reburied in Westminster Abbey (Buckland senior was Dean of Westminster). With the help of a verger, and after several days, he found it, but Buckland had to recuperate for weeks afterwards, and I think he said the verger never recovered his health. This story may be in Malcolm Johnson’s book, which sounds terrific, though I haven’t read it (yet). (I see from archive.org that the story is in Bompas’s ‘Life’ of Buckland, but I haven’t read that either.) I think I must have found it while researching on John Hunter, but the gruesomeness of the task and the subsequent illnesses have stuck in my mind.

By: Sarah Vernon

Sarah Vernon — Sun, 15 Jun 2014 14:19:30 +0000

Utterly fascinating. And the coffin plates are so beautiful.

By: shirley Beaumont

shirley Beaumont — Sun, 30 Mar 2014 22:34:57 +0000

the facts are very interesting to learn, I have been to the restaurant under St Matins in the Field,while searching for my ancestors history
I didnt know then what I do know now
I found this information pretty interesting.thankyou for the post.

By: Phyllis

Phyllis — Sun, 30 Mar 2014 13:24:22 +0000

Very interesting post! Churchyard burials are also a thing of the past here in Boston, the colonial churchyard cemeteries still exist because they are tourist attractions even though no one has been interred there in several decades. Lots of famous patriots from the US revolutionary period are buried in them. In downtown Boston there are three churchyard cemeteries along Tremont Street and on Boston Common all within a 10 minute walk.

By: Donald C

Donald C — Sun, 30 Mar 2014 13:03:02 +0000

Fascinating. Is the crypt pictured above open to the public?

By: Ros

Ros — Sun, 30 Mar 2014 12:24:22 +0000

interesting and informative – lots I didn’t know. Thanks Malcolm Johnson and GA.

By: Chris F

Chris F — Sun, 30 Mar 2014 10:50:21 +0000

I once had the opportunity to visit a crypt in London where the coffins had been removed, however, a large number of the name plates had been left behind on the floor covered in dust and associated detritus. I picked them up and dusted them off and placed then along a section of wall that was jutting out. It seemed to me at the time the respectful thing to do…

By: Achim

Achim — Sun, 30 Mar 2014 09:34:49 +0000

Very interesting facts. And very sad to see that George Legge, the Viscount of Lewisham, died as a small boy aged just about 16 months …

Love & Peace
ACHIM