Don't Go Burking My Heart

Burke (burkes, burking, burked)
Verb (UK slang)
1. To murder in the same way as William Burke, to kill by suffocation
2. To smother; to hush up, to conceal, suppress

I learned about Burke and Hare the infamous Scottish grave robbers while researching mortsafes. In case you don't know, mortsafes where steel cages put over the top of fresh graves to prevent the stealing of recently deceased bodies for medical school autopsies in the mid to late nineteenth century. The mortsafes would stay there until the bodies sufficiently deteriorated (several weeks) and then were moved to a new fresh grave. You could rent a mortsafe for your loved one from the cemetery. They are found primarily in Scotland.

During my research the names Burke and Hare kept popping up so I started following that path and was eventually led to the 2010 dark, romantic comedy film Burke & Hare. Ha! I watched it last night. The film is a very, very loose adaption of the real Burke and Hare story which is much darker and creepier. The film is more like a romantic comedy about a couple of bumbling blokes trying to make a buck -or pound. The film is mildly amusing and I will say that I enjoyed it. I kept waiting for a musical number or for Tiny Tim to pop up, but don't let that deter you. Neither of those things happened. The story of the infamous grave robbers is told next to the story of an all female production of McBeth. Surprisingly, it works. For Downton Abbey fans, Hugh Bonneville plays a minor role. Watch the film because it's quirky not for history. The film begins with the statement "This is a true story, except when it's not." Or something like that. Take that to heart. It is currently streaming on Netflix. By the way, there are many films that attempt to tell the story of Burke and Hare. I may try to see them all.

After watching the film I was compelled to do some additional quick research on Burke and Hare and learned that at Burke's sentencing the judge ordered hanging, autopsy, and that his skeleton should forever remain on view as a reminder of his terrible crimes. Burke's skeleton still hangs at the Anatomy Museum at the Edinburgh School of Medicine. Another creepy fact not brought up in the film is that Burke's skin was also tanned and used to cover books, wallets and card cases.....The card case was sold at auction in 1988. Yep. You're going to want to do a little research yourself I think.

This is a mortsafe. In case you were wondering.

Photo borrowed from the blog Scottish Heart. Read the blog post. Do it.