A Ghoulish Matter

Okay, let's put it out there.  If you do genealogy, you visit cemeteries. And, believe me, I have traipsed through many from Florida to Maine and into Canada. That's what we do. We go searching for that long lost ancestor. So let's lay it all out in lavender.

Do you know where the saying, "Rest In Peace" came from? It's a common epitaph on gravestones.  We say it, written with love in a meaningful way in a sympathy card, May they rest in Peace.

You only need to look back to the Victorian era, the mid 1800's. It was a time when grave robbers existed and lurked around in the dark of night. They worked during the cold months because a "stiff" as they called it, was only good for a few days before it decayed. There was no refrigeration in the summer. So now you know why people came to believe cemeteries are haunted, especially at night and especially during Halloween. Perhaps those ghosts are protecting the deceased.

These grave robbers were after more than just jewelry. Good money was paid by doctors, scientists, and teachers in universities for cadavers.  How else could they teach and learn about the anatomy of the human body. Even more money could be made by demanding ransom for the return of  loved ones.

 The resurrectionists preferred the newly deceased, because the earth had not yet settled and therefore easier to dig down to the casket.  They would open casket with a crowbar to expose the head, then grab the body under the chin with a hook and pull the body out. (OMG)

When you have strolled through cemeteries, most likely you have seen evidence of past attempts to protect the graves of yesterday. Some means are obvious, other are not. Surely you have seen wrought iron fences around a family plot; but it's meaning was to make it more difficult for the grave robbers out after dark to steal their loved ones.  

We see the above ground gravesites made of cement, that have cracked or were outright broken, perhaps covered with a little moss. Certainly these were easier to invade. Then you see on occasion the ones with a steel lid that sits low to the ground, now not so easy to break into. Families went so far as to claim a bomb was planted in the coffin; hoping this would deter the thieves for fear of being blown up. Some cemeteries hired night watchmen. 

This was not just a United States problem, grave robbers existed in other countries around the world. 

So "Rest In Peace" literally meant, I hope the grave robbers will leave you alone so that you may surely  'Rest In Peace'.