Mortsafes were contraptions designed to protect graves from disturbance. Resurrectionists had supplied the schools of anatomy in Scotland since the early 18th century. This was due to the necessity for medical students to learn anatomy by attending dissections of human subjects, which was frustrated by the very limited allowance of dead bodies – for example the corpses of executed criminals – granted by the government, which controlled the supply.

Is it strange to party in a cemetery, do you think? Thousands, many elaborately dressed and made up, thronged the Hollywood Forever cemetery on October 30th to celebrate the Day of the Dead with music, dancing, food and artistic renditions of family altars, all among the graves of Rudolph Valentino, Marion Davies, Tyrone Power, Douglas Fairbanks and Johnny Ramone.

Police detain demonstrators during an action against Russia's attack on Ukraine in St. Petersburg, Russia, Monday, February 28, 2022. Protests against the Russian invasion of Ukraine resumed on Monday, with people taking to the streets of Moscow and St. Petersburg and other Russian towns despite mass arrests. (Photo by Dmitri Lovetsky/AP Photo)

France's Juliette Ducordeau (Front R) and fellow athletes react after crossing the finish line of the Women's Mass Start 10 km Free event at the FIS Tour de Ski stage on January 8, 2023 in Val di Fiemme. (Photo by Marco Bertorello/AFP Photo)

People fancy dressed as “Catrina” take part in the “Catrinas Parade” along Reforma Avenue, in Mexico City on October 22, 2017. Mexicans get ready to celebrate the Day of the Dead highlighting the character of La Catrina which was created by cartoonist Jose Guadalupe Posada, famous for his drawings of typical local, folkloric scenes, socio- political criticism and for his illustrations of “skeletons” or skulls, including La Catrina. (Photo by Ronaldo Schemidt/AFP Photo)

Yi Arias, a CORE crew member in an upbeat mood at COVID-19 mass-vaccination of healthcare workers taking place at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles, California, U.S., January 15, 2021 (Photo by Irfan Khan/Pool via Reuters)

A child dressed in a Santa Claus costume reacts, on the day Palestinian Christians attend an Orthodox Christmas Mass at the Greek Orthodox Saint Porphyrius Church, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas, in Gaza City on January 7, 2025. (Photo by Dawoud Abu Alkas/Reuters)

Onati Basque dancers go airborne as they perform Basque traditional dances while making their way to the front of Saint Mark's Catholic Church, Saturday, August 1, 2015, in Boise, Idaho. The annual Mass, conducted in English and Basque, was held at the church for the first time. (Photo by Kyle Green/Idaho Statesman via AP Photo)