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.

A general view of dried-up rivers in the Pilbara region of Western Australia December 2, 2013. Western Australia's Pilbara region, which is the size of Spain, has the world's largest known deposits of iron ore and supplies nearly 45 percent of global trade in the mineral. (Photo by David Gray/Reuters)

A woman takes a picture of people posing in front of “Zinzow”, a “Transformers-inspired” sculpture constructed from scrap metal in Podgorica, July 22, 2014. Danilo Baletic, 22, makes sculptures of his childhood cartoon heroes, “Transformers”, from scrap metal. In the last two years he has made seven “Transformers” sculptures that are placed on the streets of Montenegro's capital Podgorica as part of an exhibition called “Transformers defending Podgorica”. (Photo by Stevo Vasiljevic/Reuters)

A woman enjoys the sun at Plaka beach on the Aegean island of Naxos, Greece, Friday, May 14, 2021. Greece launched its tourism season Friday amid a competitive scramble across the Mediterranean to lure vacationers emerging from lockdowns. (Photo by Thanassis Stavrakis/AP Photo)

A drone photo shows an aerial view of a part of Augusta Ancient City, belonging to the Roman period, revealed following the withdrawal of water level of Seyhan Dam Lake, in Adana, Turkey on September 07, 2021. (Photo by Eren Bozkurt/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)

A tree stands in a lake in Usingen near Frankfurt, Germany, Wednesday, March 22, 2023, the World Water Day. World Water Day was established in 1992 by the United Nations to spread awareness about the water condition all over the world. (Photo by Michael Probst/AP Photo)

An aerial view of Charyn Canyon located about 200 kilometers east of Almaty city in Kazakhstan on September 22, 2024. The canyon, visited by more than 50,000 people each year, was placed under protection in 1964 and became part of the Charyn National Park, established on February 23, 2004. (Photo by Muhammed Enes Yildirim/Anadolu via Getty Images)

A photo taken on October 20, 2024, shows various patterns left on the beach after the ebb tide at the Yanghe Estuary wetland in Jiaozhou Bay in Qingdao, Shandong province, China. (Photo by Costfoto/NurPhoto/Rex Features/Shutterstock)