The medieval wake was instigated because people used lead cups to drink ale or whiskey. When found lying on the side of the road they would be taken for dead, prepared for burial and laid out on the kitchen table with food and drink and wait to see if they'd wake up. There was a shortage of burial places in England so graves were reused. In reopening these coffins, about one in 25 were found to have scratch marks on the inside and they realized they had been burying people alive. A string on the "deceased's" wrist and led to a bell to alert someone on the grave yard shift.
The medieval wake was instigated because people used lead cups to drink ale or whiskey. When found lying on the side of the road they would be taken for dead, prepared for burial and laid out on the kitchen table with food and drink and wait to see if they'd wake up. An additional facet of death in medieval times was the shortage of burial places in England. So they would dig up coffins and re-use the graves. In reopening these coffins, about one in 25 were found to have scratch marks on the inside and they realized they had been burying people alive. So they tied a string on the "deceased's" wrist and led it through the coffin and up through the ground and tied it to a bell. Someone would have to sit out in the graveyard all night to listen for the bell. Hence on the "graveyard shift" they would know that someone was "saved by the bell" or he was a "dead ringer."
Size: 4635px × 3450px
Location: England
Photo credit: © De Luan / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
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