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Cadavers Essay

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Dating back to 4000 BC, people have always been curious about the human body; even more so fascinated by the unknown and what lies beneath the surface. Until the 16th century, nobody took the study of anatomy seriously, and not long after, private anatomy schools were becoming more popular in England and Scotland. Towards the end of the eighteenth century, advances in medicine began to grow, as well as the instruction of proper dissection among human bodies for aspiring doctors. The main issue with this kind of teaching was that there was not enough material to provide for students legally. The bodies that would be used for teaching purposes slowly started to dwindle down, and the only available source to turn to were the gallows or the grave. The need for said bodies became increasingly important as well as the need for anatomical education. With the increasing need for cadavers also came a new profession: grave robbing.
Without a legalized source of cadavers, many surgeons and students turned to body snatching. However, there was also a multitude of men that worked in groups to provide for students and professors as well. During 1795, in Lambeth, a professional gang of 15 men served a total of eight surgeons, and received their sources from 30 different burial grounds. The people that partook in these events did it for the purpose of providing students with anatomical material, and it also provided some students with a source of income. “Corpses cost 2 guineas and a crown; children cost 6 shillings for the first foot and 9 pence for each extra inch. By 1820, the cost had risen to 20 guineas for a standard corpse; ‘freaks’ cost a lot more.” (Magee) Due to grave robbing becoming such an issue during …show more content…

High alert was conducted after multiple bodies went missing, and cemeteries were patrolled by even more armed watchmen. What many do not know, is that many ressurectionists were actually murdered or severely

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