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Welcome
Taphophilia (dot) Com...
A repository of morbid curiosities:
Thanatology and Taphophile Issues, Cemetery,
Funeral Industry and Death Related News.
A Taphophilia Thank You...
Taphophilia (dot) Com would not be possible without the knowledge, experience and talent of DarkestWeb. From its conception and early development, DarkestWeb was faced with many challenges; from inspiring and motivating, to providing guidance and direction. The continued dedication and support has produced results greater than ever expected, and for this, I owe a huge debt of gratitude.
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Graveyards of Chicago:
The People, History, Art, and Lore of Cook County Cemeteries
By Matt Hucke And Ursula Bielski. Discover a Chicago That Exists Just Beneath the Surface - About Six Feet Under! Take a tour of Chicago's permanent residents! Please visit the Lake Claremont Press website to purchase your copy of Graveyards of Chicago today!
Green-Wood Cemetery Arcadia Publishing announces the release of Alexandra Mosca's historic account of one of New York's most famous cemeteries. Aracdia Publishing's Images of America series has an extensive catalog of many cemetery publications! Please visit Arcadia Publishing to purchase your copy of Green-Wood Cemetery and to browse other available titles!
Men of Mortuaries Calendar
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Epitaphs: The Magazine for Cemetery Lovers By Cemetery Lovers
For information regarding subscriptions, single issues, submission guidelines, deadlines, classifieds or advertising for future issues, please visit The Cemetery Club.
Guardians of the Soul: Angels and Innocents, Mourners and Saints, Indiana's remarkable cemetery sculpture
with photography by John Bower and foreword by Claude Cookman is now
available. Please visit
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West Springfield Massachusetts: Stories Carved in Stone by Rusty Clark features information on early New England gravestone carvers with more than two hundred photos and illustrations. Please visit the Dog Pond Press website.
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Mortuary in reality is a long way from its TV image |
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Written by DeadGirl
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Monday, 17 April 2006 |
The popularity of television shows such as BBC series Waking The Dead and Silent Witness seem proof of the great British public's fascination with forensic-based thrillers.
But how much do any of us actually know about the work that mortuary assistants do and how far is the world portrayed on screen from reality? Reporter Karen Patient was invited to the hidden depths of Lynn's Queen Elizabeth Hospital mortuary to find out about the work of staff there.
From the programmes I've seen it's easy to imagine a mortuary as a dimly lit, slightly tatty-looking room which sharp-talking detectives rush into, two seconds after stubbing out five cigarettes, all the while trailed by a weak-stomached trainee officer.
So the spotlessly clean and disinfected room at Lynn's Queen Elizabeth Hospital, whose metallic tables gleam under the bright lights, seem at odds with the image. And that's not the only difference between fact and fiction according to senior anatomical pathology technologist Dave Spooner (57) and mortuary manager Rob Greenwood (52). "Everybody has to be gowned to come in here and wear protective clothing. Forensic work relies on DNA so you can't just walk in off the street," said Mr Greenwood. And for the most part visitors, such as police officers, watch post mortems from the mortuary gallery rather than peering over the shoulders of staff as they work. As well as assisting with post mortems a major part of the work of Lynn's mortuary staff involves liaising with around 40 funeral directors and preparing bodies for viewings by relatives – an aspect of the work rarely even hinted at on TV. "We can't do anything for our patients, but we can work hard to make them look the best they can. That's the last image relatives have. "The television gives us such bad press."
"They do viewings and just pull people straight out of the fridge," said Mr Greenwood. Certainly the pair are kept busy, receiving around 2,200 bodies at the Lynn mortuary each year, about 700 of which require post mortems. And it's not only the Lynn and district coroner the mortuary does work for, with cases also coming from Wisbech and Norwich. In most cases GPs are able to issue death certificates and funeral directors are called in straight away, but the mortuary's function is to take over where a case is unclear and if necessary hold the post mortem to confirm the cause of death. With so much work to do having an experienced team on site to prepare bodies for post mortems, take samples for any tests and organise identifications – sometimes using dental records where bodies have been severely damaged by water or fire – is essential. And, with help from medical laboratory assistant Ms Sue Roberts, the pair are on call around the clock, never sure what to expect when the bell goes to tell them that a new case is being brought in. Although both men came to their jobs after careers in very different fields, mortuary work is not something you can just walk in to. It takes three years to achieve the anatomical pathology technician certificate and a further two years to receive a diploma qualification. Mr Greenwood only took a job in a mortuary while recovering from fracturing his skull as a forces commando, but said when he found out what interesting work it was he changed career plans and has now been in the role for around 25 years. It was a similar tale for former advertising salesman Mr Spooner who joined the QEH department in 1999 after getting interested in the work while working as a hospital porter. "It just fascinated me, the technical aspects of it. "The human body is very complex and there's still an awful lot we don't know," he said. Mr Greenwood explained that one important aspect of post mortems, which was rarely mentioned, was their use for furthering medical research as pathologists could learn how effective treatments had been and find out how other conditions patients had might have affected medications. As well as a careful hand and a strong stomach, mortuary workers also have to have a resilient spirit as the work can be traumatic, and the men felt it was especially difficult when dealing with cases involving young people. And obviously there's the risk of having to deal with someone they know personally, but Mr Greenwood said personal feelings could not come into the equation because everyone had to be treated the same. "If you're a nurse you aren't going to refuse to treat your best friend because you know them – it's the same for us. "The person you know is in here and here," added Mr Spooner, touching his head and heart. |
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Taphophilia?
taphophilia (taf′ō-fil′ē-ă)
ORIGIN:
From the Greek words taphos, meaning "tomb" or "sepulcher" and philia, meaning "attraction or affinity to something, in particular the love or obsession with something"
DEFINITION: 1. An excessive interest in graves and cemeteries. 2. A love or fondness for funerals, graves, and cemeteries. 3. In psychiatry, a morbid attraction to graves and cemeteries
Quote Repository
“That is not dead which can eternal lie / And with strange aeons even death may die.” H.P. Lovecraft Quoting the
Shirtless and Sculpted
The Men of Mortuaries 2008 Calendar is now available! All sale proceeds benefit KAMMCARES, a breast cancer foundation.
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