Hannah Beswick, of Hollinwood, Oldham, Lancashire, had a pathological fear of premature burial. Following her death in 1758 her body was embalmed and kept above ground, to be periodically checked for signs of life. Her mummified body was eventually bequeathed to the Museum of the Manchester Natural History Society, where she was put on display. It was decided, with the permission of the Bishop of Manchester, that Beswick should finally be buried.
About Manchester Mummy in brief
Hannah Beswick, of Birchin Bower, Hollinwood, Oldham, Lancashire, was a wealthy woman who had a pathological fear of premature burial. Following her death in 1758 her body was embalmed and kept above ground, to be periodically checked for signs of life. The method of embalming was not recorded, but it probably involved replacing the blood with a mixture of turpentine and vermilion. The body was then put in an old clock case and stored in the house of Beswick’s family physician, Dr Charles White. Her apparently eccentric will made her a local celebrity, and visitors were allowed to view her at White’s house. Her mummified body was eventually bequeathed to the Museum of the Manchester Natural History Society, where she was put on display. The museum’s collection was later transferred to Manchester University, when it was decided, with the permission of the Bishop of Manchester, that Beswick should finally be buried.
The ceremony took place at Harpurhey Cemetery on 22 July 1868, more than 110 years after her death; the grave is unmarked. There is no mention in Beswick’s 1757 will of her desire to beembalmed. It has been suggested that White had been asked to keep Beswick above ground only until it became obvious that she was actually dead, but that he was unable to resist the temptation to add a mummy to his collection of dry and dry anatomy exhibits, and so made the decision to embalm her. The mid-18th century saw an upsurge in the public’s fear of being mistakenly buried alive, and much debate about the uncertainty of the signs of death. Various suggestions were made to test for Signs of life before burial, ranging from pouring vinegar and pepper into the corpse’s mouth to applying red hot pokers to the feet, or even into the rectum.
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This page is based on the article Manchester Mummy published in Wikipedia (as of Nov. 05, 2020) and was automatically summarized using artificial intelligence.
