The Fear of Premature Burial and the Safety Coffin

For a time in the 18th and 19th centuries, one of the most common fears in Europe and America was waking up in a coffin. It filled books and newspapers, and it produced some of history’s strangest inventions. This article explains where the fear came from and what happened to it.

What is taphophobia?

The fear of being buried alive. History.com explains that by 1891, the Italian psychiatrist Enrico Morselli had given the fear a clinical name, taphophobia, from the Greek words for “grave” and “fear.” The fear is old. Mental Floss notes that Pliny the Elder recorded cases among the Romans in 77 CE, but the golden age of the fear was the Victorian era.

Why was it so common in the 1800s?

Several things came together. History.com says the dread grew into a cultural fixation in the late 18th and 19th centuries, driven by pandemics, a sensationalist press, doubts about the new science, and a Victorian fascination with death. Wikipedia adds that during the cholera epidemics, fear of contagion led to quick burials that did not distinguish between the dead and the dying. History.com cautions that most tales of premature burial were undoubtedly made up, and that Edgar Allan Poe could not resist the theme, but the fear behind them was real.

What were waiting mortuaries?

Places to watch the dead until decay was certain. History.com says families in Europe paid to keep bodies in “waiting mortuaries,” where attendants watched for days or weeks until clear signs of decay appeared, or could be smelled. In Germany, McGill University’s science office says, funeral homes built “death halls” where the recently deceased stayed for a few days before burial. Mental Floss reports that the Austrian writer Johann Nestroy asked for his body to be kept in a waiting mortuary with a signaling device that would announce any sign of life.

What was a safety coffin?

A coffin with a way to call for help. The Australian Museum explains that many designs had ropes that would ring a bell, and over 30 different designs were patented in Germany in the second half of the 19th century. One patent described a tube with a ladder and a cord tied to the hand of the person inside, ending in a bell above the ground. Wikipedia says another design detected movement, opened a tube to supply air, and raised a flag and rang a bell at the same time.

Did any of them work?

There is no evidence that they did. The Australian Museum says that although several designs were built and sold, there is no indication that any dead person was ever buried in a safety coffin. Wikipedia likewise says there are no documented cases of anybody being saved by one.

What did famous people do?

Some took precautions. Mental Floss says philosopher Arthur Schopenhauer admitted a fear of premature burial and asked that his body stay above ground for five days. Atlas Obscura reports that an 18th-century Englishwoman, Hannah Beswick, left her estate to her doctor on the condition that her body never be buried. History.com notes that in 1896 businessman William Tebb helped found the London Association for the Prevention of Premature Burial.

Why did the fear fade?

Better medicine and embalming. Wikipedia says that modern embalming, as practiced in some countries, notably in North America, has largely ended the fear, since no one has ever survived it. Doctors today have careful tests for confirming death. See How Does a Doctor Know Someone Is Dead? and Clinical Death vs. Biological Death. Atlas Obscura notes that designs for devices to prevent premature burial were still being submitted as recently as 2013.