Following directly behind the bier were the servants who would, in earlier times, have been slaughtered at the graveside, along with a warrior's hors….

Death and burial were a public spectacle. Shakespeare may have seen for himself the gravediggers at St Ann's, Soho, playing skittles with skulls and ….

More than a hygienic method of disposing of the dead, cremation enabled lovers and comrades to be mingled together for eternity..