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A talk on bodysnatchers and burkers, introduced by a childre...

Date 17 March 1979
Track ID 65215
Part 1

Track Information

Original Track ID

SA1979.30.A1

Original Tape ID

SA1979.030

Summary

A talk on bodysnatchers and burkers, introduced by a children's song.

Ding dong the Catholic bells,
Mary is my mother.
Carry me over to the old churchyard
Beside my elder brother.
My coffin shall be black,
Six angels aroon ma back:
Two tae watch and two tae pray
And two for tae carry my soul away.

The Resurrection came prematurely when bodies were taken up by resurrectionists or noddies. Body-snatching was big business, especially in Edinburgh, where Dr Knox bought bodies for dissection. In contrast to bodysnatchers, burkers murdered the living, and Travellers were a great target for them, as their births were not registered, and they would not be missed as they moved around. On many occasions, Travellers' camps were found with all the people's belongings, but the people were never found again. The Travellers preserved stories about the burkers and retained a fear of them even into modern times.

The burkers were proficient at their trade, for instance keeping bodies fresh, and muffling the noises of wheels and horses' hoofs.

Item Notes

For 'Ding Dong, The Catholic Bells' (Roud 12943), see:

'Games a Bogie' (M. Sinclair, 1989) p. 16
'Golden City' (J. T. Ritchie, 1965) pp. 117, 124-125, 173
'Scottish Studies' 6 (H. Henderson, 1962) pp. 223-228
'Children's Games with Things' (P. & I. Opie, 1997) pp. 268-288
'Doh Ray Me, When Ah Wis Wee' (E. McVicar, 2007) pp. 215-216
'Alias MacAlias' (H. Henderson, A. Finlay, 2004 reprint) pp. 110-114
'The Lore and Language of Schoolchildren (P. & I. Opie, 1959) p. 54

Recording Location

County - Aberdeenshire

Parish - Aberdeen

Village/Place - Aberdeen

Language

English, Scots

Collection

SoSS

Classification

R12943

Source Type

Reel to reel

Audio Quality

Fair