Work on the 118-kilometer (73-mile) Crossrail transit line that began in 2009 with a tunnel through central London was temporarily halted this week when workers began unearthing skeletons below what will become a new ticket hall. The skeletons, thought to number several thousand, will be excavated over the next four weeks by a team of 60 archaeologists working in shifts, six days a week.
Due to open in 2018, the Crossrail transit line is the U.K.’s biggest construction project and the biggest archaeological dig in years. The remains will be identified when possible, although it is proving to be extremely difficult. Many of the coffin plates have corroded to the point of being unreadable. Archaeologists have found many of the gravestones missing because they were reused as building blocks over the years. Of the few gravestones found, one identified Mary Godfree, a woman who died of the plague in the 17th century.
The Museum of London Archaeology (MOLA) has been working with Crossrail for almost 10 years in preparation for the archaeological dig. Nick Elsden, the MOLA project manager said in a statement: “There are up to 6 meters (19.6 feet) of archaeology on site, in what is one of the oldest areas of the city, so we stand to learn a great deal.” Not only is the Bedlam burial ground an important site, but underlying the cemetery is a marsh with deposits dating to the Medieval period and a Roman road.
From Bethlem to Bedlam, a fascinating history of London
The history of Bedlam Cemetery actually dates back to 13th century London and one Simon FitzMary, a man born into modest means who rose to become the Sheriff of London, not once but twice. He was a man of deep beliefs in the virgin Mary and the Star of Bethlehem which became popular during the Crusades. It is said that after he became a man of means, he donated some land in Bishopsgate ward to the city of London, to be used in the construction of a charity hospital.
And it came to pass that in 1247 the Priory of St Mary of Bethlehem opened, devoted to the healing of sick paupers. The institution became known as Bethlehem Hospital, and later shortened to “Bethlem.” Soon, it was known widely as “Bedlam.” It was a relatively small structure, covering about two acres, centered around a courtyard. There were 12 cells for patients, a kitchen, places for staff to live and an exercise yard. The hospital stayed on that site for 400 years, finally moving to Moorfields in 1676.
By 1403, “lunatic” patients made up the majority of the people sent to Bethlem, and so it was that London ended up with its notorious and much feared first mental institution. This was because most of the patients were poor and usually had no one to stand up for them. Paupers and petty criminals often found themselves throw into the infamous hospital, as well as those with learning disabilities. Londoners began to associate mental illness with what went on in Bedlam.
Bedlam burial ground, also known as the New Churchyard was not associated with any Parish church, and therefore didn’t keep its own burial records. It was opened as an additional burial ground on Bethlem hospital’s garden patch to bury plague patients in the 16th century. It wasn’t long before it was used to bury London’s poor and religious non-conformists, as well as Bedlam patients. So there is quite a history to the burial ground, and one that will keep archaeologists busy for years.
Of special interest to scientists will be furthering their knowledge of Yersinia pestis, the plague bacterium. They plan to take pulp samples from the teeth of some of the skeletons to compare DNA samples to the DNA found in 14th-century skeletons teeth from another site who died of the plague in 1348. They are hoping to fill in the evolutionary tree of Y. pestis to see how it has evolved over the centuries.
