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“Carry Me to Yon Kirk Yard”: An Investigation of Changing Burial Practices in the Seventeenth-Century Cemetery at St. Mary’s City, Maryland

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Abstract

Fifty-seven burials were excavated in the 17th-century cemetery at st. Mary’s city, Maryland. Through a unique combination of the structural history of the site and a detailed recording process, the burials are assigned to three 30-year periods, spanning ca. 1638–1730. This data is used to investigate changes in the use and construction of coffins, the function of copper pins, and the evolution of hand placement in the burials. These trends are related to larger changes in English burial practices.

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Riordan, T.B. “Carry Me to Yon Kirk Yard”: An Investigation of Changing Burial Practices in the Seventeenth-Century Cemetery at St. Mary’s City, Maryland. Hist Arch 43, 81–92 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03377116

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03377116

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