Biography & True Stories

Unburied

The true story of Hannah Beswick, the Manchester Mummy

by Hannah Priest

Description

The macabre tale of an eighteenth-century woman immortalised in folklore as the 'Manchester Mummy'. In 1835, the Manchester Natural History Society opened the doors of its museum. Taking pride of place in its collection were three mummies: one was Egyptian, one was Peruvian and one was a woman from Cheetham Hill. This is the first time the true story of Hannah Beswick, the so-called 'Manchester Mummy', has been told. Over the years, explanations for the Manchester Mummy have ranged from the chilling - Hannah's fear of being buried alive - to the downright bizarre - the legend of her buried gold - but the truth is more complex. Exploring this fascinating episode from museum history, Unburied sheds light on the Victorian turn to the macabre and changing attitudes to the display of human remains. It debunks the legends and asks what Hannah Beswick can tell us about death and dying, mummies and museums.

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Reviews

The true story of the eighteenth-century woman who became the 'Manchester Mummy'. In 1835, the Manchester Natural History Society opened the doors of its museum. Taking pride of place in its collection were three mummies: one was Egyptian, one was Peruvian and one was a woman from Cheetham Hill. This is the first time the true story of Hannah Beswick, the so-called 'Manchester Mummy', has been told. Over the years, explanations for the Manchester Mummy have ranged from the chilling - Hannah's fear of being buried alive - to the downright bizarre - the legend of her buried gold - but the truth is more complex. Exploring this fascinating episode from museum history, Unburied sheds light on the Victorian turn to the macabre and changing attitudes to the display of human remains. It debunks the legends and asks what Hannah Beswick can tell us about death and dying, mummies and museums.

Author Biography

Hannah Priest is an Honorary Research Fellow at Swansea University

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Manchester University Press

Manchester University Press

Manchester University Press is a leading UK publisher known for excellent research in the humanities and social sciences.

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Bibliographic Information

  • Publisher Manchester University Press
  • Publication Date February 2025
  • Orginal LanguageEnglish
  • ISBN/Identifier 9781526175922 / 1526175924
  • Publication Country or regionUnited Kingdom
  • FormatPrint PDF
  • Pages336
  • ReadershipGeneral/trade; College/higher education; Professional and scholarly
  • Publish StatusPublished
  • Dimensions216 X 138 mm
  • Biblio NotesDerived from Proprietary 6041
  • Reference Code16051

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