Social History — 1826
Coffin plate
Lead coffin plate from a child's coffin buried in the graveyard of St James Church, Pentonville Road. The plate is inscribed 'Masr Thos Beete Smith died 6th Augt 1826 Aged 3 months.' In the 1820s and 1830s up to half of all funerals in London were of children under the age of ten. The poorest families could not afford to bury their children in coffins. Although infant mortality was highest amongst London's poor, all babies were at risk of dying from infection, diarrhoaea and lack of breast milk.
- Category:
- Social History
- Object ID:
- 83.911/1
- Object name:
- coffin plate
- Object type:
- Artist/Maker:
- —
- Related people:
- Related events:
- Related places:
- Production date:
- 1826
- Material:
lead
- Measurements/duration:
- H 155 mm, L 120 mm
- Part of:
- —
- On display:
- —
- Record quality:
- 100%
- Part of this object:
- —
- Owner Status & Credit:
Permanent collection
- Copyright holder:
digital image © London Museum
- Image credit:
- —
- Creative commons usage:
- —
- License this image:
To license this image for commercial use, please contact the London Museum Picture Library.