Mini journal logo  Home Issue Contents All Issues

The Burial Space Research Database (Data Paper)Open Data

Toby Pillatt, Gareth Beale, Katie Green, Debbie Maxwell, Harold Mytum, Kieron Niven, Julian Richards, and Nicole Smith

Referee statement by Susan Buckham

Cite this as: Pillatt, T. et al. 2020 The Burial Space Research Database (Data Paper), Internet Archaeology 55. https://doi.org/10.11141/ia.55.3

Summary

The Burial Space Research Database is a new repository for data produced from systematic archaeological surveys of burial spaces, undertaken on a per memorial basis. It enables the many local, community groups conducting research in this field to share their findings and publish results. The structure and form of the database requires groups to use a standardised recording methodology and vocabulary, meaning that datasets from different surveys are interoperable, allowing connections and comparisons to be made within and between local research projects. While burial space research is dominated by data on people and inscriptions, the database is also designed to accommodate archaeological approaches to recording that include detailed descriptions of the material form of monuments. A sophisticated search interface allows users to interrogate the archived datasets using a variety of different criteria, potentially revealing previously unrecognised temporal and spatial trends in the postmedieval history of commemoration. By acting as a central repository for burial space research, including individual people commemorated, the database also has the potential to become a powerful tool for genealogical and family history studies, drawing together disparate records in one place and making them freely available.

  • Google Scholar
  • Keywords: burial space, cemetery, community group, database, archaeological survey, recording standards, genealogy, family history
  • Accepted: 06 April 2020. Published: 23 June 2020
  • Funding: This paper was published with support from the University of York Impact Accelerator Fund (AHRC-aligned).
  • Associated archive: Burial Spaces Research Database hosted by ADS

Corresponding author: Toby PillattORCID logo
toby.pillatt@york.ac.uk
Department of Archaeology/Digital Creativity Labs, University of York

Co-authors: Gareth BealeORCID logo
Department of Archaeology, University of Glasgow

Katie GreenORCID logo
Archaeology Data Service

Debbie MaxwellORCID logo
Department of Theatre, Film, Television and Interactive Media, University of York

Harold MytumORCID logo
Department of Archaeology, Classics and Egyptology, University of Liverpool

Kieron NivenORCID logo
Archaeology Data Service

Julian RichardsORCID logo
Department of Archaeology, University of York

Nicole SmithORCID logo
School of Humanities, University of Glasgow

Full text

Cremation Society of Great Britain 2014 National Cremation Statistics 1960-2014. http://www.srgw.info/CremSoc4/Stats/National/2014/StatsNat.html, Accessed 20th November 2019.

Dethlefsen, E. and Deetz, J. 1966 'Death's heads, cherubs, and willow trees: Experimental archaeology in colonial cemeteries', American Antiquity 31(4), 502-510. https://doi.org/10.2307/2694382

English Heritage 2012 National Heritage Protection Plan (NHPP 4D2) Cemeteries and Churchyards: A Project Brief for Developing Local Assessment Toolkits – a scoping study to look at developing a standard model for recording cemeteries and burial grounds, EH 6358, December 2012. https://data.gov.uk/data/contracts-finder-archive/download/771440/87c8abfd-c5e9-40c4-89cf-beb7ce9d3eea

English Heritage 2013 National Heritage Protection Plan Framework 2011-2015, April 2013. https://historicengland.org.uk/images-books/publications/nhpp-plan-framework/nhpp-plan-framework/

Foster, S., Forsyth, K., Buckham, S. & Jeffrey, S. 2016 Future Thinking on Carved Stones in Scotland: A Research Framework (Core Text), Scottish Archaeological Research Framework: Society of Antiquaries of Scotland. http://hdl.handle.net/1893/24920 [PDF]

Historic England 2017 Commemorative Structures Listing Selection Guide https://historicengland.org.uk/images-books/publications/dlsg-commemorative-structures/heag110-commemorative-structures-lsg/

Ministry of Justice 2007 Burial Grounds. The results of a survey of burial grounds in England and Wales, June 2007. [PDF]

Mytum, H. 2000 Recording and Analysing Graveyards, Practical Handbooks in Archaeology 15, York: Council for British Archaeology.

Mytum, H. 2002 'A Comparison of Nineteenth and Twentieth century Anglican and Nonconformist Memorials in North Pembrokeshire', The Archaeological Journal 159, 194-241. https://doi.org/10.1080/00665983.2002.11020520

Mytum, H., Cameron, J. and Chapman, K. 2015 Developing Local Assessment Toolkits – a scoping study to look at developing a standard model for recording cemeteries and burial grounds, National Heritage Protection Plan: NHPP 4D2 Cemeteries and Churchyards, EH 6358. [PDF]

Rugg, J. 2000 'Defining the place of burial: what makes a cemetery a cemetery?', Mortality 5(3), 238-259. https://doi.org/10.1080/713686011

Rugg, J. 2013a Churchyard and Cemetery: Tradition and modernity in rural North Yorkshire, Manchester: Manchester University Press.

Rugg, J. 2013b 'Constructing the grave: competing burial ideals in nineteenth-century England', Social History 38(3), 328-345, https://doi.org/10.1080/03071022.2013.816167

Tarlow, S. 1998 'Romancing the stones: the graveyard boom of the later 18th century' in M. Cox (ed) Grave Concerns: Death and Burial in England 1700-1850, York: Council for British Archaeology. 33-43. Access via ADS Library

Tarlow, S. 1999 Bereavement and commemoration: an archaeology of mortality, Oxford: Blackwell.

Internet Archaeology is an open access journal based in the Department of Archaeology, University of York. Except where otherwise noted, content from this work may be used under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 (CC BY) Unported licence, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided that attribution to the author(s), the title of the work, the Internet Archaeology journal and the relevant URL/DOI are given.

Terms and Conditions | Legal Statements | Privacy Policy | Cookies Policy | Citing Internet Archaeology

Internet Archaeology content is preserved for the long term with the Archaeology Data Service. Help sustain and support open access publication by donating to our Open Access Archaeology Fund.