Dismembered Ideas

So this week I was thinking, we talk so much about the high status people, why not look up someone who has more infamous status, famous criminals, so what came to mind, well of course H.H. Holmes.  His infamous status has even stemmed some interesting urban legends and is a part of contemporary American culture, which I would think future archaeologists, would be very interested in.

So for those of you who haven’t watched “Supernatural”, or picked up a book of serial killers.   H.H. Holmes, also known, as Herman Webster Mudgett was one of America’s first documented serial killers.  He created a hotel in Chicago in 1893 where he committed most of his murders.  The “Castle” as the hotel was dubbed, was built across from the drug store he owned and was three stories high, this building was created with numerous windowless rooms, and difficult to get through hallways, and Holmes himself only understood the plans.   In this building he tortured and killed 27, possibly 250 people.  It was not however until after killing Howard Pitezel was he was arrested in 1894 and incarcerated.  After a look into the case reveling complete monstrosity, he was found guilty and in 1896 was hanged and died. 

Now the interesting part that has put Holmes apart from other serial killers, is that he requested, to have his body encased in concrete.  He requested this because one of his favorite things to do with the bodies of his victims was to dismember them, and he feared that after he was dead this would happen to his own body.  The even more intriguing piece is that his request, even though his infamous status of a serial killer was well known, was granted.  Through his gruesome and terrifying deeds he still has gained status by living within urban myths and stories of haunting, as well as his famous form of burial.  (Biography magazine, May 2003)

His burial, to exhume, would be a very interesting one.  I would wonder if our records would reflect, for future archaeologists, that he was a person of famous criminal status.  Or would he be mistaken for a person of high status, for this does not seem like a common burial practice.  Or would the archaeologists view this as a punishment only reserved for the worst of criminals? 

My two cents on this topic would be that his burial may be viewed as an rite only reserved for the most terrible, in comparison with North America’s culture of the time of popular cemetery burial, this is very different.  Many of the more high status individuals at the time were not buried in that way, so it might be a tip off that this is not a positive high status burial.  The fact that he is incased, frozen in a stance and with material filling his orifices; this could be interpreted as a desire to silence and obliterate the “evil” individual among the society.  

What do you guys think, how would future archaeologists interpret burials of criminals such as H.H. Holmes?

Link: http://web.ebscohost.com/ehost/detail?hid=104&sid=01ecb406-78a6-4fa3-87ad-dfb842f08df6%40sessionmgr115&vid=1&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZSZzY29wZT1zaXRl#db=rch&AN=9480229 (Article about H.H. Holmes)