Graveyards : A History of Living with the Dead

by Roger Luckhurst

An arresting and poignant cultural history of graveyards, from early burial sites to now

Why, how and where do we inter our dead? How do we set out to remember them? The Pyramids of Giza, the catacombs and columbaria of Rome and the cenotaphs erected to the world’s war dead are but some of the answers. In inimitable style, Roger Luckhurst probes the often moving, sometimes contested ways in which people throughout history have responded to the ‘problem’ of laying the dead to rest.

Blending history, art, literature and popular culture, Graveyards explores the various different aspects of the treatment of the dead. Chapters range from early burials and the emergence of necropolises and catacombs, to grave-robbing, garden cemeteries and the perilous overcrowding of the urban dead, to monuments for deceased heroes and rulers and the development of modern memorial culture. The products of our persistent fascination with graveyards are everywhere in literature, art, film and television, and Luckhurst engages these cultural afterlives alongside grave sites’ particular social and historical contexts.

Illustrations throughout offer insights into the rich and unusual visual culture of the grave: helpful guides and provisions for the afterlife, tender dedications, gravestones and effigies sit with memento mori paintings, artistic visions of the underworld and stills from classic horror. Beautifully designed and carefully researched, this book takes a lyrical, unexpected look at graveyards as both site and symbol.

Genres: Nonfiction, History, Death, Anthropology

240 pages, Hardcover

First published October 2, 2025

About the author

Roger Luckhurst is a British writer and academic. He is Professor in Modern and Contemporary Literature in the Department of English and Humanities at Birkbeck, University of London and was Distinguished Visiting Professor at Columbia University in 2016. He works on Victorian literature, contemporary literature, Gothic and weird fiction, trauma studies, and speculative/science fiction.

Reviews

[Tim Adams · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a beautifully presented and well written exploration of the history and traditions of human burial, from prehistory through to modernity. The book isn’t just a simple history, it also goes into the culture of death and burial over the ages, as well as a comparison of the traditions of the abrahammic religions, as well as Buddhism and Hinduism.

The level of detail is excellent for a coffee table-type book - not as much detail as a genuine reference book, but more than enough for an intriguing read.

[Caroline · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a little more historical/academic than I was hoping (I wanted something more focused on the macabre!), but it was well researched and gorgeously designed

[Virginia Van · Rating 5 out of 5]

Roger Luckhurst looks at how various culture have dealt with their dead over time, from rock tombs to pyramids, catacombs and cenotaphs, from simple graves to crowded churchyards to the garden cemetery movement. Finally, he looks at the attitude of various religions to death and the after life and the cultural traditions that mark the change from one state to the next. Stunningly illustrated, this is book is interesting and lively full of memorable stories.

[Gemma · Rating 5 out of 5]

The book itself is gorgeous! Beautiful inside and out. Really enjoyed learning about different cultural practices and the evolving nature of how people use, think and feel about graveyards. A treasure of a book.

[Ed · Rating 4 out of 5]

Roger Luckhurst here has a wide ranging anthology type non-fiction book which does exactly as it suggests on the tin. His authorial voice is from a perspective similar to art critics, art historians, theorists, anthologists, and literary authors rather than a direct or personal viewpoint, and this serves his subject and scope very well and suits the book and its subject. As he succinctly points out, a book about graveyards is somewhat ghoulish - if there were a personal connection to the topic or the area then perhaps the author would become the main event, when in fact as it is presented this book does a good job of informing and structuring without feeling too cool or impersonal.

Much of the content is around the larger and more complex necropolis structures of civilisation and there is an embedded discussion around the argument from anthropologists that the necropolis and the cultural importance of death rituals are a defining characteristic of humanity. What reply would be made in light of the 'grieving' behaviours made by several animal species is not clear.

There are some arbitrary but enjoyable chapters and categories including the handling of the dead by major world religions, some modern change to urban graveyards and urban dead, and contemporary attitudes to the dead and their handling. There is a very natural first opening chapter on the most ancient evidence of the dead, their rituals, burials, processing etc. including the archaeological record with some breadth that was very enjoyable.

There are many beautiful photos and records displayed here, not least stunning photos of those most famous death monuments, the Taj Mahal and Humayun's Tomb. There was also excellent etymology scattered throughout - the origin of sarcophagus as being understood as a container that ate the flesh of those contained, for instance. In some ways the tone and focus reminded me of other thematically grouped non fiction, like the 'Colour' book released by the folio society.

This was enjoyable and I recommend it to anyone who thinks the title and subject appeals to them. It is not unduly grisly or ghoulish, but informative and varied. Certainly a good one to read adjacent to Halloween.