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From today's featured article
Resurrectionists (1847), by Hablot Knight Browne
Resurrectionists (depicted in action) were commonly employed by anatomists in the United Kingdom during the 18th and 19th centuries to disinter the bodies of the recently deceased for anatomical research. Between 1506 and 1752 only a very few cadavers were available each year. The supply was increased when, in an attempt to intensify the deterrent effect of the death penalty, the Murder Act 1752 allowed executed criminals to be dissected—a fate generally viewed with horror—in place of gibbeting. The change was insufficient to meet the needs of hospitals and teaching centres. Corpses and their component parts became a commodity, but although the practice of disinterment was hated by the general public, bodies were not legally anyone's property. Resurrectionists caught plying their trade ran the risk of attack. Measures taken to stop them included increased security at graveyards, secure coffins, and physical barriers. Matters came to a head following the Burke and Hare murders of 1828. Although it did not make body snatching illegal, the Anatomy Act 1832 effectively put an end to the work of the resurrectionists by allowing anatomists access to the workhouse dead. (Full article...)
Recently featured: Peter Warlock – Sonic: After the Sequel – Ruma Maida
Archive – By email – More featured articles...
Did you know...
From Wikipedia's new and recently improved content:
Aerial view of Alrov Mamilla Avenue (foreground) and Old City Walls (background)
... that several 19th-century buildings were integrated into the design of Jerusalem's outdoor Mamilla Mall (pictured), including the Convent of St. Vincent de Paul?
... that Romeyn Beck Hough's American Woods is a set of over 1,000 paper-thin wood slices collected from 354 different tree species?
... that the capital of Madagascar, Antananarivo, was founded in 1625 by King Andrianjaka on the site of a village occupied by Vazimba, the island's earliest inhabitants?
... that visitors to the Florentine villa of Theodosia Trollope found the atmosphere less intense than that at the nearby home of Elizabeth Barrett Browning?
... that no part of Stranger Hollow is within 500 metres (1,600 ft) of a road?
... that according to one review of The War Symphonies: Shostakovich Against Stalin, Shostakovich would be "horrified" by the film's "mickey-mousings" of his music?
... that a revealing red frock by Australian designer Ruth Tarvydas had more coverage than Jennifer Hawkins when she won Miss Universe 2004?
Archive – Start a new article – Nominate an article
In the news
Antares rocket explosion
In baseball, the San Francisco Giants defeat the Kansas City Royals to win the World Series.
An Antares rocket explodes (pictured) during the launch of the unmanned Cygnus CRS-3 spacecraft to the International Space Station.
The Botswana Democratic Party maintains its majority in Parliament after the general election.
China launches an experimental lunar mission, Chang'e 5-T1, which will loop behind the Moon and return to Earth.
A soldier is shot dead at the National War Memorial in Ottawa, Canada, and shots are fired in the Centre Block Parliament building.
Congolese doctor Denis Mukwege is awarded the Sakharov Prize for helping victims of sexual violence in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Ongoing: Ebola outbreak – Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant
Recent deaths: Michael Sata – Mbulaeni Mulaudzi – Ben Bradlee
On this day...
October 31: Halloween; Samhain begins (Northern Hemisphere); Beltane begins (Southern Hemisphere); Reformation Day (Protestantism)
Martin Luther
475 – Romulus Augustulus took the throne as the last ruling emperor of the Western Roman Empire.
1517 – According to traditional accounts, Martin Luther (pictured) first posted his Ninety-Five Theses onto the door of the Castle Church in Wittenberg, present-day Germany, marking the beginning of the Protestant Reformation.
1822 – Emperor Agustín de Iturbide of the First Mexican Empire dissolved the Mexican Congress and replaced it with a military junta answerable only to him.
1984 – Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi was assassinated by two of her own Sikh bodyguards, sparking anti-Sikh riots throughout the country.
1999 – All 217 people on board EgyptAir Flight 990 were killed when the aircraft suddenly plummeted into the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Nantucket, Massachusetts, United States.
More anniversaries: October 30 – October 31 – November 1
Archive – By email – List of historical anniversaries
It is now October 31, 2014 (UTC) – Reload this page
From today's featured list
A photograph of a grey dam with red structures spaced across the top of it and with hilly terrain in the background all under a blue sky with white clouds
The tallest dams in China are some of the tallest dams in the world. Nearly 22,000 dams over 15 metres (49 ft) in height – about half the world's total – have been constructed in China since the 1950s. Many of the tallest are located in the southwestern part of the country on rivers such as the Yangtze (Three Gorges Dam pictured). While beneficial, many throughout the country have been criticized for their effects on the environment, displacement of locals and effect on transboundary river flows. Currently, the country's and world's tallest, Jinping-I Dam, an arch dam 305 m (1,001 ft) high, is located in Sichuan. The tallest embankment dam in China is the 261 m (856 ft) Nuozhadu Dam in Yunnan. The country's highest gravity dam is Longtan Dam at 216.2 m (709 ft), which can be found in Guangxi. At 233 m (764 ft), Shuibuya Dam in Hubei is the world's tallest concrete-face rock-fill dam. In Sichuan, the government is constructing the 312 m (1,024 ft) tall Shuangjiangkou Dam which, when complete, will become the world's tallest dam. (Full list...)
Recently featured: World Series Most Valuable Player Award – Stutterers – Public holidays in Rhodesia
Archive – More featured lists...
Today's featured picture
Halloween (poem)
Edward Scriven's engraving of John Masey Wright's illustration to Robert Burns' poem "Halloween". First published in 1786, the poem is included in the Kilmarnock volume and is one of Burns' longer poems.
Illustration: John Masey Wright and Edward Scriven; restoration: Adam Cuerden
Recently featured: Grammodes geometrica – Humayun and Bahadur Shah – CN Tower
Archive – More featured pictures...
Other areas of Wikipedia
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Wikipedia is hosted by the Wikimedia Foundation, a non-profit organization that also hosts a range of other projects:
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Wikipedia languages
This Wikipedia is written in English. Started in 2001, it currently contains 4,635,760 articles. Many other Wikipedias are available; some of the largest are listed below.
More than 1,000,000 articles: Deutsch español français italiano Nederlands polski русский svenska
More than 400,000 articles: català فارسی 日本語 norsk bokmål português Tiếng Việt українська 中文
More than 200,000 articles: العربية Bahasa Indonesia Bahasa Melayu čeština Esperanto euskara 한국어 magyar română српски / srpski suomi Türkçe
More than 50,000 articles: български dansk eesti Ελληνικά English (simple) galego עברית hrvatski latviešu lietuvių norsk nynorsk slovenčina slovenščina srpskohrvatski / српскохрватски ไทย
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Complete list
Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License; additional terms may apply. By using this site, you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Wikipedia® is a registered trademark of the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization.
Privacy policyAbout WikipediaDisclaimersContact WikipediaDevelopersMobile viewWikimedia Foundation Powered by MediaWiki
the free encyclopedia that anyone can edit.
4,635,760 articles in English
Arts
Biography
Geography
History
Mathematics
Science
Society
Technology
All portals
From today's featured article
Resurrectionists (1847), by Hablot Knight Browne
Resurrectionists (depicted in action) were commonly employed by anatomists in the United Kingdom during the 18th and 19th centuries to disinter the bodies of the recently deceased for anatomical research. Between 1506 and 1752 only a very few cadavers were available each year. The supply was increased when, in an attempt to intensify the deterrent effect of the death penalty, the Murder Act 1752 allowed executed criminals to be dissected—a fate generally viewed with horror—in place of gibbeting. The change was insufficient to meet the needs of hospitals and teaching centres. Corpses and their component parts became a commodity, but although the practice of disinterment was hated by the general public, bodies were not legally anyone's property. Resurrectionists caught plying their trade ran the risk of attack. Measures taken to stop them included increased security at graveyards, secure coffins, and physical barriers. Matters came to a head following the Burke and Hare murders of 1828. Although it did not make body snatching illegal, the Anatomy Act 1832 effectively put an end to the work of the resurrectionists by allowing anatomists access to the workhouse dead. (Full article...)
Recently featured: Peter Warlock – Sonic: After the Sequel – Ruma Maida
Archive – By email – More featured articles...
Did you know...
From Wikipedia's new and recently improved content:
Aerial view of Alrov Mamilla Avenue (foreground) and Old City Walls (background)
... that several 19th-century buildings were integrated into the design of Jerusalem's outdoor Mamilla Mall (pictured), including the Convent of St. Vincent de Paul?
... that Romeyn Beck Hough's American Woods is a set of over 1,000 paper-thin wood slices collected from 354 different tree species?
... that the capital of Madagascar, Antananarivo, was founded in 1625 by King Andrianjaka on the site of a village occupied by Vazimba, the island's earliest inhabitants?
... that visitors to the Florentine villa of Theodosia Trollope found the atmosphere less intense than that at the nearby home of Elizabeth Barrett Browning?
... that no part of Stranger Hollow is within 500 metres (1,600 ft) of a road?
... that according to one review of The War Symphonies: Shostakovich Against Stalin, Shostakovich would be "horrified" by the film's "mickey-mousings" of his music?
... that a revealing red frock by Australian designer Ruth Tarvydas had more coverage than Jennifer Hawkins when she won Miss Universe 2004?
Archive – Start a new article – Nominate an article
In the news
Antares rocket explosion
In baseball, the San Francisco Giants defeat the Kansas City Royals to win the World Series.
An Antares rocket explodes (pictured) during the launch of the unmanned Cygnus CRS-3 spacecraft to the International Space Station.
The Botswana Democratic Party maintains its majority in Parliament after the general election.
China launches an experimental lunar mission, Chang'e 5-T1, which will loop behind the Moon and return to Earth.
A soldier is shot dead at the National War Memorial in Ottawa, Canada, and shots are fired in the Centre Block Parliament building.
Congolese doctor Denis Mukwege is awarded the Sakharov Prize for helping victims of sexual violence in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Ongoing: Ebola outbreak – Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant
Recent deaths: Michael Sata – Mbulaeni Mulaudzi – Ben Bradlee
On this day...
October 31: Halloween; Samhain begins (Northern Hemisphere); Beltane begins (Southern Hemisphere); Reformation Day (Protestantism)
Martin Luther
475 – Romulus Augustulus took the throne as the last ruling emperor of the Western Roman Empire.
1517 – According to traditional accounts, Martin Luther (pictured) first posted his Ninety-Five Theses onto the door of the Castle Church in Wittenberg, present-day Germany, marking the beginning of the Protestant Reformation.
1822 – Emperor Agustín de Iturbide of the First Mexican Empire dissolved the Mexican Congress and replaced it with a military junta answerable only to him.
1984 – Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi was assassinated by two of her own Sikh bodyguards, sparking anti-Sikh riots throughout the country.
1999 – All 217 people on board EgyptAir Flight 990 were killed when the aircraft suddenly plummeted into the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Nantucket, Massachusetts, United States.
More anniversaries: October 30 – October 31 – November 1
Archive – By email – List of historical anniversaries
It is now October 31, 2014 (UTC) – Reload this page
From today's featured list
A photograph of a grey dam with red structures spaced across the top of it and with hilly terrain in the background all under a blue sky with white clouds
The tallest dams in China are some of the tallest dams in the world. Nearly 22,000 dams over 15 metres (49 ft) in height – about half the world's total – have been constructed in China since the 1950s. Many of the tallest are located in the southwestern part of the country on rivers such as the Yangtze (Three Gorges Dam pictured). While beneficial, many throughout the country have been criticized for their effects on the environment, displacement of locals and effect on transboundary river flows. Currently, the country's and world's tallest, Jinping-I Dam, an arch dam 305 m (1,001 ft) high, is located in Sichuan. The tallest embankment dam in China is the 261 m (856 ft) Nuozhadu Dam in Yunnan. The country's highest gravity dam is Longtan Dam at 216.2 m (709 ft), which can be found in Guangxi. At 233 m (764 ft), Shuibuya Dam in Hubei is the world's tallest concrete-face rock-fill dam. In Sichuan, the government is constructing the 312 m (1,024 ft) tall Shuangjiangkou Dam which, when complete, will become the world's tallest dam. (Full list...)
Recently featured: World Series Most Valuable Player Award – Stutterers – Public holidays in Rhodesia
Archive – More featured lists...
Today's featured picture
Halloween (poem)
Edward Scriven's engraving of John Masey Wright's illustration to Robert Burns' poem "Halloween". First published in 1786, the poem is included in the Kilmarnock volume and is one of Burns' longer poems.
Illustration: John Masey Wright and Edward Scriven; restoration: Adam Cuerden
Recently featured: Grammodes geometrica – Humayun and Bahadur Shah – CN Tower
Archive – More featured pictures...
Other areas of Wikipedia
Community portal – Bulletin board, projects, resources and activities covering a wide range of Wikipedia areas.
Help desk – Ask questions about using Wikipedia.
Local embassy – For Wikipedia-related communication in languages other than English.
Reference desk – Serving as virtual librarians, Wikipedia volunteers tackle your questions on a wide range of subjects.
Site news – Announcements, updates, articles and press releases on Wikipedia and the Wikimedia Foundation.
Village pump – For discussions about Wikipedia itself, including areas for technical issues and policies.
Wikipedia's sister projects
Wikipedia is hosted by the Wikimedia Foundation, a non-profit organization that also hosts a range of other projects:
Commons Commons
Free media repository MediaWiki MediaWiki
Wiki software development Meta-Wiki Meta-Wiki
Wikimedia project coordination
Wikibooks Wikibooks
Free textbooks and manuals Wikidata Wikidata
Free knowledge base Wikinews Wikinews
Free-content news
Wikiquote Wikiquote
Collection of quotations Wikisource Wikisource
Free-content library Wikispecies Wikispecies
Directory of species
Wikiversity Wikiversity
Free learning materials and activities Wikivoyage Wikivoyage
Free travel guide Wiktionary Wiktionary
Dictionary and thesaurus
Wikipedia languages
This Wikipedia is written in English. Started in 2001, it currently contains 4,635,760 articles. Many other Wikipedias are available; some of the largest are listed below.
More than 1,000,000 articles: Deutsch español français italiano Nederlands polski русский svenska
More than 400,000 articles: català فارسی 日本語 norsk bokmål português Tiếng Việt українська 中文
More than 200,000 articles: العربية Bahasa Indonesia Bahasa Melayu čeština Esperanto euskara 한국어 magyar română српски / srpski suomi Türkçe
More than 50,000 articles: български dansk eesti Ελληνικά English (simple) galego עברית hrvatski latviešu lietuvių norsk nynorsk slovenčina slovenščina srpskohrvatski / српскохрватски ไทย
Complete list of Wikipedias
Navigation menu
Create accountLog inMain PageTalkReadView sourceView history
Main page
Contents
Featured content
Current events
Random article
Donate to Wikipedia
Wikimedia Shop
Interaction
Help
About Wikipedia
Community portal
Recent changes
Contact page
Tools
What links here
Related changes
Upload file
Special pages
Permanent link
Page information
Wikidata item
Print/export
Create a book
Download as PDF
Printable version
Languages
Simple English
العربية
Bahasa Indonesia
Bahasa Melayu
Български
Català
Čeština
Dansk
Deutsch
Eesti
Ελληνικά
Español
Esperanto
Euskara
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Français
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Português
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Slovenščina
Српски / srpski
Srpskohrvatski / српскохрватски
Suomi
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ไทย
Tiếng Việt
Türkçe
Українська
中文
Complete list
Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License; additional terms may apply. By using this site, you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Wikipedia® is a registered trademark of the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization.
Privacy policyAbout WikipediaDisclaimersContact WikipediaDevelopersMobile viewWikimedia Foundation Powered by MediaWiki