This simple metal loop next to a gravestone in Ebenezer Lutheran Church in Columbia, SC tells a story. It is thought to be part of a safety coffin. Taphophobia is the fear of being buried alive, and in the 1800s that was a legitimate fear. Patients in deep comas were sometimes assumed to be dead, and were buried. A safety coffin would have a cord connected to the victim/supposedly deceaseds hand, and it would come through a hole in the coffin up to this loop. A bell was suspended from the loop. If the person did come to, they could pull the cord, ring the bell, and let folks know that they were alive. Of course, this assumes that someone was nearby when they rang the bell. Otherwise, I hate to imagine their fate. https://flic.kr/p/kkeLdx
Posted on: Tue, 30 Sep 2014 02:52:52 +0000