The plaque on the outside gates reads “Outcast Dead R.I.P.,” and the ribbons surrounding carry the names of all who might fall into that category.
The dates of their death span hundreds of years. In what was London’s original red light district, a small graveyard honors the women who once worked there in medieval times.
The London borough of Southwark on the South Bank began as a seedy marshland filled with pubs and brothels. Today, it’s a posh tourist destination, and Cross Bones has become a makeshift pilgrimage site to the prostitutes, paupers, and thousands of other unknowns who are buried there.