Thomas Browne, 'Urne-Buriall' (1658)

Title Page: Thomas Browne, Urne-Buriall (London, 1658) 

Urne-Buriall, otherwise known as Hydriotaphia, tells of the discovery of Saxon burial urns at Walsingham, which Browne mistakenly believed to be Roman. After a consideration of the urns in relation to various funerary practices, he offers a morbid conclusion: ‘man is a Noble Animal, splendid in ashes, and pompous in the grave’. 

This book features in Winchester College's video tour of the Fellows' Library (at 22.54). 

 
 
Listen to a part of Urne-Buriall: