How dead are the dead? In medieval society, the corpses of the deceased were attributed a special role in many respects: they shared the everyday living space with their descendants and, according to their beliefs, could actively intervene in the life of the community. Based on the materiality of death, this book comprehensively examines the burial, preservation, and destruction of the corpse within the specific historical context. The resulting ambivalent treatment of the corpse simultaneously challenges a confrontation with modern perspectives on death.