Chest tombs or sarcophagi, Hackney

St John's-at-Hackney Churchyard Garden was the burial ground of Hackney's first parish church of St Augustine.   The medieval church was demolished in 1790 although the 13th century tower remains.   The burial ground was walled in 1707 and expanded twice in the 18th century.   This enabled today’s St John's church to be built, it is a very large church which was needed to accommodate a growing population.   The burial ground was declared full in 1859 and was grassed over in 1893 and converted into a public garden.   The graves were grassed over too and headstones removed to the perimeter.   The chest tombs or sarcophagi, as seen in my photo, have been railed into enclosures.