Elephant Man grave is found

The unmarked grave of Joseph Merrick – better known as the elephant Man – has been found after nearly 130 years, it is claimed.

Merrick, pictured, had a skeletal and soft tissue deformity and was cruelly used as a ‘ freak show’ attraction in Victorian Britain. his skeleton has been preserved at the Royal London hospital since his death in 1890. But Jo Vigor-Mungovin, who has written a biography about Merrick, said she discovered that his soft tissue was laid to rest at the City of London Cemetery after researching old burial records.

Merrick was born in August 1862 in Leicester, and his condition – thought to be the rare genetic Proteus syndrome – did not develop until he was five.

his head measured 36in, his right wrist 12in and one of his fingers 5in in circumference. Merrick’s story was made into an acclaimed film in 1980 starring John hurt.