Eaves-drip burials, the medieval custom of interring infants and small children next to churchyard foundations was practiced during the 7th–12th centuries AD throughout Britain. This early Christian custom was first noticed during archaeological excavations (1977–1984) of an Anglo-Saxon cemetery at Raunds Furnells, Northamptonshire. Archaeologists uncovered a burial space within five feet (1.5 m) of the church foundation which contained several closely packed graves of newborn babies and infants under one year in age. At the Raunds Furnells site and later in several other medieval cemeteries, archaeologists have discovered the clustering of graves of infants and small children next to church walls.
