Little is known about mortality and causes of death in northern Italy during the early 20^th c., even if isolated cases have been published for earlier periods [1-4].

Recently, the authors had access to a burial authorization registry (Permesso di seppellimento) dealing with all cadavers buried in the cemetery island of San Michele, originating from the marshy lagoon of Venice (North Italy), between the 30^th of August and the 28^th of September 1917. The population of Venice at this period is estimated to around 200,000 individuals [5]. San Michele is a 17.6 ha island situated close to the northeast shore of historical Venice, and established since 1807 as the principal cemetery of the city.

Each sheet from the registry mentions: date of death declaration, complete name with direct filiations, age at death (given in years or months, sometimes in days for young children), date and hour of death, place of death, and cause of death given by the forensic practitioner (medico necroscopo). Necroscopic has to be understood as referring to the external (and potential internal) examination of the dead body with the purpose of certifying death and establishing its causes [6]. In a late administrative document (Mortuary Police Regulations, 1934), it is specified that the necroscopic physician is not a medico-legal expert and that his/her certifications has prevalently administrative purposes.

This registry is complete for the 30-days period, representing a total of 254 deaths (i.e. an average of 8.5 deaths per day, with extremes from 2 (29^th of August) to 17 (19^th of September) cadavers deposed within the island). Average age is 35.8 years (with extremes from fetuses of 3 months in-utero to 92.5 year-old). Sex ratio is 1.057, with 130 males (average age-at-death 34.4 year-old), 123 females (average age-at-death 37.5 year-old), and 1 indeterminate. Children were defined as less than 15 year-old.

According to the cause of death mentioned at the end of each certificate, all cases have been classified into 10 pathological entities: starvation (4.4%, n=11, including 7 children, all under 1-year-old), infection (51.7%, n=131, including 54 children, 33 of them being under 1 year-old), inflammation (6%, n=15, including 7 children), tumor (5.6%, n=14, including no children), obstetrics (9%, n=23, including 22 children and a woman of 24 year-old), vascular (17.4%, n=44, including 5 children), malformation (1%, n=2, including 1 children), trauma (2.3%, n=6, including 1 children), degenerative (1%, n=2), unknown (1%, n=2).

Main causes of infection were represented by tuberculosis (25%, n=33), gastro-enteritis, meningitides, nephritis, pertussis, malaria, cholera, plus one case of septicemia following wounds caused by First World War (WWI) in a 28-year-old male.

Tumors were: cervical cancer (n=4, ages from 40 to 71 year-old), fibromyosarcoma of the uterus (66 year-old), multiple abdominal sarcoma (female of 19 year-old), stomach cancer (males of 66 and 68, female of 76 year-old), esophageal cancer (male of 61, and female of 75 year-old), liver cancer (female of 82 year-old), breast cancer (female of 77 year-old), brain tumor (female of 61 year-old), and one case without any precision.

A great majority of vascular causes were represented by stroke (n=21), followed by myocardial infarction (n=10), cardiopathy, pulmonary embolism, aortic aneurysm, etc.

Interesting are the cases of obstetrical complications, where 2 fetuses of 3 and 4 months in-utero were buried inside the cemetery, even in the absence of any viability.

Cases related to trauma were composed of a fall from a great height (children of 14 year-old), a complicated femur fracture (female of 70 year-old), a suicide by precipitation (female of 40 year-old), sacrointestinal and bladder wounds related to shrapnels in a context of WWI (male of 60 year-old), and drowning (males of 25 and 42 year-old).

Death is generally declared 1 day after death (59%), with extremes from 0 (40%) to 5 days (<1%). In quite all the cases, the delay between death declaration and inhumation is given, and strictly limited to 24 hours. Exceptions, i.e. extension to 48 hours, are rare (n=17) without any predominant cause or period of the month. This short period is due to the absence of any refrigeration process in the city at this period, and the necessity of inhumation before the appearance of strong putrefaction signs (embalming processes being rare in this chronocultural context) [7].

Such a preliminary examination of this registry also highlights its great interest for the history of necroscopic practice, and the evolution of diseases spread. It also focuses on the post-mortem status of some individuals, especially early fetuses who have a complete place within the cemetery (even in the absence of any viability and/or vitality).