Tramp's body may end up in art show

The embalmed corpse of a tramp may become a gallery exhibit after a coroner ruled yesterday that it was the property of an artist's estate.

Robert Lenkiewicz had befriended Edwin MacKenzie – otherwise known as Diogenes – and honoured his wish to have his body preserved when he died 18 years ago.

The artist had been involved for years in a dispute with the local authorities, who insisted the tramp should be buried. But Lenkiewicz kept one step ahead of the local council by refusing to reveal the whereabouts of the corpse, which he kept hidden in his studio in Plymouth.

The issue resurfaced in August when Lenkiewicz died of a heart attack and the tramp's body was discovered in a drawer in his studio.

The coroner was asked to identify the body and decide who should have possession.

Yesterday, the coroner for Plymouth and South Devon, Nigel Meadows, said: "I have decided after a lot of thought that the body should go back to the executor of the Lenkiewicz estate." He said the executor of the Lenkiewicz estate could have the body cremated or transferred to the Lenkiewicz Foundation, the charity responsible for the artist's paintings and books.

An original Lenkiewicz painting that features Diogenes sold at auction last month for £44,000.

Mr MacKenzie's body is expected be released from the mortuary at Derriford Hospital, Plymouth, next week.

Mr Meadows said: "Provided they comply with health and safety regulations and don't outrage public decency, it is possible they could retain the body on public display."