Abstract: Objective To explore the unidentified corpses in Shaoxing city in recent years to provide the experience for these types of corpse examination and forensic identification. Methods One hundred and twenty-seven unidentified corpses were collected and analyzed in the period from January 2009 to June 2011. The scene investigation, clothing examination and information of forensic investigation were collected and analyzed. Results Most of the unidentified corpses are the young male. Of them, there are 3 homicide cases. There are 92 cases（72.44%） of the corpses was found with all clothes and 72 cases（56.69%） with the belongings. There are 63 cases（49.61%） of the cases was died from downing and 15 cases（11.81%） was died from hypothermia and starvation. Cause of death in 25 cases（19.69%） was undetermined. Conclusion The most of unidentified corpses in Shaoxing are found in water and died from accidents. The degree of corpse putrefaction is the principal factor to analyze the cause of death.

Key words: forensic pathology, cause of death, cadaver, cases study