A woman lay undiscovered in her flat for three weeks after being beaten to death, the Old Bailey heard today.
Siobhan Kelly, 39, was the victim of a "sustained and savage" attack, said prosecutor Duncan Atkinson.
She may have taken up to 15 hours to die after being bludgeoned on the head, punched and stamped.
Police forced their way into her flat in Tudor Road, Gipsy Hill, south London, on 7 February last year.
They found her decomposing body wrapped in a duvet on the bed and blood spatter marks in the bedroom and living room.
Atkinson said she had been attacked at different times in both rooms.
There was evidence that she had been struck with a red candle in the living room, which may have knocked her unconscious for a while.
She had later crawled into the bedroom where she was attacked again. A bedside lamp was thought to have been used to strike her several times.
Kelly also had fractured ribs and boot marks on her clothing.
She was last seen alive on 15 January when Stephen Foad, with whom she had a casual relationship, claims he left her alive. He denies attacking her.
Foad, 42, of nearby Foxhill Lane, has pleaded not guilty to murder.
Atkinson said palm prints in blood in both rooms allegedly matched Foad, as did the bloody boot prints.
He added: "It was this defendant who unleashed a sustained and savage attack on Siobhan Kelly.
"Miss Kelly had been beaten to death. There were a number of heavy blows to her head and blows to her body and arms."
The trial was adjourned to tomorrow.