My friend Kevin Varty with his In Memoriam Items - truly a collection to die for!
Unusual or Amusing
A stuffed unicorn, Barking cemetery
Cemetery Wildlife
Raindrops on a spiders web.
''Bleeding' angel. Highgate cemetery.
Cat Pere Lachaise, Parist.
Kensal Green
Iron monument with grille, Birmingham. Photos: Kevin Varty.
City of London cemetery,
it made me laugh!
Marigold. Daughter of Sir Winston Churchill, Kensal Green cemetery
Ladybird
Haserot angel, Ohio, USA.
Stoney, Highgate Cemetery, he was involved with producing Hovis bread.
Kensal Green Cemetery open day.
A bed monument from a small churchyard in Essex
Black angel, York Minster. Photo: Richard Ford
Mouse, Tower Hamlets
Scottie dog, Croydon Cemetery
Brompton Cemetery
Dog, Magnolia cemetery, USA with thanks to Sid Cemetery Prints (see links.)
Tear jar: St Pancras and Islington cemetery. Tear bottles were common in the first few centuries AD. Small tear shaped bottles were placed as a tribute at the base of a tomb. Sometimes professional mourners were hired to supplement the bereaved family’s tears and extra compensation was paid to those who cried the most and were loudest! Tear bottles reappeared in the 19th century and are strongly associated with Queen Victoria.
Woodmen of the World: Graves depicting tree stumps or logs in their design. Woodmen of the World (WOW) is a fraternal organization founded by Joseph Cullen Root in 1890 in Omaha, Nebraska. The organization offers insurance to its members and helps those in need. In cemeteries you will sometimes see gravestones with “Here Lies a Woodman of the World” engraved on them. Logs, along with axes and other woodworking tools, are common motifs. Sometimes the grave markers themselves will be in the shape of logs or tree stumps. These are called “tree stones.” They sometimes include the Latin Woodmen phrase “Dum Tacet Clamat, ” which means “Though Silent He Speaks.”
Victorian Mutes. Professional mourners called Mutes walked in the funeral procession looking somber and, as the name suggests, did not speak. The aim was to create an atmosphere of deep sadness for the departed loved one. They were a symbolic protector of the deceased and the Mute would usually stand near the door of the home or church. They would be clad in heavy mourning, typically black cloaks, top hats with trailing black hatbands, and gloves.
The funeral procession was led by various foot attendants: pall bearers who carried batons (to ward off evil spirits and body snatchers), feather men and pages. Mutes often had to stand out in the cold so they were given lots of gin to drink. This often resulted in disorderly conduct. As you can imagine it would greatly upset the family of the deceased because these men had been hired to conduct themselves in a solemn manner!
Julius Beer monument Highgate, exterior left and right interior.
The central mausoleum with the pyramid top in Highgate cemetery, London is that of Julius Beer (1836-1880.) Beer was born into poverty in Frankfurt and determined to make his fortune. It is believed he dealt on the London Stock Exchange and became proprietor of The Observer newspaper. However, being Jewish and a foreigner and having earned his wealth by commercial success rather than inheritance, he always felt ostracised by Victorian high society. The mausoleum was built by Italian craftsmen and cost £5000 then, £2-£3 million in today's terms. At 1000ft above sea level, the mausoleum lords it over most of Highgate's residents. Inside, the newly restored sculpture is of his daughter Ada. The likeness of the little girl being comforted by an angel was copied from her death mask as Ada died as a child. The ceiling is decorated with gold leaf. It took three months to restore the monument in recent years at a cost of £42K. The interior of the mausoleum is not open to visitors.
The monument shows a rock which represents the church so this depicts the woman (she’s not an angel) clinging on to her beliefs in death. The cross of course is symbolises faith, she wants to be saved. The print on the left is more dramatic; the hand coming out of the ground is evil and could be pulling her down to hell.
