Re-enactment of a 19 century funeral. century century century century - PDF document

1111 2222 Re-enactment of a 19 century funeral. century century century century was a time of romance, sentiment andmystery. One tradition still holds a fascination for many of us: Victorianmourning and the items that served as reminders of their mourning suchas jewelry, clothing and various other mementos, including portraits andphotographs.The Death.The Death.The Death.The Death. Death was a major part of Victorian life. A “good”death allowed the dying person to give advice and blessing to each familythat the death would not be mourned. Victorian mourning traditionsetiquette. Entire families mourned the deceased and funeralswere held at home instead of church. After a death the house wasmirrors and windows. Clocks were stopped at the hour of the death. Candles were lit and flowers were brought in–not only for remembrancebut to mask the odor of the decaying body. Funeral biscuits wrapped inwhite paper and sealed with black wax were served as favors for theVisits of condolence were expected to be made within a week forThere are sources that indicate that a widow or under-age children of thedeceased were not necessarilyexpected to attend the funeralbecause their grief would beassumed to be too great to bear. the parlor or a downstairs bedroomand a 24-hour vigil would be keptuntil the burial one to four days later. Held out of respect for the dead, thevigil also had practicalconsiderations–the fear of beingburied alive. Such a concern was prominent and between 1843 and 1910at least ten patents appeared for life detecting devices. One device waselectrical alarm and an air tube extending from the coffin to ground level.