Category: D

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Drapery in Cemeteries

Drapery in churchyards
Drapery in churchyards

Drapery in cemeteries and old churchyards is commonplace. You can see it draping headstones and urns, and it symbolises death, and mourning.

In the Victorian era, the urn became a popular symbol of death. It symbolises the return of the physical body to dust, while the soul is everlasting.

The urn’s history started in Pagan religions that carried out cremation. It wasn’t until the late 19th century that attitudes changed due to increasing populations and unhygienic burial conditions.

The ashes of the deceased where commonly collected and buried in an old, or roughly made cooking pot. As these civilizations grew the containers became more elaborate.

The Victorians love of ancient Greek and Roman style decoration is on show in many of their cemeteries and churchyards.

An urn with drapery found in the wonderful churchyard of St Cuthbert's
An urn with drapery found in the wonderful churchyard of St Cuthbert’s

Drapery

Below are some other points to consider in regards to deciphering the meaning of drapery in churchyards.

  • It can represent separation as the Temple in Jerusalem had a curtain separating the sacred area
  • Drapery seen on headstones usually depicts the veil between life and death. It can also represent the crossing of that plane and to others, it symbolises God’s protection until Resurrection
  • During the deceased’s journey from their home to their burial ground, a black cloth draped their coffin. This was the pall and is prior to the creation of hearses.

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Amanda Norman Photography
To view more of Amanda’s graveyard photography, please visit her AmandaNorman.com
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Danse Macabre

Danse Macabre
Danse Macabre

The Danse Macabre or translated into English, the Dance of Death is a medieval allegory that reminded folk about memento mori.

Danse Macabre
Danse Macabre, anonymous woodcut in Guy Marchant editions, Paris, 1491 & 1492, London, British Museum

Danse Macabre

In Heidelberg’s university library, the world’s oldest woodcut shows it in all its glory. It dates to somewhere between 1455-1458.

It’s message is clear!

No matter our status in life, the dance of death unites us all. It depicts each rank in society, from the pope through to a child, walking with the dead into Hell.

I’ve included an extract of the text, Death to the Child: –

Crawl over here. You must learn to dance here.
Weep or laugh, I hear you just the same.
Even if you had the teats in your mouth
it wouldn’t help you in this hour.

Oh my dear mother.
A black man drags me away.
How can you leave me now?
Now I must dance and can’t yet walk.

Heidelberg’s Dance of Death 1455-1458

Sadly, at one time you could see a mural of it on a wall inside a charnel house within the Saints Innocents Cemetery in Paris. Demolition of the wall took place in 1669.

Last but not least, the Danse Macabre popularity grew when played out in the streets of Germany and Spain. Due to the Black Death, it’s message was clear.

Legend of the Three Living and the Three Dead

Finally, there is a legend of the three living and the three dead that is older than the Danse Macabre. It dates to the 13th century and survives due to its popularity in frescoes and murals.

Three young gentlemen on horses meet three cadavers who warn them of the following: –

What we were, you are;
what we are, you will be

Legend of the Three Living and the Three Dead
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Memento Mori

Memento Mori Headstone Symbols
Memento Mori Headstone Symbols

Memento Mori reminds us, the living that the best preparation for a good death, is to lead a good life. Only then will this ensure that we reach Heaven.

Memento Mori – Remember that YOU will die

Memento Mori was taken very seriously back in the 16th and 17th centuries. Today however, I believe that the message Memento Mori portrays, is just as significant, except for the Heaven bit.

Memento Mori skull and crossbones
Memento Mori skull and crossbones

The Puritan Belief

After doing some research, I discovered that The Puritans of the 16th and 17th century had strong religious views following the Reformation in England.

The Puritan belief was that only a select few could reach Heaven, with the remaining doomed to be born, live, die and then rot.

Back in the day, burial near the altar within a church was the preferred choice for a Puritan as Heaven was within reach. Unfortunately, churches were running out of space, hence the beginning of artistic expression on headstones within the churchyard.

By placing final reminders upon one’s headstone, this would ensure that others would follow in their path.

Mortality Symbols

The skull and crossbones is a common symbol of Memento Mori. Other common symbols include: –

  • Hourglass to show that time is fleeting
  • Wings to show an ascension to Heaven. Typically shown on skulls and hourglasses
  • Coffins and Sexton tools

Centuries ago with various plagues and diseases, death was always imminent. Thankfully modern advances in medicine and life expectancy have increased.

Winged skull with an hourglass and Sexton tools
Winged skull with an hourglass and Sexton tools

I do feel disappointed that the art of Memento Mori and its message isn’t popular. COVID is a reminder that life can be fleeting and that we should live life for today!

Why should we be afraid of death?

As a professional tarot reader, it was only the other day that a lady in her 80’s came to see me for a reading.

Sadly, she was experiencing depression as a result of watching her friends die as well as awaiting her own demise.

Of course, it must be very difficult and I have lots of empathy, but I advised her to LIVE LIFE FOR TODAY!

Live life for today!

The message of Memento Mori certainly lives on in me.

Unfortunately, conditioning of our beliefs begins in our childhood and never stops. We are led to believe that most of us won’t live beyond our 70’s, but many of us do.

It was only last year (2021) that there was a report of the oldest lady in the world dying at the age of 135. Ref: The Independent

Sadly, my client was simply waiting for the inevitable. She had full use of all of her senses and she wasn’t in a wheelchair. She did leave me with feelings of positivity.

Death is something that we cannot avoid and therefore we should remember to live our lives, Memento Vivere, as death may arrive within the next hour or day.

Memento Mori Headstones

Memento Mori Headstones in the 16th century usually displayed the following: –

  • Deceased’s name
  • Date of birth and date of death
  • ‘Here lies the body of‘ placed before the name
  • An image of a skull with or without crossbones

The vision of the skull and the word ‘body’ summed up the expression that we are born to live, die and rot.

Skull and Crossbones
A skull and crossbones

Cadaver Stones and Memento Mori

Cadaver stones, a choice of the wealthiest in society in the 14th to 15th centuries, depict a rotting corpse in a funeral shroud. Often they show plenty of creatures eating the flesh. These stones are some of the earliest depictions of Memento Mori.

No matter how much wealth a person had or what their status was in life, we are all equal in death. Latin phrases like Memento Mori (remember that you will die) and Memento Vivere (Remember to live) became popular around the same period of time.

  • A coffin symbol on a gravestone symbolises death
  • Seeing a clock dial on a headstone is also new to me, yet it’s quite common in the graveyards of Cornwall that I visited. A clock dial can represent a passage of time, and in some cases if it has hands it can show the time of death.

Death Heads

During the 17th century, the Puritans were losing their grip on society and attitudes were changing. People now believed in the possibility that there was life after death, and the possibility that one could reach Heaven.

With this changing attitude, imagery on the headstones began to soften. You can read more about death heads here.

Finally, the gruesome imagery of Memento Mori has now softened thanks to The Victorian’s. Their use of urns and flowers have unfortunately, replaced the art I love to see.

The changing fashion of death heads
The changing fashion of death heads
  • The hourglass seen on headstones symbolises that time is passing rapidly and we are one hour closer to our death. If the hourglass depicted on a headstone is on its side, it usually represents that the deceased had their life cut short unexpectedly
  • A scythe or sickle on a gravestone, commonly associated with the Grim Reaper is a symbol of death because of its use to cut down the harvest (reap). We also see the mention of a scythe in the bible, revelation 14

And another angel came out from the altar, which had power over fire; and cried with a loud cry to him that had the sharp sickle, saying, Thrust in thy sharp sickle, and gather the clusters of the vine of the earth; for her grapes are fully ripe.

King James Bible
  • A sexton looks after a church or graveyard, and is typically a grave digger. We often see his tools such as a spade or a turf cutter, together with a ribbon, carved on a headstone
  • Skulls and skeletons represent death and we see them together with the following phrases: –

Memento Mori – Remember you will die
Memento Vivere – Remember to live
Vive Memor Leti – Live remembering death
Fugit Hora – Time Flies

  • Torches on a headstone sometimes look similar to a candlestick and shouldn’t be confused. If a torch is seen lit, or upright, it represents life. If inverted a torch denotes the passing of the soul to the afterlife

Winged Skull on Headstones

  • Feathers or wings on a headstone usually depict the ascent to Heaven.

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D

Letter D

Headstone Symbols Letter D
Headstone Symbols Letter D

If what you’re looking for on a headstone, or in a graveyard, or a cemetery begins with the letter D, you will find it here within the graveyard symbols A to Z.

Graveyard symbols beginning with the letter D

  • Daffodil on a headstone in Victorian symbology represents unrequited love
  • Daisy in Victorian symbology represents innocence, and we often see them on children’s graves. See also Flowers
  • Dandelions were used in the renaissance as a symbol of the Passion of Christ
  • Danse Macabre – Are you aware of the dance of death that you partake in? Also a form of Memento Mori
  • Dart is a symbol of death and is sometimes seen carried by skeletons, or piercing the deceased’s flesh
    • A dart can indicate death
    • Arrows and spears can also appear on headstones to represent death, and not how a person died
    • They are also used in egg and dart reliefs around the edges of monuments and headstones, representing life and death.

And I saw another mighty angel come down from heaven, clothed with a cloud: and a rainbow was upon his head, and his face was as it were the sun, and his feet as pillars of fire: And he had in his hand a little book open: and he set his right foot upon the sea, and his left foot on the earth

The book of Revelation
  • Death Head also see Memento Mori
  • Dial as in a clock dial, is a mortality symbol meaning the passage of time
  • Disce Mori Latin for Learn that you will die
  • Dove has several meanings
    • Flying down represents the Holy Spirit
    • Flying up represents the Soul’s journey to Heaven
    • In profile or with an olive branch represents peace
  • Drapery seen on headstones and urns signifies death and mourning.

Explore Headstone Symbols

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Amanda Norman Photography
To view more of Amanda’s graveyard photography, please visit her AmandaNorman.com
Categories
D headstone-meanings-and-symbols

Death Head

Death Heads
Death Heads

Firstly, allow me to take you on a wonderful journey of showcasing to you, the changing fashion of the churchyard death head.

An early death head featured on an old headstone
An early death head

I love visiting old graveyards and searching for stories of the dead. The older the headstone, the more thrilled I am. During my search however, I have come across these fascinating death heads that mostly have a skull or a cherub’s face. You will find them more commonly on headstones dating from the 16th to 17th centuries. Edinburgh and Northumberland to date, are two of my most favourite places to see them.

These death heads are more than a nice, or probably not so nice carving on a headstone. Interestingly, this depends on your view of them. I adore them!

They are a warning to us all that we cannot avoid death, and that no matter what our status is in life, we are all the same in death.

Secondly, another common interpretation of death heads and other mortality symbols, is to inform us to LIVE LIFE FOR TODAY!

Of course, this message is still strong today.

Thirdly, not all death heads are depicted with two crossed femurs (known as the crossbones). Sometimes you may see one femur, or you may see a skull gnawing on a femur of which, I have yet to find. The earliest example of a death head that I have found to date, is a simple circle as pictured above.

The Skull

The skull itself represents death and is influenced by the ossuary’s or charnel houses of the early centuries.

An ossuary is a building that contains lots of skulls and bones, and was used when burial space was scarce. Back then, someone had the job to retrieve skeletal remains once the body had decomposed.

Importantly, fashion and religious beliefs dictated such imagery and largely depended on the craftsmanship of the local stonemason. Sources of reference included wood carvings, architectural motifs, plaster work, and books including the Bible.

The changing fashion of a churchyard death head

Since the reformation in the 16th century, few headstones now exist, which I feel is a real shame.

As I previously mentioned, the look of a cemetery death head was highly influenced by fashion, religious beliefs, and attitudes of the times. Obviously, my taste in fashion isn’t popular.

During the 16th and 17th centuries you had a choice of the following: –

  • A winged skull
  • Skull and crossbones
  • A cherub’s head with wings

Interestingly, wings represent the ascension of the soul into Heaven, or regeneration of the soul. Consequently, I have found more cherub’s faces with wings than skulls. Edinburgh has some amazing winged skulls to see.

A cadaver from Stamullen in Ireland
A cadaver from Stamullen in Ireland

On a side note though, In Ireland, County Meath, there are some beautiful stone sarcophagi that you must see. These feature rare examples of cadavers from the 14th and 15th centuries and can be found in Stamullen, and Drogheda.

Green Man Death Head

In Scotland’s, Greyfriars Kirkyard, you will find a wonderful cemetery death head resembling the Green Man. Following research from the British Association for Local History, I read that the Green Man when used as a death head, is seen as a dual emblem. It’s hideous face may represent sinful flesh that decays and the sprouting greenery represents the resurrection.

A Green Man Death Head
A Green Man Death Head

Winged Head and the Soul Effigy

With the introduction of the Regency period, we can clearly see the skull and crossbones fall out of fashion. This results in the image of a cherub that represents our soul becoming more common. Interestingly, in America, they call it a soul effigy.

Represents the soul of the deceased soaring up to the Heavens and there awaits the Day of Judgement where the bodies rise to the call of the trumpet
Represents the soul of the deceased soaring up to the Heavens and there awaits the Day of Judgement where the bodies rise to the call of the trumpet

In addition, the winged cherub relays an important message. Those who find grace, may win Heaven.

In England, the cherub’s face is similar to the face of a Renaissance putti, which is child like. [Ref: BAHL]

If you look closely at the image below, you will see that the feathers have been replaced with foliage.

Sibling death heads
Sibling death heads?

Indeed, this is one of my favourite images. I simply adore their two faces and I do wonder what story they tell. Without a shadow of a doubt, this image has a neoclassical feel to it.

The Neoclassical period in Europe for visual arts began c. 1760 and was influenced by the arts of Rome and Ancient Greece. This period also coincided with the 18th century, Age of Enlightenment, which was an intellectual and philosophical movement that dominated the world of ideas in Europe. Many art students ventured on a grand tour of Europe and returned home from Italy with newly discovered Greco-Roman ideals.

Wikipedia

Victorian Cemeteries

Last but not least, we arrive in the Victorian era, which was the period of Queen Victoria’s reign starting in 1837, and lasting till her death in 1901.

Allow me to take you back to a time prior to Victorian cemeteries and their magnificent splendour.

Taking a walk in, or past your local churchyard is not a pleasant experience. I’m taking you back to a time of disease, plagues and poor sanitary conditions. Consequently, our life expectancy isn’t long and unfortunately, your local churchyard is bursting at the seams with rotting corpses. Imagine the putrid scent in the air and the horrific sight before you?

Thankfully, the answer came in the form of Victorian cemeteries.

From 1800 onwards, numerous companies built dedicated gardens to dispose of the dead away from our cities. Moreover, these new gardens became places of beauty where the Victorians liked to take a walk as well as enjoy a picnic. In addition, they created a whole new language of funerary art, which subsequently resulted in the death head falling out of fashion.

In particular, flowers and draped urns, along with various animals are common place for the Victorian dead. Today, and at a glance, you can certainly tell a persons status in life simply by looking at the grandeur of their final resting place.

Places I recommend visiting

To end with, I recommend that you visit Edinburgh so that you can come face to face with its death heads. As I write this now, I have a strong urge to simply book myself a ticket and hotel so that I can go exploring. I feel Edinburgh’s calling.

Therefore and finally, it’s time for you to grab your camera and visit your local cemetery, or churchyard.

What story can you uncover about some of your local inhabitants?

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