Genealogy Chat

thanks everyone. Lots of fascinating information here. You learn something new every day!

There was also the tradition in France of keeping the actual relative in a glass case - presumably some sort of preservation technique had been applied - so 'photos do not perhaps seem quite so outlandish when you think of doing that. I suppose it is just a 'modern' form of mummification as practised in Egypt and South America, and no doubt other places. There are instances of dead warriers beiong carried into battle as an inspiration to those fighting, and in Orkney or Shetland archeologists finding that the dead were actually buried in the main house in a special corner, so they never left. Some ritual - can't remember where now - has the dead being produced at certain times of the year regularly and given a feast if I remember rightly. Some cultures would think us very strange in 'getting rid' of our relatives by burying or cremation and then often hardly going near them again. Study of human customs is fascinating. Eileen

I know of a family that had a portrait done and inserted a picture of their daughter who had died a few years before, really confused the relative as she knew that this girl was dead by the time the portrait was done,

There are people out there that collect old victorian post mortom photo's, i''ve heard they sell on ebay rather well. All a bit ott for my liking, I'll just stick to collecting glass!!

My mum remembers when she was a little girl that she saw a photograph of her dad's brother who died at 9 months taken after he died. She was later told that after his parents had died her auntie destroyed the photo as it upset her so much. Carolyn

My Uncle and aunt lost a baby at six weeks old the only photo they have of the wee might is in his coffin, so sad. Carol

It was also the practice to *insert* photos taken of deceased children into family portraits. I think this was dome with adults as well. Gwynne

I guess this desire to have something by which to remember the dead is nothing new. I recall visiting an art gallery many, many years ago (I think it was the Courtauld Institute in London) and seeing a painting of a dead baby, the artist's son, painted I think in the 1800s. I can't recall who the artist was and it was only a little painting, but I can still see that picture in my mind's eye - there was such love and longing and grief painted into it. Tina

Irene, that's interesting. These people were Catholics, originally from Ireland.

My husbands friend told him a story of this friend and his brother taking a photgraph of their dead father back in the days of the ordinary camera They stood the coffin up to get a better photograph and the other brother knelt down out of the view of the camera holding the father up so that he did not fall out of his coffin. Poor old boy. This was in Ireland by the way. Irene

I think that people then thought of death in a different way to us - I don't mean that it caused them any less pain. I imagine that if you didn't lose a child in infancy or a member of the family through disease, such as TB, you were the exception. These days few children experience the death of a classmate at school, thankfully, but then it was quite usual. So, I guess that photography of the dead was considered more acceptable too. Christina

I have just been told by the grandmother it was the (co op) who took the photographs. Some intriquing answers. Horatia,of course, people do take photos these days of still born babies. Some of these photos I was shown were of the grandmother's siblings. She was the youngest of 15.

I believe it is common practice even today for photos to be taken of stillborn babies or babies who die soon after birth. It is said to help the parents in the grieving process if they can see a photo - perhaps as a focus for their grief. I once saw an article in a Family History magazine where dead baby pictures were featured. The babies were dressed in baby clothes and actually you wouldn't have known they were dead if not told - they just looked like they were asleep and weren't ghoulish or scary in any way. Just felt sad for the parents. Cheers, Horatia

Oh gosh, never heard of that before. Seems quite gruesome by today's standards but I guess people were used to it back then (novelty of photography I suppose!!). Equally things we do today would seem barmy to them!!! Don't think it's something I would do but who can tell - at the important moment you may feel differently. Mind you I saw my dad in his coffin and that's emblazoned on my mind like a photograph - so I wouldn't need a real one!!!

Well - here it is............ Ever since its invention, the bereaved have turned to photography to perpetuate the memory of our beloved dead. Victorian photographers consciously attempted to portray the dead as if sleeping. Their treatment of every element of the portrait - expression, pose, lighting and accessories - was influenced by this fundamental imperative to mitigate the uncompromising reality of death. Post-mortem portraits recognised the right of an absent relative to keep watch at the bedside of the dying. A portrait of the dead at peace could help alleviate the anguish caused to the bereaved by a painful or tragic end. While portraits of those who had died a 'good' death could serve as an example and role model for the living. There are picture as well............

I have never seen these but I know Madamme Tussaude's first job was to make a wax moulds of the French aristocracy after they had died.

In the film 'The Others', Nicole Kidman goes into the attic and finds a whole album of 'dead' people. As you say, they are well dressed and 'posed'. I don't know when it 'died' out, but thank God it did......... Having said that, I know an old couple who photographed their son shortly after he died in hospital (1997) aged 40. They showed them to me. I think it was just overwhelming grief, but now the mother is quite ill, she keeps the album close to her. I'll be interested to read your other responses, (more helpful than mine) after all we all have an interest in dead people on here LOL!

I don't know about this service, but when I was researching photos a couple of years ago I did read that people sometimes had photos taken with the deceased person (one last family shot, I guess). And they were placed in chairs.

My daughter's boyfriend has just shown me photos taken of his ancestors after they had died. They are sitting in chairs and going by the clothes, it must be late 1800's. His grandmother claims the Co Op undertakers offered this as one of their services. Has anybody anymore information on this and when this service was discontinued?