The Baker headstone, St Mary’s Rainham, Kent. © Carole Tyrrell
It was a cold, grey, wet day in St Mary’s churchyard in Rainham, Kent. ‘Typical English late summer day.’ I thought. A christening was taking place inside the church and so I had decided to explore the churchyard. It’s a large one with a scattering of indecipherable 18th century tombstones and many far more contemporary ones. There was a poignant one that was dedicated to a baby that had only lived for a few hours and I felt that I was in the presence of the parents’ grief as I stood there.
I sheltered from the fitful rain under a thick cluster of large yew trees and, as I stood there, I saw this well carved headstone. It features a large weeping willow, drooping or draped, depending on your point of view, over an urn which has a large of piece of cloth over it. Beneath this scene are ivy leaves and ivy flowers which symbolise eternity. So, several symbols on one stone which is dedicated to an Ann Baker who died in 1869. Two other family members are also recorded below. But we do not know if they are actually buried there.
Full view of the Baker headstone © Carole Tyrrell
The draped cloth over the urn can be seen as the curtain between life and death and almost resemble shrouds. For more information, please see my earlier post Symbol of the Month: The Urn.
Weeping Willow on a headstone in Brompton Cemetery, London. ©Carole Tyrrell
Another example from Brompton Cemetery, London but this time the willow is overhanging a sarcophagus. ©Carole Tyrrell
Weeping willows often feature on mourning jewellery as seen on the example below.
But seeing this headstone set me thinking about the weeping willow, its association with death and mourning and its name. But firstly, a word about its history and other associations.
A lovely example of a weeping willow in St James’ Park, London.© Carole Tyrrell
Another example from St James’s Park, London. © Carole Tyrrell
A weeping willow can be an impressive sight as with these two in St James’ Park, London. They can grow up to 70 feet tall although most are 35 – 40 feet tall. Its long, flowing branches allow it to bend with strong winds and it’s usually found near water. The ‘weeping’ supposedly comes from the way in which raindrops run down its long leaves which make it look as if the tree is crying. The Celtic tradition has it that a wind blowing through the leaves was said to be elves whispering to each other and if you’ve ever been near a weeping willow when the wind is blowing, it does sound as if the tree is whispering and muttering softly to itself.
The weeping willow originally came from China and is a hybrid of the Peking willow (Salix Babylonica) and the European white willow (Salix Alba). It’s believed that that all English weeping willows are descended from a twig that was tied around a parcel sent from Spain to a Lady Suffolk. The English poet and dramatist, Alexander Pope (1688-1744) apparently begged for the twig, planted it and a tree grew. They are very easy to grow from cuttings which has led to them being seen as emblematic of immortality. So, on the Baker headstone, it could be seen as signifying life after death and resurrection.
Alexander Pope (1688-1744) portrait by Michael Dahl, 1727.National Portrait Gallery – shared under Wiki Commons.
The weeping willow has been described as a
‘graceful tree woven into the fabric of human existence’ http://spiritualsymbolism.org
It appears in many cultures especially the Chinese and Japanese. However, the ancient Egyptians believed that in the annual flood of the River Nile which brought new life to the surrounding land,:
‘the willow’s ability to regenerate quickly after being cut down mirrored the cycle of life and death that fascinated them’ http://spiritualsymbolism.org
In China, it has a protective element as its branches are carried on the day of the Tomb Sweeping or Qingming Festival. They are also put up on gates and front doors, which are thresholds or gateways, to ward off evil spirits. In the Festival, the ruler of the underworld allows the spirits of the dead to return to earth but as their presence may not always be welcome, the branches are used to keep them away, In Japan, the weeping willow is associated with ghosts and there is a popular belief that a ghost will appear where a willow grows. This could also be seen as resurrection or life after death.
However, a more sinister aspect comes from English folklore where the willow is considered capable of uprooting itself and stalking travellers! A more romantic view is that, if a young woman wished to find true love, then she would tie a ribbon around a willow’s branches while making a wish.
Willows also appear in the Bible in Psalms 137: v1-2:
‘By the rivers of Babylon, there we sat down, yea, we wept, when we remembered Zion,
We hanged our harps upon the willows in the midst thereof.’
King James version
They are also mentioned in Ezekiel 17:5 and Leviticus 23:40.
The weeping willow is ingrained within our culture and literature with Desdemona’s ‘The Willow Song’ in Shakespeare’s ‘Othello’. But it is in Tennyson’s poem, ‘The Willow Tree’ that the tree is described as a symbol of mourning and in Wordsworth’s poem ‘The Willow Tree’ he describes how:
‘it droops languidly o’er his dark mirror below.’
Billie Holliday performing at the Downbeat Jazz Club, 1947. Photographer William P Gottlieb. Shared under Wiki Commons.
The jazz singer, Billie Holliday sang ‘Willow weep for me’ in which she invites the tree to:
‘Bend your branches down along the ground and cover me.’
as she laments her lost love.
But from the late 18th century and into the 19th century it was a frequent motif on mourning jewellery and here is another example from the Museum of London. They were often associated, in the Classical style, with figures of mourning women.
The two mourning rings in this post both come from the Museum of London.
But on the Baker headstone the weeping willow’s branches may symbolise the drooping spirits and hearts of those who mourn. But, as the branches point down back to earth, they can also be signs of eternity in an endless cycle of renewal.
Before writing this post, I had only associated the weeping willow with sorrow and grief but it is a tree that I have always admired for its beauty. So, it was wonderful to learn of its other, more positive aspects. In fact, it does not only weep for the dead but also offers comfort and solace to those left behind.
Text and photos © Carole Tyrrell unless otherwise indicated.
References and further reading:
Willow tree symbolism and significance – Better Place Forests
Cemetery Headstone Symbols: Weeping Willow Tree – Funeral Help Center
Mastering Cemetery Iconography – The Academy at Penguin Hall
Objects of love and loss: mourning jewellery | Museum of London
WILLOW (WEEPING) | Symbols (symbolsproject.eu)
Graveyard symbols: architectural markers of life and death | Europeana
shadows fly away 