On February 2 it was Candlemass, an important day in the church calendar. Already snowdrops are appearing, nodding their tiny white heads in the breeze and making people feel that Spring is on its way.

But these delicate little flowers have another side to them and it’s always at this time of year that I repeat this post. They have a darker side and a long association with churchyards and death.

Imagine yourself in a gloomy medieval church on the festival of Candlemass. You, and your fellow parishioners, have each brought your candles to be blessed by the priest and, after the procession which will fill the church with light, they will all be placed in front of a statue of the Virgin Mary.   Candlemass marked the end of winter and the beginning of Spring. The blessing is to ward off evil spirits.  It traditionally falls on February 2 and is shared with the Celtic festival of Imbolc.  And in the churchyard outside you can see green shoots forcing their way up through the hard winter earth.  The snowdrop’s milk-white flowers show that spring is on its way as they begin to emerge into the light.

The placing of the lit candles in front of the Virgin Mary’s statue gave the snowdrop one of its many other names – Mary’s Tapers.  But there are many others such: Dingle Dangle, Candlemas Bells, Fair Maids of February, Snow Piercer, Death’s Flower and Corpse Flower.

The snowdrop’s appearance has also inspired many comments . According to the Scottish Wildlife Trusts website they have been described as resembling 3 drops of milk hanging from a stem and they are also associated with the ear drop which is an old fashioned ear ring.  Anyone who has seen a group of snowdrops nodding in the wind will understand what they mean.   The snowdrop’s colour is associated with purity and they have been described as a shy flower with their drooping flowers.  However, the eco enchantments website reveals that the flower is designed in this way due:

‘to the necessity of their dusty pollen being kept dry and sweet in order to attract the few insects flying in winter.’

Snowdrops have been known since ancient times and, in 1597, appeared in Geralde’s ‘Great Herbal’ where they were called by the less than catchy name of ‘Timely Flowers Bulbous Violets’.  Its Latin name is Galanthus nivalis.  Galanthus means milk white flowers and the nivalis element translates as snowy according to the great botanist, Linnaeus in 1753.   In the language of flowers they’re associated with ‘Hope’ and the coming of spring and life reawakening.

However, yet despite all these positive associations, the elegant snowdrop has a much darker side. Monks were reputed to have brought them to the UK but it was the ever enthusiastic Victorians who copiously planted them in graveyards, churchyards and cemeteries which then linked them with death.  Hence the nickname name ‘Death’s Flower.’

They were described by Margaret Baker in the 1903 ‘Encyclopedia of Superstitions, Folklore and the Occult of the World’ as:

‘so much like a corpse in a shroud that in some counties  the people will not have it in the house, lest they bring in death.‘

So that’s where the ‘Corpse Flower’ nickname came from.

Snowdrops are also seen as Death’s Tokens and there are several regional folk traditions of connecting death with them. For example in the 19^th and early 20^th centuries it was considered very unlucky to bring the flower into the house from outside as it was felt that a death would soon occur.  The most unlucky snowdrop was that with a single bloom on its stem.    Other folk traditions were described in a 1913 folklore handbook which claims that if a snowdrop was brought indoors it will make the cows milk watery and affect the colour of the butter.  Even as late as 1969 in ‘The Folklore of Plants’  it was stated that having a snowdrop indoors could affect the number of eggs that a sitting chicken might hatch.  A very powerful plant if these are all to be believed – you have been warned!

It’s amazing that this little flower has so many associations and legends connected with it but I always see it as a harbinger of spring, rebirth and an indication of warmer days to come.

But the snowdrop also has a surprise.  This came courtesy of the Urban Countryman page on Facebook – not all social media is time wasting!  If you very gently turn over a snowdrop bloom you will find that the underside is even prettier and they also vary depending on the snowdrop variety.

Here is a small selection from my local churchyard and one from Kensal Green cemetery.

So don’t underestimate the snowdrop – it’s a plant associated with life and death but watch out for your hens and the colour of your butter if you do decide to tempt fate…..

©Carole Tyrrell text and photos unless otherwise stated

References:

http://www.plantlore.com

http://www.independent.co.uk/environment/naturestudies/bright-in-winters-depths-why-the-flawless-flower-of-candlemas-is-ajoy-forever-8483967

http://www.flowermeaning.com/snowdrop-flower-meaning

http://www.ecoenchantments.co.uk/mysnowdropmagicpage.html

Stained glass reflection St Peter’s, Bridge. ©Carole Tyrrell

On a clear day, when the sun shines through, the stained glass in a church window takes on a beauty all of its own. Detailed pictures within the glass can become abstract shapes when reflected on floors and furnishings.

I love stained glass and one of the greatest pleasures of ‘church crawling’  is in wondering what I will find in its windows; remnants of medieval glass, colourful Victorian Biblical scenes or bespoke contemporary creations.

Detail of Victorian stained glass window, St Peter’s Bridge. ©Carole Tyrrell

Patterned stained glass window, St Peter’s Bridge. ©Carole Tyrrell

But St Mary’s in Rainham, Kent had a surprise in one of its windows.  ‘Are you one of the christening party?’ The vicar asked as I entered the church and I shook my head. But we started chatting as I attempted to impress him with my knowledge of church architecture. He told me that a guidebook to the church was in preparation and he was kind enough to point out several interesting features.

Stained glass window, St Mary’s Rainham.©Carole Tyrrell

One of them was this window. It’s dedicated to a former rector as the dedication in the bottom corner of the left hand panel attests.  Most, if not all, Victorian stained glass features white people but this one portrays people from other races. There is in the crowd of onlookers:  a Chinese man , a black man and others and this is certainly the first time I’ve seen such diversity in a stained glass window.

Detail of stained glass window, St Mary’s Rainham. ©Carole Tyrrell

Dedication in stained glass window, St Mary’s Rainham. ©Carole Tyrrell

However, there is no way of knowing, at the moment, if the dedication is contemporary with the window or added later and whether the Rector had a hand in the design. However, more research is currently been done within the church and perhaps more will be known about the window and its origins.

©Text and photos Carole Tyrrell

Detail of the Osmand memorial, Brompton cemetery, London, UK © Carole Tyrrell

As you walk through a Victorian cemetery, flowers will be everywhere and not just as floral tributes on memorials and monuments. These are the permanent flowers, carved onto headstones and memorials and are often more than just pretty decoration. Ivy, roses and passion flowers are among the most popular and it’s the latter that I want to discuss this month as it is a deeply symbolic flower. The passionflower is a pretty trailing, climbing flower which lends itself to being carved on monuments and crosses. It is called a passionflower as it is believed to symbolise Christ’s suffering on the cross.

The Sayer headstone, Brompton Cemetery, London, UK. ©Carole Tyrrell

Floriography or the language of flowers is very pertinent to the study of Victorian funerary symbols and explains why flowers were so popular. However, over time the meanings have been lost although the meaning of a single rose as expressing true love still survives.

Portrait of Lady Mary Wortley Montagu, by Jonathan Richardson the Younger painted in 1725. Shared under Wiki Commons.

Floriography is a way of communicating through flowers. It has been used for thousands of years in various cultures, most notably in 17^th century Turkey, where it is believed to have originated, as a way for illiterate harem women to communicate. It was introduced to Europe by Lady Mary Wortley Montagu who was the wife of the British Ambassador in Constantinople, now known as Istanbul during 1716 – 1718.

It reached its zenith in Victorian England.  The Victorians love of flowers coincided with their love of cyphers and coded messages.  Anyone who has ever watched BBCTV’s Antiques Roadshow jewellery expert, Geoffrey Munn, revealing the hidden meanings behind the seemingly innocuous combination and arrangement of stones in a brooch will know what I mean.

The strict etiquette of the 19^th century that was expected of the upper and middle classes meant that people had to find other, more secretive means to express feelings and messages that couldn’t be openly shared. Floral decoration was already extremely fashionable in the home with William Morris’s wallpapers, for example, so flowers became the preferred choice.

This is an example of a 19th century floral dictionary and was published in 1877. Shared under Wiki Commons.

Floral dictionaries were extremely popular.  The first official one, entitled ‘The Language de Fleurs’, was published in Paris in 1819. It was written by Louise Contambert who wrote under a pen name. However, in 1879 a Scotswoman, Miss Carruthers, wrote one that rapidly became an essential guide. The one meaning that has survived is that of a single rose which is still associated with true love.

The Passionflower is a symbol of faith and suffering.  It is believed that it is so named, because of  Jacomo Bosio, a scholar in Rome, who was writing a treatise on the Crucifixion.  A Mexican friar showed him a passionflower and Jacomo included it in his work.

These are the symbols of Christ’s Passion within the passionflower:

The unique corona	Christ’s crown of thorns
The sepals and petals	The Apostles excluding Judas and peter who distanced themselves from Christ before the Crucifixion.
The five anthers	The five wounds on Christ’s body.
The three stigmas	The three nails that pierced Christ’s body on the Cross
The leaves	The spears that pierced Christ’s side
The tendrils	The scourges which flayed Christ’s flesh.

The Sayer headstone showing well carved passionflowers and leaves © Carole Tyrrell

So the next time you are exploring a Victorian cemetery, take a closer look at the permanent flowers that may be blooming on memorials and monuments. Floriography can be a fascinating subject.

© Text and photos Carole Tyrrell

References:

Passion flower | Description, Species, Symbolism, & Facts | Britannica

Exploring the Mystical Meanings of Passion Flowers – Petal Republic

Passion Flower Meaning and Symbolism – Flower Flourish

Lady Mary Wortley Montagu – Wikipedia

Brompton Cemetery, London. © Carole Tyrrell

It’s ‘the most wonderful time of the year’ according to singer Andy Williams and so I am taking this opportunity to send my own good wishes to you all.

This image was taken last year in Brompton Cemetery, London on a frosty day and I liked the way that Mother Nature had outlined and emphasised the detail on the carving especially on the wings and the drapery. It’s very much in the Classical style but sadly I can’t recall the name on the memorial.

There is no Symbol of the Month this month but it will begin again in January 2024 which, scarily, is not that far away.

© Text and photos Carole Tyrrell

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 18^th 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 18^th century and into the 19^th 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 – Wikipedia

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

https://spiritualsymbolism.org/symbols/the-willow-signifying-cycles-grief-and-the-life-force/

WILLOW (WEEPING) | Symbols (symbolsproject.eu)

Graveyard symbols: architectural markers of life and death | Europeana

Symbolism, The Willow – Art of Mourning

photo © Carole Tyrrell

This is bit of fun from Halloween!

I was tucking into a milk chocolate toad last night (31/10) when I spotted a familiar symbol on the packet – a winged skull!

This is the death’s head (highly appropriate for Halloween) and is reputed to represent the combination of physical death in the skull and spiritual regeneration with the angel wings.

In other words, triumph over death. So thank you M & S for such great and informative packaging! 

©Text and image Carole Tyrrell unless otherwise stated.

References and further reading:

Winged Skull Gravestone Symbols – BillionGraves Bloghttps://www.boston.gov/departments/parks-and-recreation/iconography-gravestones-burying-grounds#:~:text=The%20second%20type%20of%20decorative%20motif%20used%20on,a%20combination%20of%20physical%20death%20and%20spiritual%20regeneration

It was while exploring Beckenham cemetery in south east London that I first came across the Crown. It has several possible meanings with the most obvious one being that it symbolises victory or triumph over death. Julian Litten, an expert on cemeteries, has written that it is ‘The Crown of Life’ and a reward for those who stayed faithful until death.  There are three Biblical references which support this view:

James 1:12 New International Version (NIV)

‘Blessed is the one who perseveres under trial because, having stood the test, that person will receive the crown of life that the Lord has promised to those who love him.’ https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=James%201:12

and also Revelation 2 10 and Corinthians 24:27

However, from the earliest it has been seen as a symbol of leadership, distinction and royalty.  A variety of saints also wore crowns to indicate that they were either a martyr or of royal blood and there is a 19^th century painting by Robert Bayne dated 1864 depicting saints ‘casting down their crowns before Christ.’   The Virgin Mary is often portrayed as wearing a crown as well as in this image:

Virgin Mary and Christ baby from Pinterest.

But J C Cooper has a more esoteric interpretation and says that it is ‘an architectural emblem of the celestial world and form the point of exit from this world and entry into the divine.’ 

In the Jewish faith it’s known as ‘The Crown of Good Name’ which alludes to the deceased as being of ‘exceptionally noble character.’   However, it can also be a representation of the head of the family or of a household. I think that Julian Litten’s view is probably the most likely given the Biblical references. There is also another variant which is the Cross and the Crown as here in this example from the Champion headstone in Fairmount Cemetery, Colorado, US:

© Cemeteries and Cemetery Symbols (wordpress.com)

With this one, it has been suggested that the cross represents suffering and the crown is the eternal reward.

This example comes from Brompton where it is at the top of a very ornate and beautiful memorial. This is a radiate crown and, according to J C Cooper, it can represent ‘ the energy and power contained in the head which was regarded as the seat of life-soul, …an attribute of sun gods,….of supernatural people and the points of the crown symbolise the rays of the sun…’ or it may just be an attractive decorative device.

Crown of thorns:

This is a variant on the crown as it is a representation of suffering, passion and martyrdom.  It’s based on the ‘crown plaited  by the soldiers and imposed upon Jesus during his trial before Pontius Pilate’ according to Julian Litten.  J C Cooper asserts that this was a ’parody of the Roman Emperor’s crown of roses’. The soldiers then mocked Jesus by kneeling in front of him and hailing him as ‘Hail, King of the Jews!’ A potent emblem of royalty and power had been turned into one of pain and degradation.  But the crown of thorns is a prelude to Jesus being given a far worthier crown in Heaven. This is confirmed in Hebrews 2:9: “

But we see Him who for a little while was made lower than the angels, namely Jesus, crowned with glory and honour because of the suffering of death, so that by the grace of God He might taste death for everyone”

In a famous painting of the executed King Charles 1, the Eikon Basilike, he has abandoned his earthly crown, the symbol of majesty, for the crown of thorns that he is holding in his hand as a representation of his suffering.

Both the Crown and the Crown of thorns are deeply religious symbols and are examples of the deceased’s faith.  They are also symbols, I believe of resurrection and the deceased’s belief in an afterlife which may have given comfort to those left behind. and also their belief in an everlasting life beyond the grave.

©Text and photos Carole Tyrrell
References:

http://www.graveaddiction.com/symbol.html

http://www.sztetl.org.pl/en/term/131,funerary-symbolism/

http://www.thecemeteryclub.com/symbols.html

A Glossary of Victorian Memorial Symbols

http://www.undercliffecemetery.co.uk/undercliffesymbolism.pdf

http://www.lsew.org.uk/funerary-symbolism/ (Julian Litten)

https://www.gotquestions.org/crown-of-thorns.html

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eikon_Basilike

Cross and Crown | Cemeteries and Cemetery Symbols (wordpress.com)

Christian symbolism – Wikipedia 

Stories in Stone; A Field Guide to Cemetery Symbolism and Iconography, Douglas Keister, Gibbs M Smith, 2008

An Illustrated Encyclopaedia of Traditional Symbols, J C Cooper, Thames & Hudson, 1978

Grave rail, St Mary’s church, Higham, Kent. © Carole Tyrrell

Last month Heritage Open Days took place in the Medway towns. These are brilliant opportunities to explore places that are not always open to the public – last year I was lucky enough to finally see inside the Darnley Mausoleum!

This year I revisited St Mary’s church in Higham, Kent which is built on the site of a medieval priory with a dubious reputation. It was the home of the ‘naughty nuns’ of Higham and it would seem that their reputation lasts up to the present day.  It would have been a thriving community in contrast to the rather isolated spot it is now.

Refreshments and tours of the church and churchyard were on offer and it was on one of the hottest weekends of the year! The church is now closed and is the care of the Churches Conservation Trust. It’s the church where Charles Dickens daughter, Katy, married the great novelist, Wilkie Collins.

There are still traces of the Priory to be seen today and our guide pointed them out. According to him, the landscape surrounding  St Mary’s has not changed much since the Priory’s day. Fields stretched on into the distance and at the end of Church Lane the Priory’s fishpond could be seen. Last summer I saw huge blue Emperor dragonflies darting through the reeds but on this visit there were huge majestic bulrushes.

Despite the heat I decided to explore the churchyard and found this rare 19^th century wooden grave rail. Wood doesn’t often survive as it obviously rots but this is in great condition. Unfortunately the epitaph hasn’t survived and so I visited the Kent Archaeological Society’s website to see if they had recorded one.

Another view of the grave rail, St Mary’s churchyard, Higham, Kent. © Carole Tyrrell

They had two surveys of the churchyard; one from 1922 and another from 2012.  In the first survey, several wooden crosses were recorded but none of these have survived in the present churchyard.  The wooden cross I had seen at the front of the churchyard by the road on my first visit in 2022 has collapsed and partially fallen into the grass.

The Society have presumed that the rail may have been dedicated to George Chapman who was a carter in Cobham Kent. He died on 10 December 1868 aged 38 and his daughter, Ann who died in 1860 aged 3 years and is presumably buried with him.

The rail consists of wooden boards set between upright posts. According to Roger Bowdler in his book ‘Churchyards’ they are also known as

‘graveboards or deadboards…these were the last common form of wooden churchyard memorials, and they form a link with the centuries old tradition of temporary timber grave markers.’  

Frederick Burgess in ‘English Churchyard Memorials’ describes them as:

‘an inscribed horizon post by upright posts resembles part of a fence. The grave board was a later form of grave rail. It was also called bed head, dead board and leaping board.’  

I can’t think how I missed it on my earlier visit as it’s a reminder that not everyone could afford a permanent marker and that it was generally the emerging merchant class and the wealthy who could.

 

However, I was visiting St John’s church In Hampstead as part of London Month of the Dead earlier in October 2023 and saw the George du Maurier grave rail in the churchyard extension. This still has its inscription. It also has Celtic Revival influenced end posts featuring elaborate Hiberno Saxon strapwork. This is in itself a sign of eternity as it has no beginning or end. Du Maurier is better known these days perhaps for being the grandfather of the novelist Daphne Du Maurier. However, he wrote the novel, ‘Trilby’ in 1894 in which

‘a poor artist’s model, Trilby O’Ferrall, is transformed into a diva under the spell of an evil musical genius, Svengali. Soap, songs, dances, toothpaste, and even the city of Trilby, Florida, were named after her, as was the variety of soft felt hat with an indented crown worn in the London stage dramatisation of the novel. The plot inspired Gaston Leroux ‘s 1910 novel ‘Phantom of the Opera’ and innumerable works derived from it. Du Maurier eventually came to dislike the persistent attention the novel was given. Wikipedia

George du Maurier (1834-1896) Shared under Wiki Creative Commons

The Du Maurier grave rail, St John’s, Hampstead, London © Carole Tyrrell

The epitaph on the Du Maurier grave rail. St John’s Hampstead, London © Carole Tyrrell

An example of Hiberno-Saxon strapwork. Du Maurier grave rail. © Carole Tyrrell

Metal epitaph on Du Maurier grave rail, St John’s Hampstead. © Carole Tyrrell

However, Du Maurier certainly wasn’t poor and his grave rail has been associated with the Arts and Crafts movement that flourished from 1880 – 1920. This movement declared a belief in craftmanship that stressed the the beauty of the material used within it and also its simplicity, utility and beauty.

There is another grave rail in the churchyard of St Peter and St Paul, Chaldon, Surrey.

Grave rail, St Peter & St Paul churchyard, Chaldon. Surrey. Shared under Wiki Commons. © Berat.

And here are some others in not such good condition.

Grave Board Marsworth churchyard ©Chris Reynolds shared under Creative Commons Licence Geograph

Grave Board, Ewhurst churchyard, © Stefan Czapski. Shared under Creative Commons Licence, Geograph

It may well be that there was an abundance of timber in these communities which led to grave rails becoming so popular as well as a lack of suitable stone or, indeed stone masons. But the fact that they have survived at all is incredible. So I will be looking out for more examples on my churchyard visits in future.

Text and photos © Carole Tyrrell unless otherwise stated.

References and further reading:

Roger Bowdler, Churchyards, Amberley Books, 2019

Fredrick Burgess, English Churchyard Memorials,  The Lutterworth Press, 1963,2004

Grave Boards in Marsworth Churchyard © Chris Reynolds cc-by-sa/2.0 :: Geograph Britain and Ireland

Grave-board under a yew tree, Ewhurst… © Stefan Czapski :: Geograph Britain and Ireland

A headstone in St Mary’s churchyard, Chatham. © Carole Tyrrell

This month’s symbol often features on 18th century headstones as a memento mori a reminder of mortality.  But more recently, the hourglass was the irritating little symbol on your computer screen which announced that it was thinking about doing something or the glass container, one half filled with sand, which you upended in order to time the boiling of your egg. 

But an hourglass, sometimes with wings, on a tombstone is different.  Instead, it’s a reminder that the ‘sands of time’ have run out. A winged hourglass reminds us that time waits for no-one as ‘tempus fugit’ or ‘time flies’ literally.  An hourglass can often be seen in vanitas paintings as a reminder that life is fleeting, that time is rapidly passing and that every day one comes closer to death.

Vanitas art, from the Latin for vanity, is a genre that flourished in the Netherlands during the early 17^th century.  It’s a particular form of still-life and contains collections of objects that are symbolic of the inevitability of death, the transience of life and vainglory of earthly pursuits and pleasures.  The viewer is invited to look at the painting and to be reminded of their own mortality.  They also provided a moral justification for painting attractive objects. As with a lot of moralistic genre painting  the enjoyment evoked by the sensuous depiction of the subject is in a certain conflict with the moralistic message.  Vanitas pictures evolved from earlier simple paintings of skulls and other symbols of death which were often painted on the back of portraits during the late Renaissance. It’s height of popularity was during 1620 – 1650 and was centred in Leiden in the Netherlands and  Flanders, the Dutch speaking region of Belgium.

Very few vanitas picture contain figures and, instead, they contain certain standard items.  These are: symbols of arts and sciences (books, maps, and musical instruments), wealth and power (purses, jewellery, gold objects), and earthly pleasures (goblets, pipes, and playing cards); symbols of death or transience (skulls, clocks, burning candles, soap bubbles, and flowers); and, sometimes, symbols of resurrection and eternal life (usually ears of corn or sprigs of ivy or laurel).   And of course hourglasses to reflect the passing of time and the need to make the most of it.  Objects were often tumbled together in disarray, suggesting the eventual overthrow of the achievements they represent.

However, Douglas Keister, author of Stories in Stone, has suggested another, bolder interpretation of the symbol:

 ‘The hourglass can also be turned over or inverted over and over again which symbolises the cyclic nature of life and death, heaven and earth.  Inversion can be seen as the interplay of opposites in death giving rise to life and vice versa. ‘

In fact it wasn’t until I started researching for this piece that I realised how many interpretations the hourglass symbol could have. Pirates are reputed to use it on their flags as a warning to their victims and enemies that their time, or lives, were about to run out.  They can also feature in tattoos especially in prison where a tattoo of an hourglass may mean no parole.

There is also an association with old movies in that the hero/heroine has one span of the sand in which to make a decision or rescue.  The dramatic turning over of the great hourglass down to the spiralling of that last grain of sand adds to the mystery and drama.

A quick online search also revealed masonic and spiritual associations.  Two saints are traditionally pictured with hourglasses; St Ambrose and St Magdalene as is the Greek god, Chronos, the personification of time. The Grim Reaper or Death when depicted as a skeleton, often holds an hourglass with his scythe as does Old Father Time.

The hourglass is, in my opinion, one of the most graphic memento mori symbols.  At that time, most people were illiterate but would understand visual images and would know the significance of an hourglass, especially one with wings. I love memento mori symbols and enjoy finding them in the ancient churchyards of North Kent churches – what will I discover next?

Text and photos copyright Carole Tyrrell unless indicated otherwise.

References and further reading:

How to read symbols, Clare Gibson, A C Black, 2009

Stories in Stone – A Field Guide to Cemetery Symbolism and Iconography, Douglas Keister, Gibbs Smith, USA 2004

An Illustrated Encyclopaedia of Traditional Symbols, J C Cooper, Thames & Hudson, 1978

Vanitas | Tate

Vanitas – Wikipedia

Memento mori – Wikipedia

I am currently suffering from Covid which is not the writers friend to say the least.

But this short piece came up on the BBC news website recently and it did raise the question, and not for the first time, about what happens to patients graves when the institution, hospital or asylum in which they lived closes.

The small iron crosses in Nayland cemetery seem to have a happy ending as local people, some of whom worked at the Jane Walker hospital, have taken on their upkeep for the foreseeable future. Follow the link for further information.

Nayland: The cemetery where iron crosses mark people with disabilities – BBC News

But not all patients graveyards have such a positive outcome and I have written in previous posts about Netherne Hospital cemetery which is abandoned and overgrown. Also, St Lawrence’s which was a hospital for disabled people, and now sits in the middle of a golf course. However, it is being cared for by a Friends group.  They are still acknowledged as burial places for patients or residents.

Others have not been so fortunate. In 1981, Cane Hill Hospital, a former Victorian lunatic asylum, was being prepared for redevelopment and their cemetery was cleared.  The remains of almost 6000 people were exhumed and cremated at Croydon Cemetery in Mitcham Road, Croydon. These included British First World War veterans who had had separate areas in the cemetery where they had been buried with full military honours. According to Wikipedia:

‘Research from plans indicated that there two designated main ‘service plots’ numbered 411 and 420, where six were buried in each grave. Eighteen of these, who had qualified for commemoration by the Commonwealth War Grave Commission (CWGC) are commemorated on a memorial that the CWGC erected in Croydon Cemetery, where their ashes had been scattered at ‘Location 1000’ in the grounds in 2015’

This is the unofficial memorial at Croydon Cemetery that records the servicemen interred there from Cane Hill. The original CWGC memorial was stolen and they do not recognise these.

In 2009, a headstone was placed at Location 1000 to record the patients buried there.

This was placed there due to patients families wanting to see the final resting place of their relatives and being directed to an

‘unmarked mound of earth in Croydon Cemetery’s Garden of Remembrance’

I have to say that it isn’t where I’d like my relatives last resting place to be.

However, a local councillor at the time felt:

‘sure that visitors will soon look on it as a suitable memorial area for those who died at Cane Hill.’

Anonymous in life and anonymous in death it would seem. There are some archive photos of the cemetery and the mound on www.simoncornwell.com     One wonders what memorials and information about patients was lost during this process especially as the NHS policy was to incinerate their records or leave them lying around in a derelict building. A local reporter did try and start a campaign to save them but it’s unsure what happened to it.

There is also the case of the Mendip Hospital Cemetery which I have written about in a previous post in which the NHS attempted to sell off a patients cemetery and Chapel as a ‘freehold development’. This was saved by local people who formed a friends group which appears to still be going strong. There are some lovely photos of it on TripAdvisor. The numbered iron markers, although long gone from the graves, are still there.

But who knows how many of these cemetery and graveyards have been lost over the years as the institutions close and no one knows what to do with them.  They are still someone’s relatives and as times change they may want to find out what happened to them. After all, local people saved the Mendip Hospital and St Lawrence’s and it was patients relatives who ensured that they finally had a proper headstone on the mound at Croydon Cemetery.  Someone cared enough to do something.

Text and photos© Carole Tyrrell unless otherwise stated.

Further reading:

Friends of Mendip Hospital Cemetery – Welcome

Cane Hill Hospital – Wikipedia

New headstone for Cane Hill paupers’ graves | Your Local Guardian

cane hill (simoncornwell.com)

The Forgotten Servicemen of Cane Hill | Surrey in the Great War:

‘And Bert’s gone syphilitic’ – The Real Tragedies Behind the Cane Hill Hospital Memorial at Croydon. | The Western Front Association