Did you know back in the 1800s people used to take post mortem photos of loved ones, posed and all?

Question

I was looking on e-bay for action figures for my sons and this guy's "store" sells post mortem photos of unknown people from being posed alone to with the rest of the family. I guess this was actually commonplace in that era and many times the town or area photographer would do it for the family for free, like his donation to the grieving family, like some poeple brought food or helped in other ways. These photos are just weird to look at and I did not know they used to do that.

Answer 1

Post Morten photos were a way of capturing an image of the newly deceased by using the newly discovered technology of photography.  They enabled the immediate family of the deceased to share their grief with other family members and Friends who may have lived further than a days ride away from the funeral.  Owing to the fact that most Post Morten photos were taken prior to the discovery of embalming, which did not happen until the Civil War, and given the limitation of travel by horse, buggy, or train, these tokens of love were all that would remain for consolement of those persons who could not have attended the funeral.

Answer 2

Interesting.  It's also interesting how our views of death have changed in the past century and a half or so.

Answer 3

It was simply a way, morbid by today;s standards, of preserving the memory of a loved one for years to come.

Answer 4

Yes; as someone said, I came across this custom after watching the film "The Others".

"Photographs of a deceased loved one served as substitutes and reminders of the loss. Families who could not afford to commission painted portraits could arrange for a photograph to be taken cheaply and quickly after a death."

http://www.deathonline.net/remembering/m...

It's macabre to our minds now, but there are quite a few sites dealing with this.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Memento_mor...

http://thanatos.net/galleries/

Answer 5

I didn't know. Good to know thks

Answer 6

Check out the movie "The Others" with Nicole Kidman. You'll like it! I can't tell you any more with out spoiling it, sorry!

Answer 7

Yes, it is very strange.

Although, when you really think about it, it's not much stranger than the usual custom of wakes & funerals. We dress up our deceased loved ones and gather around to stare at their body.. Personally, I'd rather just be buried right away.