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Post-mortem photography is the practice of photographing the recently deceased. Various cultures use and have used this practice, though the best-studied area of post-mortem photography is that of Europe and America. [1] .
Jun 4, 2016 · Photographs of loved ones taken after they died may seem morbid to modern sensibilities. But in Victorian England, they became a way of commemorating the dead and blunting the sharpness of...
Oct 22, 2017 · Photography has been a way for people to remember people, places, and events. We commemorate and document life through photographs, and have been doing so since the 19th century. But photography has also been used to document death. In this episode we are discussing Victorian postmortem photography.
- The Art of Post-Mortem Photography
- The History of Victorian Post-Mortem Photos
- Frequently Asked Questions
Death was ubiquitous throughout the Victorian era due to high mortality rates and the uncontrolled spread of illness. Many individuals devised inventive methods to commemorate the deceased, like Victorian post-mortem photos. While it may seem morbid now, numerous families have used post-mortem photography to remember their loved ones. Real Victoria...
Portraiture became more prevalent after the development of the daguerreotype in 1839 since many people who could not afford to order a portrait painting could afford the cost to sit for a photographic session. This also gave the middle class a means to remember deceased loved ones. Previously, post-mortem portraiture was limited to the upper classe...
What Are Victorian Post-Mortem Photos?
Post-mortem photography was performed in order to get a printed photograph of your deceased family member to prominently display in your house. In the terrible case that a loved one died, taking a snapshot of their corpse or face would be regarded odd, if not frowned upon. Post-mortem photography, on the other hand, was formerly a popular habit out of respect and affection. However, throughout the 19th and early 20th centuries, this unusual tradition was widely accepted as a sign of both sorr...
What Is the Difference Between Fake and Real Victorian Death Photos?
Due to the popularity and prominence of Victorian post-mortem photos, it became a lucrative business to make and sell fake photos to the public. Cast iron posing stands were employed to assist living models to stay motionless during the lengthier exposures of the time. This helped create the illusion of stillness as it was easy to capture blurry photos on old camera equipment. They weren’t designed or built to carry the weight of a dead corpse, but they were utilized to support the limbs of p...
Oct 11, 2021 · In a post ostensibly showing Victorian postmortem photos, number eight on the list is an image that has been passed around many corners of the Internet—Viralnova quotes the photo source as...
Dec 16, 2020 · Illnesses like scarlet fever, measles, and cholera could be a death sentence for young people in an era before vaccines and antibiotics. Photography offered a new way to remember a loved one after death — and many Victorian death photos became family portraits of sorts.
Jul 19, 2017 · Many people find photos of the dead creepy or morbid. No question, postmortem photographs are sorrowful images. They capture the ravages of illness. They depict grieving parents.
