Well, photographs of them on the internet. I have left this photo-free just incase anyone reading this would rather not see photographs of dead children. None of them are gruesome, it is just down to anyone who reads my blog to choose to see it because I don’t make a habit of posting content like that.

It seems in the 19th century there was a custom for photographing dead relatives, sometimes as if lying asleep in bed after dying, sometimes made up in a coffin and in one example a dead child is lying on a blanket on the floor surrounded by all of his toys (see Coilhouse link) and the rest of the family gathered around for possibly the most macabre and chilling family portrait I have ever seen in my life, and I grew up in Lincolnshire. Some kids at my school were the genetic results of abusing livestock.

The one that really gives me the creeps is a photograph of a boy propped up in a standing shot with his arm around his (still living) sister (this one is on the Coilhouse link too).

Trying to imaging this happening today… “Just stand there with your dead brother while I take a photograph… Actually, put his arm around your shoulder. Rigor mortis shouldn’t have set in yet. Stop crying. I don’t care if you are only seven…”

I suppose what fascinates me is that people considered this socially acceptable and in no way in horrifically poor taste. They were professional photographs too, people made their living taking photographs of dead children.

Discovered on Coilhouse.net – Post-mortem Ebay Finds, one of the best blogs about. Everyone needs to add this to their RSS feed. It is a singularly superb blog.

More post-mortem* photography – I would personally not like to begin to try explaining a collection of dead victorian child photographs to friends and family whilst avoiding appearing to be some kind of horrific ghoul. But I have became rather fascinated by them myself, so I suppose people may think this of me now anyway.

A few months ago I saw a set of photographs of terminally ill people, all taken with consent I should add, where there was a ‘before’ and ‘after’ the moment of death photograph for each of them. It was far too fascinating looking at the difference life makes. Even the difference between sleep and death is obvious.

* By post-mortem I don’t mean medical, I just mean ‘after death’. Although there are some medical post-mortem examination photos in the later pages of the website.

p.s. I am not a dangerous maniac, I swear. I am just a perfectly harmless but excessively morbid maniac. Shut up.