#postmortemphotography

[graveshorror]

The Disquieting World of Victorian Post-Mortem Photography

In the Victorian era, the art of post-mortem photography held a morbid fascination for many. Families, stricken by the loss of a loved one, would often commission a final portrait to immortalize their dearly departed. These unsettling images, featuring the deceased in lifelike poses, now serve as a chilling reminder of a time when death was ever-present, and memento mori took on a ghastly form. So, as you gaze upon these eerie relics, remember that they were once cherished keepsakes, tokens of love and loss in a bygone age.

If you like horror stories, please follow and leave a comment. Check out my book - Nightmares: Blood and Bones: A Collection of 10 Gothic Horror Short Tales - Kindle edition by Graves, G.W. Literature & Fiction Kindle eBooks @ Amazon.com.

Yours in horror,

G.W Graves

[littlecorspe]

Another year, another reason to gram you like one of my French girls. Happy Birthday, baby bug. 💖🌙 #Luna #postmortemphotography

[vesperanightshade]

Consumption (Posthumous Portrait, c. 1860)

Post-mortem portrait of a young woman deceased from consumption. The body is arranged to simulate rest rather than death: eyes closed, hands folded, floral arrangement placed upon the chest.

During the 19th century, tuberculosis was aestheticized as a gentle illness — associated with pallor, delicacy, and spiritual refinement. Photography served not as documentation alone, but as preservation: a final attempt to arrest disappearance.

The image does not depict suffering. It depicts absence carefully staged.