Monthly talk - Rosie Morris: "Pride of the village" - our ancestors and the funeral customs of Virgins' Crowns

Tue, 21/09/2021 - 19:15

Rosie will join us to talk about the funeral custom of Virgins’ Crowns. These were awarded to special people of mainly rural villages. They were unmarried and of a chaste character, and regularly attended church. Predominately for females although bachelor crowns do exist. They were constructed from a wood
framework and decorated with paper flowers and usually included a pair or more of white gloves. The crown or garland was included in the funeral procession, carried by two maidens. Following interment It was either hung in a prominent place in the church or buried on top of the coffin.

Rosie will include examples from Europe and U.S.A. for our Overseas Members, together with extant examples from the UK that will include nine from Shropshire.

Currently the situation with Covid-19 and the impact on being able to hold our monthly meetings at the normal location in Cross Houses continues to be uncertain so the SFHS committee is still looking into how future talks will be delivered but it is hoped that there will be the opportunity for combined face to face meetings and Zoom.  Further details of how the meetings will be organised will be made available as soon as they are confirmed.