{"product_id":"9781836004226-beyond-the-veil","title":"Beyond the Veil","description":"\u003cmeta content=\"text\/html; charset=utf-8\" http-equiv=\"Content-Type\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003eThe Victorian Obsession With Death and Mourning\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003eBeyond the Veil\u003c\/i\u003e is a visual exploration of Victorian mourning, charting the often peculiar and at times macabre ways of how the living memorialise the dead. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eBeyond the Veil \u003c\/i\u003eis a visual tour through the curious history of how we deal with death – the grief and mourning, the funerals, symbols and ceremonies.  \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003eFrom \u003cb\u003eVictorian England\u003c\/b\u003e across to the \u003cb\u003eUS\u003c\/b\u003e, learn about the often peculiar and at times macabre ways of how the living memorialise the dead. \u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003eHumans have always had ways of marking death, but in Victorian England death became a morbid obsession that went global – death was as much ‘celebrated’ as it was a source of fear and sadness. Queen Victoria herself became a figurehead of grief after the death of her beloved Prince Albert in 1861. Her ensuing\u003cb\u003e fascination with death\u003c\/b\u003e took many visual forms – from her ritualised embrace of black clothing to the building of ostentatious monuments – and massively \u003cb\u003einfluenced cultural norms\u003c\/b\u003e in both the UK and further afield. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe Victorians built complex cemeteries, collected precious memento mori, commissioned bizarre death portraits and obsessed over the correct mourning attire and funerary protocol, while turn-of-the century America saw reflections of many of these cultural phenomena. The bestsellers of the period were often about life and death (think \u003ci\u003eFrankenstein \u003c\/i\u003eand \u003ci\u003eDracula\u003c\/i\u003e), while the\u003cb\u003e art, architecture and style\u003c\/b\u003e – with its often dark and heavy gothic overtones – revelled in the glamorisation of death.\u003ci\u003e Beyond the Veil\u003c\/i\u003e brings this extraordinarily \u003cb\u003eelaborate and stylised visual culture\u003c\/b\u003e together while expertly explaining and elaborating on its most \u003cb\u003epeculiar and fascinating\u003c\/b\u003e aspects. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eFor example, it explores: \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eThe influence of\u003cb\u003e Queen Victoria’s personal mourning\u003c\/b\u003e on fashion and social custom.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eThe rise of \u003cb\u003eVictorian cemeteries and funerary architecture\u003c\/b\u003e. \u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eThe art of \u003cb\u003ememento mori and post-mortem photography\u003c\/b\u003e. \u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eThe emergence of \u003cb\u003espiritualism, seances and afterlife communication\u003c\/b\u003e. \u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eThe fascination with \u003cb\u003egothic literature, symbolism\u003c\/b\u003e and the\u003cb\u003e romanticisation of death. \u003c\/b\u003e\n\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cbr\u003eBeautifully illustrated throughout with archival photography, artworks and design,\u003cb\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003ci\u003eBeyond the Veil \u003c\/i\u003eis a must-have for\u003cb\u003e lovers of history, art and the macabre. I\u003c\/b\u003et invites readers to step into the shadows of the past and discover how Victorian mourning shaped our modern relationship with grief and remembrance.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Rarewaves","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":56276621394294,"sku":"9781836004226","price":21.42,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0092\/7504\/8033\/files\/orig_36401074_2b14d369-b9a3-406a-8496-54e24a75f3ca.jpg?v=1759483700","url":"https:\/\/www.rarewaves.com\/products\/9781836004226-beyond-the-veil","provider":"Rarewaves.com","version":"1.0","type":"link"}