Autumn

I'm feeling abit sad that Halloween is over, it's my favourite time of year, and this year was the best Halloween i've ever had, I spent the day having a tour round Highgate cemetery, such a beautiful place.
I managed to get some pictures, unfortunately just phone snaps but they capture some of the atmosphere of the place.
I adore the stone angels and there are so many of these adorning Highgate cemetery, rising from the undergrowth, reaching for heaven.

A rather beautiful Gothic style vault in the Egyptian circle here, belonging to Carl Rosa and his family, Carl Rosa was a German musical impresario who founded the Carl Rosa Opera Company in 1873. His is one of a number of Gothic style vaults lining this pathway.

Another Beautiful monument in the west cemetery is this Sleeping Lion, his name was Nero and he belonged to famous menagerie exhibitor George Wombwell, Nero was a docile Lion, it is said children used to climb all over him.

This is one of my favourite tombstones in Highgate, a sleeping angel, lying amongst the leaves and vines

All the vault doors in the cemetery are decorated with Inverted torches symbolizing life extinguished, another interesting detail is the keyholes on each vault are also inverted.

1. Silently, silently
   They are laid to rest,
   Free from care, over there,
   Dwelling with the blest.
   They shall bear no more life’s burdens,
   Sickness, sorrow, death, or pain;
   In that spirit-land they’re waiting,
   Where with Christ their souls shall reign.

A terrible image

I started a new job in January, in StJohns, Worcester and I've actually become quite fond of StJohns, its nothing special at all, but there's something about it.
While I was researching for my dissertation a few years ago I came across a reference to a very unusual monument in StJohns church that I have been meaning to go and look for for the past 3 years and now I work down the road from the church I really have no excuse!

I wasn't even sure it would still be there, as I couldn't find much about it online, but I went to have a look, and there it was in the porch of the church and it took my breath away, it's absolutely stunning.
The monument is to the two sons of Thomas Hopkins, a hop merchant in the city, his eldest son John died in January 1871.
Thomas Hopkins had the monument made to include a photograph of the dead boy, aged 14 when he died, the photograph was taken by Francis Charles Earl of Worcester Broad Street, the image is large, 6 by 13 inches and is set in a monument with stone angels and a plaque to John and his younger brother Jonathon who died a few years after John at the age of 2.

I am currently reading the fantastic book 'The English Way of Death' by Julian Litten and the book includes a little bit about the image and he describes it beautifully

"Although he was obviously placed carefully on the sofa, the freshly pomaded hair is awry and could have benefited from a comb prior to being photographed. It is a terrible image, the child so patently dead and cold. Yet perhaps Thomas Hopkins and his wife took some solace in so commemorating the death of their eldest son" 

I photographed the monument and almost didn't want to leave afterwards, it really is so beautiful and completely heartbreaking.