2-699-326 - The Print Collector/Heritage Images

'The Wax Figures in Westminster Abbey', (1881). Funeral effigies in Westminster Abbey in London. The oldest effigies were made to display at the funerals of monarchs. The elaborate ceremonies lasted for weeks or even months after the death, so displaying the actual body on a bier was impractical. The custom was later adopted by aristocrats who commissioned flattering and expensive effigies during their lifetimes, which were displayed as 'mourners' during royal funeral ceremonies. From Old and New London: A Narrative of Its History, Its People, and Its Places. Westminster and the Western Suburbs, by Edward Walford, Vol. III. [Cassell, Petter, Galpin & Co., London, Paris & New York, 1881]