Antiques
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Atlanta
~Odd du Jour!~The Victorian Age
11:06 AMCapitol de Beaute Blog by Melanie Woodroffe
I love the odd, for what we deem today as creepy, use to be the norm more than 100 years or so ago. Some traditions & practices still exist today, and are part of our history.
So, as I spent my perfect Sunday afternoon in Atlanta, browsing the brilliant & imaginative Paris on Ponce, I refreshed my memory, also learning a few new things about the history of the Victorian era.
My favorite stop at Paris on Ponce is Absinthe, a gorgeous vignette of odd Victorian-age finds that include animals that have long left this life. Diana, the owner, walked me through & pointed out a few of her most interesting pieces. {See pics below!}
If you didn't know already, the Victorians, like the Egyptians & various other cultures were fascinated with the dead. Animals, people, insects were dissected & studied after death, the preservation techniques that we use today, actually came from that period in time! So what to do when natural selection decides to take your favorite pet? Call a taxidermist!
Back in the Victorian age, this was part of everyday life. Well-loved pets were skinned after death, stuffed and frozen in time. Many animals that are now preserved in museums are due to this quirky practice, that became a skilled art & required having license to perform.
Interesting enough, when a {human} loved one died, the family would actually bring the deceased home & receive friends before the burial. They would also 'stage' the dead & take photographs with them. Just everyday life in the late 1800s, early 1900s!
If you haven't been to Paris on Ponce, you should really check it out. If it's been awhile since your last visit, you should really go, it's an updated visual & historical wonderland!
