The Art Of Death; & The English Way Of Death
Two new books on rituals associated with death
- The Art Of Death: Visual Culture In The English Death Ritual C.1500 - C1800
Nigel Llewellyn - The V & A and Reaktion Books, 1991 - 160 pp. - £9.95
- The English Way Of Death: The Common Funeral Since 1450
Julian Litten - Robert Hale, 1991 - xvii+254pp. - £25
The subject of death and its celebration is undergoing a renaissance of interest. Among historians one might even go so far as to suggest that the death taboo is itself now moribund. Two new books have just appeared on the subject, and two major exhibitions are coinciding in London this Spring. All are intended to arouse serious interest in an area of our culture which many have hitherto regarded as merely morbid. A thoughtful view of the English culture of death between the years 1500 and 1800 is to be found in Nigel Llewellyn's book, The Art of Death 1500-1800.