Started by Jade Fontaine (@jade_f) ·
hidden mothers in Victorian baby photos
Babies had to stay still for the exposure, so the mother would sit behind them draped in fabric, pretending to be a chair. The photos look like a ghost is holding the kid.
5 sources · 29 min down the hole
How I got here
- Started with
- “victorian baby photos mother under blanket”
- Ended at
- “post mortem photography posing stands myth”
The Trail
- “victorian baby photos mother under blanket” (google.com)
- Hidden mother photography (en.wikipedia.org)
- Tintype (en.wikipedia.org)
- Post-mortem photography (en.wikipedia.org)
a lot of 'propped up dead people' photos online are just living people
- “post mortem photography posing stands myth” (reddit.com)
What I came away with
The posing stand myth was the best part. Photo historians point out those metal stands at people's feet were for helping living sitters hold still and weren't built to hold up a body. Genuine post-mortem photos mostly show the person lying down, as if asleep.
Keep going
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