Work made in response to the maidens garlands at Old St Stephens Church, Robin Hoods Bay.
But Death had quicker wings than Love”
Maidens’ Garlands are a funerary memento for the death of a young chaste woman. They are also known as Virgin’s Crowns or Crants. The word Crant derives from the German “ kranz”, meaning wreath, garland or chaplet. The custom of hanging maidens’ garlands up in churches seems to have been common in the seventeenth, eighteenth and into the nineteenth centuries. It is even mentioned in William Shakespeare’s Hamlet where at the burial of Ophelia
“…. She is allowed her virgin crants, her maiden strewments”.
They were usually made on to a wicker work frame and appeared to be similar to, and reference, floral bridal wreaths. They could be decorated with gold and silver filigree work , blown birds’ eggs , shells and with ribbons, silk and paper flowers and rosettes.. Sometimes the flowers were made from paper which might be folded and crimped and then painted. In some places circular white parchment flowers are painted with black crosses. There was usually a centre piece made from paper such as a collar or handkerchief or a glove. Sometimes there is text present – an epitaph which might have been chosen by the maiden herself.
The garlands were carried before the corpses of young unmarried women at their funerals or placed on the top of the coffin. By the 17th century it was customary for the garland to be hung over the dead girl’s pew or in the chancel of the church till it disintergrated. The paper gloves which are commonly incorporated into the design of the garland are thought to represent the metaphorical gauntlet ready to be thrown down to defend the dead girl’s honour should anyone dare to question her reputation or virginity.
The Old St Stephens Garlands
They were made on to a base of springy wood bound by strips of calico on to which ribbons were sewn and to which rosettes and bows were also attached. Conservation reports have indicated that the garlands would have been quite bright incorporating over 100ft of silk and muslin ribbons which were predominantly white or cream but with some indication of blues and other coloured silks . There are also strips of what were probably “best” dress materials. There are fragments which suggest the remains of cut out white gloves reinforcing the message of purity. These are accompanied by paper hearts on some of the garlands.
The garlands are extremely fragile and have suffered considerably from constant exposure to light, dirt and to damage by moths and woodworm. Their deterioration does not in the least detract from their beauty and pathos as reminders of an old funereal custom.
Maidens’ Garlands are a funerary memento for the death of a young chaste woman. They are also known as Virgin’s Crowns or Crants. The word Crant derives from the German “ kranz”, meaning wreath, garland or chaplet. The custom of hanging maidens’ garlands up in churches seems to have been common in the seventeenth, eighteenth and into the nineteenth centuries. It is even mentioned in William Shakespeare’s Hamlet where at the burial of Ophelia
“…. She is allowed her virgin crants, her maiden strewments”.
They were usually made on to a wicker work frame and appeared to be similar to, and reference, floral bridal wreaths. They could be decorated with gold and silver filigree work , blown birds’ eggs , shells and with ribbons, silk and paper flowers and rosettes.. Sometimes the flowers were made from paper which might be folded and crimped and then painted. In some places circular white parchment flowers are painted with black crosses. There was usually a centre piece made from paper such as a collar or handkerchief or a glove. Sometimes there is text present – an epitaph which might have been chosen by the maiden herself.
The garlands were carried before the corpses of young unmarried women at their funerals or placed on the top of the coffin. By the 17th century it was customary for the garland to be hung over the dead girl’s pew or in the chancel of the church till it disintergrated. The paper gloves which are commonly incorporated into the design of the garland are thought to represent the metaphorical gauntlet ready to be thrown down to defend the dead girl’s honour should anyone dare to question her reputation or virginity.
The Old St Stephens Garlands
They were made on to a base of springy wood bound by strips of calico on to which ribbons were sewn and to which rosettes and bows were also attached. Conservation reports have indicated that the garlands would have been quite bright incorporating over 100ft of silk and muslin ribbons which were predominantly white or cream but with some indication of blues and other coloured silks . There are also strips of what were probably “best” dress materials. There are fragments which suggest the remains of cut out white gloves reinforcing the message of purity. These are accompanied by paper hearts on some of the garlands.
The garlands are extremely fragile and have suffered considerably from constant exposure to light, dirt and to damage by moths and woodworm. Their deterioration does not in the least detract from their beauty and pathos as reminders of an old funereal custom.