The Pet Cemetery of Hyde Park
Nestled within the bushes of Victoria Gate Lodge’s garden you will find the enchanting and pint-sized Pet Cemetery. It all began totally by accident as a kind favor by the lodge-keeper, Mr. Winbridge, in 1881 and carried on through to 1903, eventually reckoning with over 300 graves.
It began when, Cherry, a Maltese Terrier, belonging to the children of Mr. & Mrs. J Lewis Barned, who frequently visited Hyde Park and made good acquaintance with the Gatekeeper who also sold them lollypops and ginger beer, died of old age there was much grievance in the family and they decided to approached Mr. Winbridge and his employer to ask if they could lay Cherry to rest in his back garden, which was seemingly appropriate since they had enjoyed such good times together in the Park. Permission was granted and Cherry was laid to rest in a resplendent ceremony. A tombstone bearing the inscription “Poor Cherry. Died April 28. 1881,” was constructed in his memory. The idea caught on with other locals and very soon it unofficially became a cemetery.
Princess Kaʻiulani of Hawaiʻi (1875-1899)- Last Princess of Hawaii Date circa 1893
Heir to the throne of the Kingdom of Hawaii and held the title of crown princess. She was only 23 when she died of thyroid disease…An overlooked heroine of Scottish heritage, Princess Kaiulani was the daughter of Archibald Scott Cleghorn, a Scotsman.
Victorian snake coil bracelet, 14K gold, garnets and a woven real hair band, c. 1880
Csar Nicholas II & King George V
“Czar Nicholas II of Russia and King George V of England. Their portraits appear on many postage stamps and it is difficult to distinguish between the two men. Can you pick who’s who from this photo? The man on the left is the Czar: the uniforms may have fooled you but the royal cousins swapped them for the occasion!”
Well played gentlemen, well played.
A mustache does not have to be a simple tuft of hair above the lip and below the nose. In the 19th century, mustaches assumed all kinds of forms thanks to the holding power of wax. They were personal works of art.
The wax, however, was not perfect. For one, it could be melted or mussed by steam or hot liquids. That spelled trouble at tea time. But never fear, the relentlessly inventive 19th century tinkerer devised a solution: the mustache protector.
Originally invented by English potter Harvey Adams in 1830, according to Allan Peterkin’s “One Thousand Beards: A Cultural History of Facial Hair,” mustache guards were so popular that many others were quick to claim their own patents.
While drinking, a man would rest his majestic mustache on the guard that stretched across the inside of the cup. The ledge would block hot drinks from melting his mustache out of shape.
Victorian-Era Prostitutes
‘Graben’ nymphs: Viennese prostitutes posing. Carte-de-visite-photography. About 1865.
(via odditiesoflife)
Sugar bowl. Stoke-on Trent, England. 1854. A replica of the sugar bowl Queen Victoria purchased from a dessert service at the Great Exhibition of 1851. This replica was made especially for the Victoria & Albert museum.
(via travellinganachronism)
A clockwork doll from the 1860s. Dolls of this type were known as ‘Autoperipatetikos’ meaning ‘the automatic walking one’ and were amongst the first ever walking toys to be produced.
(via victorianfanguide)
Western fashions for women and children drawn by Yoshu Chikanobu, date missing (ca 1870’s?)
(via vampishly)
Have you ever had a favorite chair or perhaps a preferred spot on the couch that is just more comfortable than the other areas of the couch? So did Lord Combermere. Lord Combermere unfortunately got hit with a horse drawn carriage in 1891.
During his funeral his family hired a photographer…
