With All Souls Day around the corner, it is time to once again the explore the rich tradition of the use of memento mori for black liturgical vestments. Memento mori appear all throughout the Church's tradition; walk into a Roman basilica and you will be greeted by various examples of sculptural memento mori, often coming in the form of crowned and mitred skulls, scythe-wielding skeletons, or winged hourglasses. In monasteries, it was not uncommon to see a skull placed (often in the refectory or chapter hall) in clear view of the monastics and religious as a way to assist them in meditating on their mortality, and indeed, that is what the use of memento mori is intended to be all about. They are not meant to be macabre symbols, they are rather "holy reminders;" reminders that our lives here in this world are short-lived and temporary and that we should place our focus upon our eternal destiny.
Obviously, within popular culture some have co-opted symbols such as these and given them more occultish and macabre meanings, but these re-purposings do not in any way mar or reflect the original ecclesiastical usages, nor the intended meaning behind them. In that regard, we should not allow pop-culture associations to colour and shape our own view of the richness, and indeed the merits, of this particular symbol tradition.
We have shown over the years many examples of vestments that employ memento mori, and indeed, one of our very first articles on LAJ, going all the way back to November 2, 2017 included a number of very striking vestments coming out of the eighteenth century. Included within that article were examples that still, to this day, form some of what I consider the very examples of historical memento mori vestments. Because of the early date of their publication here, and with some new images and examples coming to light, it has long crossed my mind that it would be worth re-visiting them again -- particularly as all these years later, many will have likely never seen them in the first place.
So far as I can tell, the vestments in question are actually from two distinct sets -- possibly three. However, their close stylistic proximity suggests to me that either they came out of the same workshop, or at very least they reflect a trend in this region that was replicated and reproduced by others. Whatever the case, the details of the respective designs are very close -- and I would point you here to the ribbons and garlands.
These particular examples are Polish and dated to the eighteenth century, the first examples coming from the treasury of the Cathedral Basilica of the Assumption in Kielce, Poland. They include various images, from the classic skull and crossbones and scythe-wielding skeletons, to a particularly striking image of the suffering souls in purgatory who are finding relief from their purgative fire in the Blood of Christ shown dripping from His Sacred Heart onto them -- a reminder of the importance and efficacy of offering up Masses for the Holy Souls We also see other symbols as well such as a snuffed out, broken candle, coffins and even a shovel for digging a grave. The presence of tied ribbons are another strong theme in these vestments, likely coming with reference to eternity.
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| Treasury of the Cathedral Basilica of the Assumption in Kielce, Poland |
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| Treasury of the Cathedral Basilica of the Assumption in Kielce, Poland |
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| Treasury of the Cathedral Basilica of the Assumption in Kielce, Poland |
While these first three are most certainly part of the same set, the next two appear to be part of a different set or even perhaps two different sets. What you'll note is the close proximity that can be found within the designs -- and I speak here not just of the memento mori, but rather the various garlands and bows and how they are depicted.
While the Church in the nineteenth century would ultimately come to frown upon these usages for Mass vestments (though not for palls, funerary monuments and the like), popular piety today, along with the notable absence of the "four last things" (death, judgement, heaven or hell) in modern times -- not to mention the immediate assumption of heavenly bliss for the deceased -- has naturally and organically led to a popular resurgence in interest in the use symbols such as these, particularly where Mass vestments are concerned.
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