This is a recording of a talk called Highgate Cemetery Through Victorian Eyes recorded on 26th January 2021.
Many early Victorians found cemeteries rather shocking and modern. Yet the beauty of these sepulchral gardens made them attractive alternatives to the overcrowded urban churchyards.
Highgate Cemetery was one of the most picturesque, its designers working with the natural advantages of the site to create a theatrical goldmine for its private developers. But once full and therefore unprofitable, it began to be appreciated for its ramshackle monuments, rampant ivy and uncontrolled trees which created an atmosphere of 'romantic decay'. A Victorian grave owner would have been appalled.
Using nineteenth-century prints and photographs from archive collections, Ian Dungavell tries to see Highgate Cemetery as the Victorians did.
Ian Dungavell has been Chief Executive of the Friends of Highgate Cemetery Trust since 2012. He was previously Director of the Victorian Society.
After booking a ticket, you will be given access to the recording of the event. Please ignore the event date in the listings.
This event helps raise funds for The Victorian Society - the only charity dedicated to fighting for our Victorian and Edwardian heritage. Join us today and safeguard our unique cultural heritage for future generations! For further information, click here.
The Victorian Society is an IHBC recognised CPD provider.
Image: Circle of Lebanon, Highgate Cemetery, London. Photograph taken by Michael Reeve, 25 May 2002. Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported
