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Mourning Colors The World Over


Black is by no means the only color used by man to express grief or

mourning for the dead. In the South Sea Islands the natives express

sorrow and hope by stripes of black and white. Grayish brown, the color

of the earth to which the dead return, is used in Ethiopia. Pale brown,

the color of withered leaves, is the mourning of Persia. Sky-blue, to

express the assured hope that the deceased has gone to heaven, is the

mourning of Syria, Cappadocia, and Armenia. Deep blue in Bokhara. Purple

and violet, to express kings and queens to God, was the color of

mourning for cardinals and kings of France. The color of mourning in

Turkey is violet. White (emblem of hope) is the color of mourning in

China. Henry VIII. wore white for Anne Boleyn. The ladies of ancient

Rome and Sparta wore white. It was the color of mourning in Spain till

1498. Yellow is the color of mourning in Egypt and in Burmah. Anne

Boleyn wore yellow mourning for Catharine of Aragon.



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