Stefano Paggi - Illustration of a Scene From Great Expectations

 

Chapter XXXV The Last Journey: The funeral of Pip's Sister Mrs. Joe Gargery. The funeral execution is put on by Trabb, who isn't in this picture, and is depicted here in its starting-point, Pip's childhood house in the marshes.

The centre of the picture is occupied by Mrs. Joe Gargery's coffin carried by six undertakers, who are, according to the book, "stifled and blinded under a horrible black velvet housing with a white border [...] the whole (looking) like a blind monster with twelve human legs, shuffling and blundering along, under the guidance of two keepers."
The keepers help the bearers out of the front door to the left, by holding hands with the foremost undertakers. One of the keeper is close to the door, the other has his back to the stair on the right. The keepers wear tricornes, and hold mourning wands ("crutch done up in a  black bandage").
On top of the velvet housing is a funeral wreath with a generous bush of meadowsweets on top.

Wrapped in mourning weeds, the funeral attendees hold their handkerchiefs to their face, and walk in pairs of two: Closest to the coffin are Joe and Pip, then come Mr Pumblechook and Biddy.

For this picture I chose to use a fisheye effect, concentrating therefore the view on Mrs. Joe Gargery's coffin under the black velvet cloth.

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