How Will We Look?

In other cultures, like in Russia, it has been common to photograph the dead in the coffin with a sheet of something like lace covering them up to the chest and the lid off. It is less common now but still not a taboo, unlike in the United Kingdom.

In Russia two elderly sisters were worried about how each might appear when dead especially if someone photographed them. So to plan ahead they purchased one coffin and lace covering and called an official photographer. The coffin was delivered and a sister carefully climbed in and she laid down with the sheet on, the other passing comment at the resulting 'look'. The photographer arrived to continue their investigation as to what each would look like in a photograph. He looked at the scene and took aim. He asked how many pictures were wanted and the woman in the coffin raised two fingers. The photographer passed out and collapsed to the floor.