Biblical references
According to legend pink carnations first appeared on earth as Jesus carried the cross. The Virgin Mary shed tears of sorrow and carnations sprang from where her tears fell.
Rosemary takes its name from the Virgin Mary, ‘Rose of Mary,’ and is also associated with remembrance of the dead.
It is believed that when The Virgin Mary was fleeing from Herod’s soldiers she hung her cloak on a rosemary bush and in the morning the flowers had changed from white to blue.
Shakespeare acknowledges this Christian association when Ophelia mourns the death of her father in ‘Hamlet’ and brings rosemary to his funeral. "There’s rosemary, that’s for remembrance. Pray, you love, remember.’"(Hamlet, 1V.5)
Flowers are also a unifying focal point for conversation and remembrance as their significance often prompts the sharing of memories of the departed and offers comfort to the family.
They can offer hope of renewal and an afterlife as we see in the association of certain flowers with the resurrection of Christ.
Flowers symbolise the natural cycle of death and renewal, on the one hand, and also offer an uplifting and lasting visual image on a day of great sadness.