Editing Symbols of death (section)

== Images ==
[[File:Vf-101 grim reapers tomcat tail.jpg|thumb|Image of the Grim Reaper on the tailfin of a [[U.S. Navy]] [[Grumman F-14 Tomcat|F-14D Tomcat]] of Flight Squadron, [[VF-101]], nicknamed the "Grim Reapers."]]
[[File:Flag of Edward England.svg|thumb|Traditional [[Jolly Roger]], the flag of [[Samuel Bellamy]] and other [[pirate]]s of the 18th century, displaying a skull and crossbones.]]
Various images are used traditionally to symbolize death; these rank from blunt depictions of [[cadaver]]s and their parts to more [[allusion|allusive]] suggestions that time is fleeting and all men are mortals.

The [[human skull]] is an obvious and frequent symbol of death, found in many cultures and religious traditions.<ref>{{cite book|author1=Glennys Howarth|author2=Oliver Leaman|title=Encyclopedia of Death and Dying|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=5GK2AgAAQBAJ&pg=PA416|year=2003|publisher=Routledge|isbn=978-1-136-91360-0|page=416}}</ref> [[Human skeleton]]s and sometimes non-human animal [[skeleton]]s and skulls can also be used as blunt images of death; the traditional figure of [[Personifications of death|the Grim Reaper]] – a black-hooded skeleton with a [[scythe]] – is one use of such symbolism.<ref name=Reaper>{{Cite web|title=Where Does the Concept of a "Grim Reaper" Come From?|url=https://www.britannica.com/story/where-does-the-concept-of-a-grim-reaper-come-from|access-date=2020-10-13|website=Encyclopedia Britannica|language=en}}</ref> Within the Grim Reaper itself, the skeleton represents the decayed body whereas the robe symbolizes those worn by religious people conducting funeral services.<ref name=Reaper /> The [[skull and crossbones]] motif (☠) has been used among Europeans as a symbol of both [[piracy]] and [[poison]].<ref name=Foreboding>{{Cite web|date=2018-10-22|title=The Darkest, Most Foreboding Symbols Of Death|url=https://thoughtcatalog.com/daniella-urdinlaiz/2018/10/symbols-of-death/|access-date=2020-10-13|website=Thought Catalog|language=en-US}}</ref> The skull is also important as it remains the only "recognizable" aspect of a person once they have died.<ref name=Foreboding />

[[Decomposition|Decayed]] cadavers can also be used to depict death; in medieval Europe, they were often featured in artistic depictions of the ''[[danse macabre]]'', or in [[cadaver tomb]]s which depicted the living and decomposed body of the person entombed. [[Coffin]]s also serve as blunt reminders of mortality.<ref name=Tradition>{{Cite journal|last=Collier|first=C. D. Abby|date=2003|title=Tradition, Modernity, and Postmodernity in Symbolism of Death|url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/4120730|journal=The Sociological Quarterly|volume=44|issue=4|pages=727–749|doi=10.1111/j.1533-8525.2003.tb00533.x|jstor=4120730|s2cid=144108876|issn=0038-0253|url-access=subscription}}</ref> Europeans were also seen to use coffins and cemeteries to symbolize the wealth and status of the person who has died, serving as a reminder to the living and the deceased as well.<ref name=Tradition />
Less blunt symbols of death frequently allude to the passage of [[time]] and the fragility of [[life]], and can be described as ''[[memento mori]]'';<ref name='oed'>literally 'remember to die', [[Oxford English Dictionary]], Third Edition, June 2001</ref> that is, an artistic or symbolic reminder of the inevitability of death. [[Clock]]s, [[hourglass]]es, [[sundial]]s, and other timepieces both call to mind that time is passing.<ref name=Foreboding /> Similarly, a [[candle]] both marks the passage of time, and bears witness that it will eventually burn itself out as well as a symbol of hope of salvation.<ref name=Foreboding /> These sorts of symbols were often incorporated into ''[[vanitas]]'' paintings, a variety of early [[still life]].