When a household told its bees

A Suffolk cottager said she told each skep after her aunt died and “put them into mourning.” Cowan says he found the custom in Cornwall, Devonshire, and Yorkshire. 🖤

Mourning could be made visible: Cowan describes black cloth, cotton, or silk over hives. In Devonshire he saw black crape on a hive or on a small stick beside it. 🖤

For weddings, Cowan quotes a *Cambrian Quarterly Magazine* account of Brittany: hives at a marriage feast were dressed in scarlet cloth or another bright color. ❤️

Cowan’s accounts place mourning and wedding color side by side: bees were included in household rites in several regions, but customs varied by place. 🐝