Day of the Dead
Culture

Day of the Dead

Robert Harding

On the 31st of October and the 1st and 2nd of November, people in Mexico and other cultures around the world gather to pray for friends and family who have died, giving offerings and constructing ornate shrines.  Day of the Dead, or Día de los Muertos, is connected with the Christian All Hallow’s Eve, All Saint’s Day and All Soul’s Day.

Day of the Dead, Acatlan, Mexico, Central America
Liba Taylor/Robert Harding

People gather in cemeteries to honour the dead in Acatlan, Mexico

Sugar candy skulls, Day of the Dead, Patzcuaro, Michoacan state, Mexico, North America
Wendy Connett/Robert Harding

Sugar skulls, flowers and the favourite foods of the dead are offered by their relatives and friends.

Marigols, or cempasuchitl, for sale to decorate altars and tombs for Day of the Dead. Mexican tradition celebrates Day(s) of the Dead in the last days of October and beginning of November, to honor the visiting spirits of loved ones. Graves and alters are
Aurora Photos/Robert Harding

Marigolds are the flower of choice to adorn the shrines on the Day of the Dead

Boy by his mother's grave during the celebration of Día de los Muertos, the Day of the Dead at the San Pedro Cucuchucho cemetery. People decorate the graves of their loved ones with offerings of flowers, particularly marigolds (cempoalxóc
Insights/Robert Harding

A boy at his mother’s grave in San Pedro Cucuchucho cemetery, adorned with flowers and candles.

Woman by a grave during the celebration of Día de los Muertos, the Day of the Dead at the San Jerónimo Purenchecuaro cemetery. People decorate the graves of their loved ones with offerings of flowers, particularly marigolds (cempoalxÃ
Insights/Robert Harding

Woman by a grave during the celebration in Purenchecuaro cemetery.

Detail of figurines on sale for the Day of the Dead celebration, San Miguel de Allende, Guanajuato, Mexico, North America
Richard Maschmeyer/Robert Harding

Figurines of ‘Catrina’ on sale for the Day of the Dead celebration, San Miguel de Allende, Guanajuato. Catrina is based on a 1910-13 etching by famous Mexican printmaker Jose Guadalupe Posada, which has become an icon of the Día de los Muertos.

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age fotostock/Robert Harding

People take to the street dressed as Catrinas

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age fotostock/Robert Harding

A festival-goer wears a skull mask in Mexico City

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age fotostock/Robert Harding

Other countries have different takes on the Day Of The Dead. For example, in Guatemala, they construct giant kites like these in a ceremony in Sumpango cemetery.

Day Of The Dead kites (barriletes) ceremony in cemetery of Sumpango, Guatemala, Central America
Michael DeFreitas/Robert Harding

To see more Day of the Dead images, click here.

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