Featured Vintage brides

Makanudo, I'm so happy to see you posting on this thread again.

One question about the latest very interesting wedding photo -- what is the significance of the man in the front row with the white sash, large bow on his shoulder, and bouquet/flowers in his lap? Did he have a specific role/duty in the wedding party?

 

Thanks!
It is always good to be present in this forum and be active in some way.
The man in front of the bride, squatting(or kneeling) is grooms brother. In serbian we say "Dever". He traditionaly wears white cotton towel tied in a bow. Devers role is to symbolicaly buy off the bride from her brother and guard her until the church ceremony.

 

Makanudo, thank you for explaining that to me. I think it is a nice custom.

Would I be correct in thinking that it is a way to show the bride that the groom's family is welcoming her into the family and already "protecting" her?

 

A Dever... interesting.
So he's sort of paying the dowery and then taking responsibility for her until she's actually married, at which time she is the groom's problem.

 

This custom(paying for the bride) is just symbolical and basically intended to give importance to younger male figures in brides family, brother or younger cousin who get to "negotiate" the bride and earn some money in the end.
The role of grooms brother is however the most important role in the ceremony. He and not groom is to be asked for anything and everything that day and he is responsible for making sure everything goes without problem and pays whatever needs paying.
There is entire procedure for the wedding here. Most interesting is that the groom comes with his friends and family to take the bride from her home, and before he is allowed to enter the yard of the house, he must shoot the apple placed high on the tree.

 

He is making just a symbolic payment.
Brides here dowery bring only in terms of valuable old objects passed on from generation to generation. For the other part you are totally correct. Dever makes sure no one steals the bride

 

Is this love or what!?
Photo taken in 1924.

 

Because the photo was taken in 1924 (6 years after World War I ended) such old photos always make me wonder what impact that World War had on a bride and groom in the years before their wedding.

 

Serbian WWI casualties were 1.1 million. Total population in 1912 was 3 million..
You can imagine the impact WWI had on Kingdom of Serbia.

 

Makanudo, thank you for the WWI "numbers" information in your post above. I "liked" your post only because you posted the numbers for us. I was not "liking" the numbers of casualties you gave.

My first thought about the wedding photo was that the bride and groom appeared to be slightly older. I must admit that my next thought was that each may have suffered the loss of a loved one during that war (although obviously not a husband in the case of the bride who is wearing white).

 

My first thought on the photo was that they each feel like they finaly have some one to share the life with and are resolute to make things happen, together.
Who knows...
Grooms age suggests that he must have survived the war in the army.
People of that era rarely smiled in the photos, it seems.

 

Here is an peculiar photo taken in 1922 in rural south Serbia.
Notice the absence of right palm of the bride.
I am guessing these are bride groom, because it would be inapropriate at that time and age to take a photo of young man and a woman alone and they are in the ceremony dresses(its a very poor part of a country).

 

@Makanudo, from what I see, it definitely looks like the bride's right hand is there.... she just has it 'flat palm' against her skirt.....look carefully and I think you will see it!!

 

And that bullet comes down and injures a bride elsewhere...

 

Photos then were expensive and serious so no smiling.

 

You are absolutely right! Thats a a very good thing.

 

Many have been struck with that bullet coming down,

 

Another Bride, Groom and Dever photo:

 

This one's beautiful!
Pretty people who seem happy. Gorgeous furnishings. Love the groom's little mustache, the bride's head dress, the goodies displayed on the veil trail, and the little rosettes thingie on the groom's lapel.