Ancestor Altars
Types of Ancestors & Altars
Before diving into ancestor altars, I want to define some of the different types of ancestors that our altars can honor:
- Ancestors of Blood - this is the group that most people tend to think of when someone says the word ancestors. They are the dead related to you through DNA such as your siblings, parents, aunts, uncles, cousins, grandparents, and great grandparents going back through the generations.
- Ancestors of Heart - these are the beloved dead who are not related to you, but will always be a part of your heart whether family through adoption, marriage, or friendship. These are the people who you chose and who chose you to be a part of their life.
- Ancestors of Place - there are two different ways to work with ancestors of place. One, the ancestors from your places of origin, the places your ancestors of blood and heart lived, where they came from, and their culture and heritage. Two, the ancestors of the land upon which you currently live, the history of your locality, and the indigenous roots of the area.
- Ancestors of Affinity - these are groups of the dead that you share a form of identity with such as occupation, religion, gender, hobby, nationality, ethnicity, and so on.
Now that we have an idea of the many kinds of ancestors that we can work with, we can construct altars to honor them. An ancestor altar can be dedicated to any combination of ancestors or to only one type. For ancestors of blood and heart, the altar may have family photographs, an heirloom locket, or family bible with a family tree of names and dates written in it. An altar for ancestors of place may have a national flag, a mini cultural icon, a native plant, or local rock. For ancestors of affinity, the altar would depend on the affinity. A writer might honor great writers from the past who paved the way for their profession. They could place a book or photograph/drawing of a historical writer like William Shakespeare, Edgar Allen Poe, or Mary Shelly on their altar. A Catholic might place a saint statue or a crucifix on their ancestor altar.
An ancestor altar doesn't need to be anything fancy. It's simply a place dedicated to honoring those who came before us. It can be a wall of photographs or a shelf of family heirlooms to a nightstand with some flowers or a table full of cultural items. Ancestor altars create a sacred space to honor our beloved dead. They can be grand memorials or small shrines, elaborate family trees or simple tea light candles. An ancestor altar is a place to commune with the dead and leave offerings. It can be permanent or temporary such as a place set up to honor the dead for a special occasion or holiday.
My Ancestor Altar
I work with ancestors of blood, heart, and place. In the four corners of my ancestor altar, I have a painted tree with the last name of each of my grandparents: Beucus (purple), Gould (blue), Surratt (red), and Meese (yellow). By the Beucus tree, I have a pair of mini Dutch shoes that came in a button container my mom inherited from great grandma Fonda Doris (Magill) Beucus. It's a way to not only honor great grandma's memory, but also the cultural heritage of the Beucus line which goes back to the Netherlands. I also have a gnome, or nisse, that I painted representing the Gunderson, Knutson, Jensdatter, and Isaksdatter family lines that go back to Norway. The third thing by the Beucus tree is a Live Like Aaron sticker from my mom's cousin Aaron Ray Beucus' funeral. It is a reminder to be kind, funny, and generous.
By the Surratt tree, I don't have anything yet as I never knew my great grandfather James H. Surratt Jr. I am considering adding a piece of coal in honor of my second great grandpa Edward Charles Trantham who worked as a coal miner. The Surratt line goes back to France, so maybe I will add a mini Eiffel Tower. By the Gould family tree, there is a pug statuette that my mother inherited from great grandma Doris Maxine (Perry) Gould Kook. I love my pugs, Ally and Percy, so I wanted to honor something we have in common. Another item from Doris is the crystal flower. She worked as a florist. The third item by the Gould tree is a riffle shell casing from my great grandpa by marriage Joseph John Kook's funeral. He served as a first lieutenant in the United States Army during World War II. I am thinking about adding a mini sailboat in honor of my great grandpa Maurice Lee Gould, who liked to sail.
There is a strawberry pin cushion by the Meese tree to honor great grandma Helen Elizabeth (Shaw) Meese who took sewing classes and made her own wedding dress. I am considering getting a small motorcycle to represent great grandpa Grayson Walter Meese, who loved to ride his motorcycle. Above my altar, I have an ancestor wall of my great grandparents, second great grandparents, and third great grandparents. On the bottom, there are states with some of the cities and towns where that line of ancestors lived like Missouri, Arkansas, Ohio, Indiana, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, Iowa, Kansas, Nebraska, and New York. On top, there are countries those family lines come from and some of the places they lived such as England, Germany, Ireland, France, Scotland, the Netherlands, Switzerland, Belgium, Wales, and Norway.
In the center of my altar, I have a black candle that I light to honor my ancestors by the sun and the moon. Leaning against the glass candle is a wood-burned tree of life (candles) and death (skulls) that I made with family surnames in the corners. To the right, is a Last Kingdom mug stating "I am Uhtred the son of Uhtred, who was the son of Uhtred and his father was also called Uhtred. Destiny is all." It holds offerings of water, coffee, tea, or apple cider. In front of the candle, there are cards and a prayer bead necklace that I use to pray to my ancestors at my altar. Behind the candle, stands a statue of a skull and crow, which to me is a symbol of messages from the dead.
I also placed two tarot cards on my ancestor altar, Strength and Justice. Strength is not only about resilience and endurance, but also about compassion and patience. Justice is about living with honor and truth. It is a card of balance and responsibility. Many of the values I attribute to my ancestors are represented in these two cards. For example, the Strength tarot card encompasses love, forgiveness, patience, strength, courage, humor, and faith. The Justice tarot card incorporates aspects of responsibility, dedication, honor, curiosity, respect for the environment, and tradition.
With love,
Autumn Rose Surratt
The Ancestor Witch
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