Her name was Sophia Catherine Nance. The coffin has a glass oval revealing her face. The woman died on January 1853 aged 28, and the coffin was found lying underneath the floorboards of Washington Street United Methodist Church in South Carolina.
Supposedly, a child cracked the glass covering her face, resulting in ring in a sudden rush of air and pollutants, including mould, to enter the casket, which caused the ghostly face covering found today.
When originally installed, these were air tight, and often were filled with a preserver, like alcohol.
I work in the death industry, and it’s common for families to have bodies put in cemetery storage over the winter for spring burials. Without fail, a family member always wants one last goodbye, so I take a few minutes before they get there to open the casket and clean all the mold off the body.
Zach0ry on December 30th, 2025 at 05:15 UTC »
Her name was Sophia Catherine Nance. The coffin has a glass oval revealing her face. The woman died on January 1853 aged 28, and the coffin was found lying underneath the floorboards of Washington Street United Methodist Church in South Carolina.
Supposedly, a child cracked the glass covering her face, resulting in ring in a sudden rush of air and pollutants, including mould, to enter the casket, which caused the ghostly face covering found today.
When originally installed, these were air tight, and often were filled with a preserver, like alcohol.
drawliphant on December 30th, 2025 at 05:16 UTC »
Neat, oddly horrific.
bloodyangel00 on December 30th, 2025 at 06:22 UTC »
I work in the death industry, and it’s common for families to have bodies put in cemetery storage over the winter for spring burials. Without fail, a family member always wants one last goodbye, so I take a few minutes before they get there to open the casket and clean all the mold off the body.
Fun facts you didn’t ask for.