Inside Birmingham’s preserved Coffin Works, we explore a rare collection of coffin fittings and fabrics, from gothic brass handles to stamped nameplates and hand-sewn shrouds.
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00:01This isn't your average museum and it's not trying to be.
00:05The coffin works isn't a recreation, it's the real thing preserved in time.
00:09It takes you straight into the workshops where people once toiled to meet demand for the funeral trade.
00:15Brass leather and cloth passed through these hands for over a century.
00:20Sarah Hayes tells us why this place matters not just as a museum but as a piece of Birmingham's past
00:26that speaks to how we once lived, worked and died.
00:30People might think it's a bit odd that we've dedicated a museum to coffin furniture
00:35but really it's just an important part of Birmingham's prowess when it comes to its manufacturing heritage
00:41and the fact that it has survived is remarkable.
00:45You'll find plenty of fittings inside the coffin works from pressed brass handles
00:50to wooden grips, lid motifs to nameplates.
00:53Each one tells its own story about the time, the trade and the tone expected in death.
00:59But some pieces stand out for their craftsmanship and prestige.
01:03One of the most iconic, as Sarah explains, is tucked away on a side wall in one of the quieter rooms.
01:10So it's this gothic handle that really represents Newman Brothers' quality
01:17and their association with the royal family as well.
01:20Because this was the royal handle of choice.
01:23You had this handle here.
01:26Then you'd have a rose, this is called a rose.
01:29And then another one would be placed on this side.
01:33And this was the handle of choice for the royal family for the 20th century, for all of the 20th century.
01:39So we can claim many a king, a queen and prime minister, George V, George VI, Queen Mary, Princess Diana, the Queen Mother, even the late Queen,
01:50had this handle, this type of handle, this design, I should say, on their coffins.
01:55If the gothic handle was the showpiece, this was the engine room.
01:59The stamp shop handled the bulk of production.
02:01Rows of heavy machinery still in place, still old and still noisy, if you let them run.
02:07Here skilled operators stamped out nameplates, handles and coffin ornaments on the fly.
02:13It was repetitive, it was physical and it was vital.
02:16And the sound of progress came with every clunk of a fly press.
02:20So what was life like in this workshop?
02:23Everybody comes in here and they can't believe the noise for one thing.
02:27They get triggered by the smells as well, because you can smell it now.
02:31You can smell the history, it's the oil, it's the metal.
02:34And people always say, it smells like my dad shed.
02:37And I think what we do really well, it's not just the stories of the workers.
02:41It is about working class Brummies.
02:44It's also about nostalgia as well.
02:47And we allow people to connect history through that sensory experience.
02:52And I think that's brought to life even more by the fact that we operate not just the drop stamps, but the fly presses as well.
02:59So many of us can use these in the very answer to the way.
03:00Now if you're looking for an area on the right side of the car.
03:01You can see that you're good at all.
03:02And let's get started with the salt.
03:03And we're going to have a very good start in the next video.
03:05We're going to have a very good start.
03:06Do a lot of stuff like that.
03:07So we're not going to have a very good start to show you.
03:08Let's see how we've got a really good start.
03:09We're going to see how we're going to have an underline.
03:10So for example, I'm going to have a really good start.
03:11And we're going to have a really good start in the final video.
03:13And I can continue to have an excellent session.
03:15And I think that will help you know it is a good start is a good start.