The Fatal Bellman, 1827. 'It was the owl that shriek'd the fatal bell-man'; scene from Shakespeare's Macbeth. The hoot of an owl flying over one's house was an evil omen and meant the impending death of someone inside. It was the bellman's job to ring the parish bell when a person was near death.

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Photo credit: © Heritage Images / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
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