What is an Effigy? Well, a correct liturate meaning is a representation or image of someone or something. Later, it also refers to people disliked, and if you burn it or whatever, you do in public, you do it "in effigy". The idea it`s only for disliked people is a huge mistake, but it often does take that meaning.
To bonfire Boyes, an Effigy is a representation that is stuffed full of fireworks and blown up as a set piece, normally to end the nights events.
Since the term has a few meanings, it can be tricky to find out about old effigies. Currently, the oldest known Battle Effigy was in 1870 and was of a local murderer who made the news. This was a life-size likeness, like a guy, of the person and it was carried down the street on the procession. At the end of events, it was hung on a gibbet, stuffed full of fireworks and lit to end off the night. While Todays effigies are much bigger, this is basically the same thing. Some `non-set piece` effigies were used in them days, as they were just the likeness of a person that was carried down and thrown on the fire, but an Effigy is the set piece. For a while, Effigies became `tableau`, mostly just a large board with an image on it, alone with fireworks, but that was still basically the same thing. In the 70s, they became more what we know today, as a 3D large Papier-mâché, wire and wood sculptures. The theme for these Effigies range from Local topics to world topics, films or some bonfire related topics.
 Unknown (Believed to be Guy Fawkes) - 1945 Designer - Unknown Street Collection - £113 It is unknown what this effigy was and only a small black and white video clip of it going off has been found. It appears to be a Human Figure with a large stove pipe hat, possibly a version of Guy Fawkes. The Image currently shown is one of the best shots showing it as much as possible. Full details are only visible via looking at all frames of the video clip. |