Description
In the olden days sailors couldn’t actually swim, as that would ‘draw out’ their drowning if the ship went down.
If the bodies of drowned sailors are buried with a seagull their ghost will be laid to rest, as the bird’s spirit will guide their soul to the next world.
A curious custom in Cornwall graveyards was the setting up of the Figurehead of a wrecked vessel over the grave of her drowned sailors.
