Close-up of the Glapion Tomb, reputed burial place of Voodoo
Queen Marie Laveau
Part of the mystery of Marie Laveau is the identity of the woman
buried in this tomb. The inscription on the upper vault of this
two-tiered tomb says that a woman named MARIE PHILOME GLAPION
rests here. Marie Laveau is known to have lived with a man named
Glapion (who was a free man of color) after the death of her first
husband in 1826. Her interest in voodoo dates from this time as
well. Marie lived with this man, but never formally married him.
Since Louisiana didn't follow the common law, a couple had to
be married in a church before the union was legally binding. Marie
and M. Glapion never did this, so why would she take his name
in death? It's possible that this is not the tomb of the "original"
Marie, but her daughter, who also went by the name Marie Laveau.
The daughter was also a voodoo priestess, and her uncanny resemblance
to her mother allowed the "second" Marie to pass for
her mother. The faithful believed that Marie was indeed a powerful
priestess to be so old, yet look so young! If M. Glapion was
the girl's father, it makes sense she would bear his name on her
tombstone.
So, is the woman in this tomb the mother (who would have been
in her 90s), or the daughter?
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