You see these every October (well, year round for that matter), the calaveras de azúcar, and representations of them. You probably even know that they're Mexican in origin and are displayed and eaten ("de azúcar" means they're made of sugar if you didn't already know that) for what is known in English as All Souls' Day. The idea is to remember the souls of the dead, our friends and family who have passed on. I am not going to delve further into Day of the Dead right now, but if you want to know more, check out Wikipedia: Day Of the Dead. (If you like the calavera above, you can buy the skull shirt here.
My point is that skulls seem to be inevitably associated with death. It's easy to see why; when we die and decompose, pretty quickly under natural circumstances the bones are all that's left of a body. The skull is the most readily recognizable bone too. It's easy to tell at a glance if a skull is human or at least what family of animal it came from, and with the exception of modern imaging techniques, the only time you will see someone's whole skull is if they are in fact, dead. Despite this, I do not usually associate skulls with death (and when I do it's not about being morbid, more on that in a bit), and I wanted to explain why.
Think for a second about what the skull does. First and foremost it protects the brain, pretty arguably the seat of conciousness. No brain, not much life, and the brain is a tender little organ. You can ask the zombie who just got an axe embedded in his. Not only is the body's center of operations inside the skull, but it also protects some of the most basic and important sensory organs, with neat little spaces for each: eyes, ear canals, nose cavity, mouth for our tongue. It is designed to protect these too, and for the most part does a really good job. The skull is an amazing organ, owned by most creatures with an endoskeleton, and whether you believe God whipped it up in his lab or it is the culmination of millions of years of evolution, this is still the case.
Then there are aesthetics. Or to put it more simply, "Skulls look freakin' cool!" There is the fact that human skulls seem to be permanently grinning. I am sorry but I do not find this creepy at all but rather a little funny. Every time I stare at a skull I find myself grinning in return. Skulls looks happy to me. That makes me happy. The lines and curves of the form are really nifty too; there's a great flow to the way skulls fit together. The pointy curves of the nasal socket, the smooth roundness of the eyes, the way the lower mandible just fits into the cranium... Spiffy.
(This skull built using numbers and text, or ASCII for those fluent in Geek. Skull T-shirt here.)
I'll wrap up now with one last point. Even when skulls are used as a reminder of death, I do not see this as something morbid or sinister. I see reminders of mortality as reminders of life. You only die after you've lived, so live. Make the most of the life you've been given. Memento Mori. Remember Death, but remember the flip side of the coin, Life, and don't waste it! Skulls are a reminder of that attitude to me. See them also as a reminder of those who are dead who we miss and want to remember. Mexican Catholics have the right idea there as far as I'm concerned.
Remember the Dead, remember Life, and have a happy Halloween!
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