MovieChat Forums > The Moonstone (2016) Discussion > Anachronisms

Anachronisms

posted 7 years ago by Ferrarifan
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I recently watched this series and it seems to me there are a few things in it which don't fit the time in which it is set. Firstly, when the lawyer wants Franklin Blake to burn the statement which Rachel wrote, he hands him what appears to be a safety match - I suppose this might just about be ok, but safety matches didn't really come into being until the mid-19th century, which is when the novel is set, so I wonder if they'd have been available in rural Yorkshire.

Secondly, when Rachel and Godfrey are due to be married, Godfrey carries two wedding rings - a man's and a lady's. The fashion for men to wear wedding bands did not come into being until well into the 20th century.

Lastly, from what I've seen in pictures, gentlemen in the mid nineteenth century were either clean shaven or had a full beard and moustache - the facial hair sported by Franklin Blake in this series looked far too modern.

If I'm wrong, do let me know - I'd be interested to hear whether these really are anachronisms.

"He starts with three arms and ends up with no eyes!" (Robert Rodriguez)

[–] calmeilles 7 years ago

I think you're right about the match because the head of the match was brown, suggestive of something more modern than would have been available at the time which I would have thought more likely to be red or white.

Not however on the double wedding ring. Fashions have varied over time and place but a double ring wedding in Victorian times would not have been at all unusual. Single ring weddings in the C19 was an American habit.

I suspect that you have a point about the beards, they do look like a modern man's choice and that might have suited the actors well in terms of style. But it's not quite conclusive. A close trimmed bear was not entirely unknown in Victorian times. http://orientalspiceandsomechocolate.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/4837b19c6fd9922a64558798f5228164.jpg