Abstract
This chapter surveys the development of the spontaneous shrine phenomenon, primarily in the United States, dating from the artifacts left at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, DC, dedicated in 1982, to vernacular memorials created for fans crushed to death at the Hillsborough soccer stadium in Sheffield, England in 1989 and for the victims of the 1995 bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah federal building in Oklahoma City through the Black Lives Matter protest demonstrations following the killing of several Black people by police in 2020. Sections of the chapter examine the shrines which are regarded as most influential in the development of the spontaneous shrine phenomenon. The chapter explains what spontaneous shrines are and why they are sacred spaces, as well as the terminology scholars and researchers have developed pertaining to the phenomenon. The types and significance of artifacts most commonly used to create shrines, such as teddy bears, are analyzed. Related phenomena, including cybermemorials, roadside crosses, and urban murals are also examined.
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