Captain Andrew Drake (1684-1743) sandstone tombstone from the Stelton Baptist Church Cemetery in Edison, New Jersey

Jarvis Andrew Lattin (1853-1941) granite tombstone from Powell Cemetery in Farmingdale, New York

A headstone, tombstone or gravestone is a permanent marker, normally carved from stone, placed over or next to the site of a burial in a cemetery or elsewhere. The Edison Memorial Tower, one of Edison Townships notable landmarks. ... Farmingdale is a village in Nassau County, New York in the United States. ... The rocky side of a mountain creek near Orosí, Costa Rica. ... For the musician, see Burial (musician). ... Graves at Green-Wood Cemetery, Brooklyn, New York A cemetery is a place in which dead bodies and cremated remains are buried. ...

Use

Originally, a tombstone was the stone lid of a stone coffin, or the coffin itself, and a gravestone was the stone slab that was laid over a grave. Now all three terms are also used for markers placed at the head of the grave. Originally graves in the 1700s also contained footstones to demarcate the foot end of the grave. Footstones were rarely carved with more than the deceased's initials and year of death, and many cemeteries and churchyards have removed them to make cutting the grass easier. A coffin (in North American English, also known as a casket) is a funerary box used in the display and containment of deceased remains -- either for burial or after cremation. ... Ancient unreadable gravestones mark the position of graves in the parish churchyard at Bourton-on-the-Water, Gloucestershire, England A grave is a place where the body of a dead animal, generally human, is buried, often after a funeral. ... Graves at Green-Wood Cemetery, Brooklyn, New York A cemetery is a place in which dead bodies and cremated remains are buried. ... Graves at Green-Wood Cemetery, Brooklyn, New York A cemetery (also called a graveyard, churchyard or kirkyard) is a place (usually an enclosed area of land) in which dead bodies are buried. ...

Graves and any related memorials are a focus for mourning and remembrance. The names of relatives are often added to a gravestone over the years, so that one marker may chronicle the passing of an entire family spread over decades. Since gravestones and a plot in a cemetery or churchyard cost money, they are also a symbol of wealth or prominence in a community. Some gravestones were even commissioned and erected to their own memory by people who were still living, as a testament to their wealth and status. In a Christian context, the very wealthy often erected elaborate memorials within churches rather than having simply external gravestones. Mourning is in the simplest sense synonymous with grief over the death of someone. ... Christianity is a monotheistic[1] religion centered on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as presented in the New Testament. ... A church monument is an architectural or sculptural memorial to a dead person or persons, often in the form of an effigy or a wall tablet, located within a Christian church. ... St. ...

Crematoria frequently offer similar alternatives for families who do not have a grave to mark, but who want a focus for their mourning and for remembrance. Carved or cast commemorative plaques inside the crematorium for example may serve this purpose. Cremation is the practice of disposing of a corpse by burning. ... sdvsgvsvsv This page meets Wikipedias criteria for speedy deletion. ... A commemorative plaque, or simply plaque, is a plate of metal attached to a wall or other vertical surface and bearing text in memory of an important figure or event. ...

Materials

• Fieldstones. The earliest markers for graves were natural fieldstone, some unmarked and others decorated or incised using a metal awl. Typical motifs for the carving included a cross and the deceased's name and age.
• Granite. Granite is a hard stone and is difficult to carve. One method of carving is to use computer controlled rotary bits. Another method is sandblasting the stone while using hand cut masks to protect the areas to be kept smooth.
• Iron. Iron grave markers were popular during the Victorian era in the United Kingdom and elsewhere, often being produced by the local blacksmith. Some survive in a much eroded state.
• Marble. Marble replaced sandstone in the early 1800s. In geographical areas with high rainfall, the marble slowly dissolves in the slightly acidic rainwater and the inscriptions become unreadable.
• Sandstone. In the 1600s in the United States sandstone replaced fieldstones. The material is durable yet soft enough to carve easily. Some sandstone markers are so well preserved that individual chisel marks can be discerned in the carving. Others have delaminated and crumbled into dust. Delamination occurs when water gets between the layers that make up the sandstone. As it freezes and expands the layers flake off.
• Wood. This was a popular and relatively cheap material during the Georgian and Victorian era, and almost certainly before, in Great Britain and elsewhere. However, due to their eventual decomposition, few survive. In modern times, some UK cemeteries do not allow the placing of a wooden memorial for more than 6 months after burial, after which a stone memorial has to be placed.

Fieldstone is an building construction material. ... Quarrying granite for the Mormon Temple, Utah Territory. ... Queen Victoria (shown here on the morning of her Ascension to the Throne, 20 June 1837) gave her name to the historic era The Victorian era of the United Kingdom marked the height of the British industrial revolution and the apex of the British Empire. ... A blacksmith A blacksmith at work A blacksmith at work A blacksmiths fire Hot metal work from a blacksmith A blacksmith is a person who creates objects from iron or steel by forging the metal; i. ... Venus de Milo, front. ... Red sandstone interior of Lower Antelope Canyon, Arizona, worn smooth due to erosion by flash flooding over millions of years Sandstone is a sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-size mineral or rock grains. ... Delamination is a mode of failure of laminated composite materials. ... Queen Victoria (shown here on the morning of her Ascension to the Throne, 20 June 1837) gave her name to the historic era The Victorian era of the United Kingdom marked the height of the British industrial revolution and the apex of the British Empire. ...

Inscriptions

These markers are usually bear inscriptions: epitaphs in praise of the deceased and/or quotations from religious texts. In a few instances the inscription is in the form of a plea, admonishment, testament of faith, claim to fame or even a curse — William Shakespeare's inscription famously declares; A Monumental Inscription is an inscription, typically carved in stone, on a grave marker or memorial plaque. ... An epitaph ( literally: on the gravestone in ancient Greek) is text honoring the deceased, most commonly inscribed on a tombstone or plaque. ... Wikipedia does not yet have an article with this exact name. ...

Good friend, for Jesus' sake forbear,

To dig the dust enclosèd here.

Blest be the man that spares these stones,

And cursed be he that moves my bones.

The basic information on the headstone generally includes the name of the deceased and their date of birth and death. Such information can be useful to genealogists and local historians. Headstone engravers faced their own "Year 2000 problem" when still-living people, as many as 500,000 the United States alone, possessed headstones with pre-carved death dates beginning 19–.[1] Genealogy is the study and tracing of family pedigrees. ... Local history is the study of the history of a relatively small geographic area; typically a specific settlement, parish or county. ... The Year 2000 problem (also known as the Y2K problem, the millennium bug, and the Y2K Bug) was the result of a practice in early computer program design that caused some date-related processing to operate incorrectly for dates and times on and after January 1, 2000. ...

Modern gravestones may include framed photographs of the deceased; photographic images or artwork (showing the loved one, or some other image relevant to their life, interests or achievements) can now be engraved onto smooth stone surfaces. Many cemeteries, however, especially those surrounding historic churches or in conservation areas, have strict regulations as to the appropriate materials for a memorial, and may also forbid the use of artificial flowers in a floral tribute. A sepia-toned photograph taken in England in 1895 U.S. Marines raising the flag on Iwo Jima, February 23, 1945 Peter Leibings photograph of Conrad Schumann leaping over barbed wire into West Berlin on August 15, 1961 Buzz Aldrin salutes the US flag on the surface of the... Engraving is the practice of incising a design onto a hard, flat surface, by cutting grooves into it. ... A conservation area is a tract of land that has been awarded protected status in order to ensure that natural features or biota are safeguarded. ... Floristry, flower arranging, floral arrangement, floral design or floral arts is the art of creating flower arrangements in vases, bowls and baskets, or making bouquets and compositions from cut flowers, foliage, herbs, ornamental grasses and other botanical materials. ...

Gravestones which are well carved in hard-wearing stone may weather many centuries exposed in graveyards and still remain legible. Those which are fixed on the inside of churches, on the walls or on the floor (frequently as near to the altar as possible) may last much longer: such memorials were often embellished with a monumental brass. Cemeteries do, however, require maintenance, as over the centuries stones may topple and injure people, or graves may simply become overgrown and their markers lost or vandalised. St. ... A commemorative plaque, or simply plaque, is a plate of metal attached to a wall or other vertical surface and bearing text in memory of an important figure or event. ... Look up Altar in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Monumental Brass is a species of engraved sepulchral memorial which in the early part of the 13th century began to take the place of tombs and effigies carved in stone. ... Graves at Green-Wood Cemetery, Brooklyn, New York A cemetery is a place in which dead bodies and cremated remains are buried. ... A caricature of Gustave Courbet taking down a Morris column, published by Le Père Duchêne illustré magazine Vandalism is the conspicuous defacement destruction of a structure or symbol against the will of the owner/governing body. ...

Form and decoration

Elaborately carved grave slab at Shebbear (Devon, England) showing a skull sprouting flowering shoots, as a symbol of resurrection

Marble headstone of a couple buried together in Singapore, showing an arched emblem, signifying the reunification with one's partner in heaven.

Gravestones may be simple upright slabs with semi-circular, rounded, gabled, pointed-arched, pedimental, square or other shaped tops. During the 18th century, they were often decorated with memento mori (symbolic reminders of death) such as skulls or winged skulls (called "death's heads"), winged cherub heads, heavenly crowns, urns or the picks and shovels of the grave digger. Somewhat unusual were more elaborate allegorical figures, such as Old Father Time, or emblems of trade or status, or even some event from the life of the deceased (particularly how they died). Later in the same century, large tomb chests or smaller coped chests were commonly used by the gentry as a means of commemorating a number of members of the same family. In the 19th century, headstone styles became very diverse, ranging from plain to highly decorated. They might be replaced by more elaborately carved markers, such as crosses or angels. Simple curb surrounds, sometimes filled with glass chippings, were popular during the mid-20th century. Image File history File linksMetadata Shebbear_Devon_gravestone. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Shebbear_Devon_gravestone. ... Elaborately carved grave slab in Shebbear churchyard, showing a skull sprouting flowering shoots, as a symbol of resurrection Shebbear is a village in North Devon with a population of about 600. ... Venus de Milo, front. ... (17th century - 18th century - 19th century - more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 18th century refers to the century that lasted from 1701 through 1800. ... Memento mori is a Latin phrase that may be freely translated as Remember that you are mortal, Remember you will die, or Remember your death. It names a genre of artistic creations that vary widely from one another, but which all share the same purpose, which is to remind people... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... It has been suggested that temporal fenestra be merged into this article or section. ... This article or section is not written in the formal tone expected of an encyclopedia article. ... Sacrifice by Walter Hancock, Soldiers Memorial, St. ... A 19th century depiction of Father Time, cradling Baby New Year. ... An emblem consists of a pictorial image, abstract or representational, that epitomizes a concept - often a concept of a moral truth or an allegory. ... A fruit stand at a market. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Alternative meaning: Nineteenth Century (periodical) (18th century — 19th century — 20th century — more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 19th century was that century which lasted from 1801-1900 in the sense of the Gregorian calendar. ... A Greek cross (all arms of equal length) above a saltire, a cross rotated by 45 degrees A famous khachkar at Goshavank (Notice the cross). ... The Annunciation - the Angel Gabriel announces to Mary that she will bear Jesus (El Greco, 1575) An angel is an ethereal being found in many religions, whose duties are to assist and serve God. ... (19th century - 20th century - 21st century - more centuries) Decades: 1900s 1910s 1920s 1930s 1940s 1950s 1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s As a means of recording the passage of time, the 20th century was that century which lasted from 1901–2000 in the sense of the Gregorian calendar (1900–1999...

Some form of simple decoration is once more popular. Special emblems on tombstones indicate several familiar themes in the Christian faith. Some examples are: Christians believe that Jesus is the mediator of the New Covenant (see Hebrews 8:6). ...

• Anchor - Steadfast hope
• Arch - Rejoined with partner in Heaven
• Birds - The soul
• Cherub - Divine wisdom or justice
• Column - Noble life
• Broken column - Early death
• Conch shell - Wisdom
• Cross, anchor and Bible - Trials, victory and reward
• Crown - Reward and glory
• Dolphin - Salvation, bearer of souls to Heaven
• Dove - Purity, love and Holy Spirit
• Garland - Victory over death
• Gourds - Deliverance from grief
• Heart - Devotion
• Horseshoe - Protection against evil
• Hourglass - Time and its swift flight
• Ivy - Faithfulness, memory, and undying friendship
• Lamb - Innocence
• Laurel - Victory
• Lily - Purity and resurrection
• Mermaid - Dualism of Christ - half God, half man
• Oak - Strength
• Olive branch - Forgiveness, and peace
• Palms - Martyrdom
• Peacock - Eternal life
• Poppy - Eternal sleep
• Rooster - Awakening, courage and vigilance
• Shell - Birth and resurrection
• Six pointed star - The God
• Skeleton - Life's brevity
• Snake in a circle - Everlasting life in Heaven
• Swallow - Motherhood
• Broken sword - Life cut short
• Crossed swords - Life lost in battle
• Tree trunk - The beauty of life
• Triangle - Truth, equality and the trinity
• Shattered urn - Old age
• Weeping willow - Mourning, grief

A stocked ships anchor. ... Isometric view of a typical arch An arch is a curved structure capable of spanning a space while supporting significant weight (e. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... For other meanings of bird, see bird (disambiguation). ... The soul, acording to many religious and philosophical traditions, is a self-aware ethereal substance particular to a unique living being. ... CHERUB is a series of childrens books by Robert Muchamore about a group of children who attend the CHERUB campus to be trained as secret agents. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... This article is about the concept of justice. ... Deconstructing a Roman pillar. ... Deconstructing a Roman pillar. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Species Strombus gigas Strombus pugilis A conch (pronounced konk (IPA: ) or konch (IPA: )) is a sea-dwelling mollusk, and more specifically, a marine gastropod. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... A Greek cross (all arms of equal length) above a saltire, a cross rotated by 45 degrees A famous khachkar at Goshavank (Notice the cross). ... A stocked ships anchor. ... This Gutenberg Bible is displayed by the United States Library of Congress. ... A crown is a symbolic form of headgear worn by a monarch or by a god, for whom the crown is traditionally one of the symbols of power and legitimacy (See Regalia for a broader treatment). ... Genera See article below. ... Subfamilies see article text Feral Rock Pigeon beside Weiming Lake, Peking University Pigeons (which are also known as rock doves) and doves comprise the family Columbidae within the order Columbiformes, including some 300 species of near passerine birds. ... In various religions, most notably Trinitarian Christianity, the Holy Spirit (in Hebrew רוח הקודש Ruah haqodesh; also called the Holy Ghost) is the third consubstantial Person of the Holy Trinity. ... Look up garland in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... A gourd is a hollow, dried shell of a fruit in the Cucurbitaceae family of plants. ... The heart and lungs, from an older edition of Grays Anatomy. ... A Devotion in Christianity has come to mean time spent alone or in a small group of people reading and studying the Bible in a way as it relates to ones spiritual health and wellbeing. ... Modern horseshoes are most commonly made of iron and nailed onto the hoof. ... In religion and ethics, Evil refers to the morally objectionable aspects of the behaviour and reasoning of human beings — those which are deliberately void of conscience, and show a wanton penchant for destruction. ... Hourglass in wooden stand An hourglass, also known as a sandglass or sand timer, is a device for the measurement of time. ... Species See text Hedera (English name ivy, plural ivies) is a genus of about ten species of climbing or ground-creeping evergreen woody plants in the family Araliaceae, native to the Atlantic Islands, western, central and southern Europe, northwestern Africa and across central-southern Asia east to Japan. ... It has been suggested that Lambing be merged into this article or section. ... Innocence is a term that describes the lack of guilt of an individual, with respect to a crime. ... Binomial name Laurus nobilis L. The Bay Laurel (Laurus nobilis, Lauraceae), also known as True Laurel, Sweet Bay, Grecian Laurel, or just Laurel, is an evergreen tree or large shrub reaching 10–18 m tall, native to the Mediterranean region. ... Look up Victory in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... lily is the best name in the whole wide world. ... Look up Resurrection in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... A mermaid (from the Middle English mere in the obsolete sense sea + maid(en)) is a legendary aquatic creature with the head and torso of human female and the tail of a fish. ... Christ is the English translation of the Greek word (Christós), which literally means The Anointed One. ... This article discusses the term God in the context of monotheism and henotheism. ... Michelangelos David is widely considered to be one of the finest artistic portrayals of a man. ... Species See List of Quercus species The term oak can be used as part of the common name of any of several hundred species of trees and shrubs in the genus Quercus, and some related genera, notably Cyclobalanopsis and Lithocarpus. ... Olive branch is a colloquial term referring to a concession or a gesture of peace, as well as a peace symbol. ... Genera Many; see list of Arecaceae genera Arecaceae (also known as Palmae or Palmaceae), the palm family, is a family of flowering plants, belonging to the monocot order Arecales. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... Peacock re-directs here; for alternate uses see Peacock (disambiguation). ... Poppy at High Wood Cemetery, France. ... A rooster or cock is a male chicken, the female being a hen. ... Various seashells The hard, rigid outer covering of certain animals is called a shell. ... Childbirth (also called labour, birth, partus or parturition) is the culmination of a human pregnancy with the emergence of a newborn infant from its mothers uterus. ... Look up Resurrection in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... The creator god is the divine being that created the universe, according to various traditions and faiths. ... A human skeleton - (endoskeleton) In biology, the skeleton (from Greek σκελετός, dried-up) or skeletal system is the biological system providing physical support in living organisms. ... blue: sea snakes, black: land snakes Superfamilies and Families Henophidia Aniliidae Anomochilidae Boidae Bolyeriidae Cylindrophiidae Loxocemidae Pythonidae Tropidophiidae Uropeltidae Xenopeltidae Typhlopoidea Anomalepididae Leptotyphlopidae Typhlopidae Xenophidia Acrochordidae Atractaspididae Colubridae Elapidae Hydrophiidae Viperidae For other uses, see Snake (disambiguation). ... Genera Many, see text. ... Look up mother in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Swiss longsword, 15th or 16th century Look up Sword in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... For other uses, see Tree (disambiguation). ... A triangle is one of the basic shapes of geometry: a polygon with three vertices and three sides which are straight line segments. ... Egalitarianism (derived from the French word égal, meaning equal or level) is the moral doctrine that people should be treated as equals, in some respect. ... This article concerns the holy Trinity of Christianity. ... Maya funerary urn For the computing term, see Uniform Resource Name. ... Species About 350, including: Salix acutifolia - Violet Willow Salix alaxensis - Alaska Willow Salix alba - White Willow Salix alpina - Alpine Willow Salix amygdaloides - Peachleaf Willow Salix arbuscula - Mountain Willow Salix arbusculoides - Littletree Willow Salix arctica - Arctic Willow Salix atrocinerea Salix aurita - Eared Willow Salix babylonica - Peking Willow Salix bakko Salix barrattiana... Mourning is in the simplest sense synonymous with grief over the death of someone. ...

Image Gallery

Headstones in the Japanese Cemetery in Broome, Western Australia Picture of headstones in the Japanese Cemetery in Broome, taken by me and released under GNU Free Documentation License. ... Broome () is a pearling and tourist town in the Kimberley in the far north of Western Australia. ...	A cemetery in rural Spain A scenic cemetery in rural Spain showing marble headstones Copyright (c) 1996 Steven J. Dunlop, Nerstrand, MN; released under GFDL; all other rights reserved. ...	A typical late 20th century headstone in the United States This is my grandparents headstone at Mount Calvary Cemetery, Dubuque, Iowa. ...	Headstone in an English cemetery Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1500x1086, 535 KB) Headstone in Haycombe Cemetery, Bath, England. ...
19th century marble headstone in an Iowa cemetery	18th century Biedermeier-Headstone from the St. Marx cemetery, Vienna, Austria St. ... Vienna (German: , see also other names) is the capital of Austria, and also one of the nine States of Austria. ...	German POW Camp Butler National Cemetery Camp Butler National Cemetery is a United States National Cemetery located a few miles northeast of Springfield and a few miles southwest of Riverton, a suburb of Springfield, in Sangamon County, Illinois. ...	The grave marker for Horatio Nelson Ball and his father, Joseph Ball, Jr. in the Grandville Cemetery, MI.

See also

• Stela

Stele is also a concept in plant biology. ...

External links

• In Search Of Gravestones Old And Curious by W.T. (William Thomas) Vincent, 1896, from Project Gutenberg

Wikimedia Commons has media related to:

Headstone

• A Very Grave Matter old New England gravestones
• Historic Headstones Online Project to photograph and transcribe content from Historic Headstones
• Pennsylvania German Tombstones