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Reading & Understanding Gravestone Inscriptions
By Mark Walters on December 22, 2009 |
Total Viewed: 216 |
| Post by : Eddy FoX |
| Category: Arts & Crafts |
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All over the world there are countless enthusiasts hot on the trail of their family history. There are many ways that this information can be found - local archives, personal records and correspondence all have an essential role as people try to trace their ancestors back as far as they can manage. Gravestone memorials, particularly those from more recent centuries, are a vital part of the search too.
Grave markers can be an essential piece of the genealogical jigsaw, because of their inscriptions or epitaphs. As well as the obvious recording of name, age and date of death, it is not uncommon to also find additional information, such as family links and occupations.
There is more subtle information and clues that can be ascertained too. One example is the size and quality of the gravestone, with larger and more expensive ones indicating that either the person was highly thought of and / or they were part of a wealthy family. Another example is the length of the inscription on the gravestone, which short ones indicating that either the family was poor or that the person may have been responsible for some family misdemeanor.
Gravestone inscriptions, particularly the much older ones, are not always limited to words. The skull and crossbones, for example, was popular on grave markers in the 1600s, being used as the ancient symbol for death. In the following century, the crossbones were beginning to make way for wings, introducing the idea of an afterlife. Over time, the emphasis shifted away from death and more positively onto life, with angels replacing skulls.
Headstones inscribed with urns, broken columns or inverted torches all indicate a life that ended too soon, whilst a sickle or sheaf of wheat represents the soul being reaped. An hourglass bearing wings suggests the fleeting passage of time. The Victorians in particular were very fond of symbolism. They particularly liked the weeping willow tree, which was used to suggest that, just like a tree, man must reach for heaven.
However, lengthy inscriptions need upright headstones and, to ease ground-keeping maintenance, cemeteries are now steering a return to smaller grave markers, placed level with the grass. Creativity and symbolism is also less widespread in more recent years and, for the most part, the only details that can be found alongside the name, age, and dates of birth and death, are messages such as "now at rest" or "will be missed".
Still, this need not be a big problem, and should by no means cut short your family history research, as record keeping over the past 50 years has become much more comprehensive, and so what has been lost on gravestones has been compensated for elsewhere. |
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About the Author:
At gravestones.org.uk, we understand the devastation caused by bereavement, which is why we aim to make choosing a lasting (http://www.gravestones.org.uk/gravestone-designs.html) gravestone memorial an easy process. |
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