Gravestones, Tombs & Memorials (12 page)

FIG 4.23: WEEPERS:
Mourning figures can be found from all periods. Those holding a skull are believed to represent children who died before the parent whose memorial it is. In the late 18th and early 19th centuries a female figure weeping upon an urn or looking at a book is common (if her foot rests upon a globe it means she despised worldly pleasures).

FIG 4.24: HOPE AND ANCHOR:
The three key virtues mentioned by St Paul were Faith, Hope and Charity (or Love) and these become popular images from the late 18th century. The figure of Hope with her anchor is very common and could be simplified to just an anchor on a pile of rock in the Victorian period.

FIG 4.25: FAITH AND THE CROSS:
Fear of Popery meant that the cross, the primary symbol of salvation, was rarely used before the Victorian period, when it becomes common. However, if you look closely, it does appear on a number of 18th- and early 19th-century gravestones, some for Catholic families buried in more remote churchyards. Others form part of a scene along with other Passion emblems (items related to Christ's suffering on the cross) as on this example with the chalice, spear and three drops of blood falling from the clouds.

FIG 4.26: DEATH SCENE:
On some more elaborate gravestones and tombs a complete death scene was carved with the deceased being pierced by a dart held by a skeleton representing Death. On other examples this gruesome character stands to one side of a central plaque, as above.

FIG 4.27: BIBLICAL SCENES:
On some more ambitious gravestones a scene from the Bible was carved, especially in the late 18th century. The ones chosen were very much a personal choice and many have a local pastoral theme to the carving. The above example shows the Sacrifice of Isaac when God commanded Abraham to offer his son as a burnt offering but an angel, seen top right in the clouds, stopped him at the last moment.

FIG 4.28: DISASTERS:
Occasionally a disaster like a shipwreck can be illustrated upon the gravestone. In this rare example from Great Yarmouth a suspension bridge is shown collapsing. This happened in 1845 when a clown travelling along the River Bure in a wash tub to promote a circus encouraged a crowd to surge onto the bridge causing the iron chains to break. Over 80 people, mainly children died, and the only memorial to the tragedy is this carving on the gravestone of nine-year-old George Beloe.

FIG 4.29: ACCIDENTS:
Individual incidents can also be recorded as on this one of a pair marking the death in a train boiler explosion – a common occurrence on early locomotives – of Joseph Rutherford. Carvings like this can be historically interesting as it shows a contemporary engine. Note also this stone is painted (the current brown scheme is peeling off) as originally were other memorials (see
Fig 1.10
).

FIG 4.30:
One of the panels from the side of Sir Joseph Danver's tomb in the churchyard at Swithland, Leics, where the notable quarry produced slate for local memorials. This incredible piece shows a contemporary farming scene with ridge and furrows, ploughing and a presumably new farmhouse being built in the background. It is said that the reason this tomb is rather oddly positioned straddling the churchyard wall is that the squire wanted to be buried with his dog which could not be done on consecrated land, hence one part is outside and the other containing him is inside!

C
HAPTER
5

Inscriptions and Epitaphs

FIG 5.1:
The inscriptions upon gravestones vary not just in the facts they contain about the deceased but also in the style of text. Over the centuries they have ranged from simple deep cut Roman fonts (on the right) to Victorian Gothic styles (right of centre at the rear). A wide range like this can be seen in many churchyards today, the above examples all coming from Leek, Staffs.

L
ocked up in the text upon gravestones and tombs is more than just the name and date of passing of the incumbent. Information can be found like the deceased's ambitions, names of relatives and attitude towards life. There may also be details like profession or cause of death and age, indicating what social conditions and life expectancy were like in the region at that time. Some gravestones were used by generations of the same family, simply listing the deceased and the date of passing, others had a single memorial typically in the 18th and early 19th century with the
details of death in the centre and a poetic epitaph below. These short pieces of prose often contain further information, especially with regard to the nature of death and expectation of the afterlife. Perhaps the most striking realisation though to be gained from reading inscriptions is the fragility of life in past centuries, with records of outbreaks of disease, suffering with no pain relief, and a shockingly high infant mortality rate present in most graveyards.