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CEMETERY SYMBOLISM | |
| ANCHOR | ||
| Early Christians devised clever signs so they could guide one another and worship. The anchor is a disguised cross when seen in a Christian setting. The further meaning is that which keeps us from drifting off and becoming lost in death. One rarely sees anchors on inland gravestones. It can also mean the deceased was a sailor. | ||
| ROCK | ||
| Steadfastness of Christ and stability. | ||
| ROPE or RIBBON | ||
| Entwined life with Christ. | ||
| WOOD | ||
| Strong faith. | ||
| BRANCH | ||
| Severed mortality. | ||
| TREE | ||
| Faith, life. | ||
| TREE TRUNK SEVERED | ||
| Premature death. | ||
| BROKEN COLUMN | ||
| Eventual ruin or decomposition of us all. | ||
| SCROLL | ||
| Life's document on earth, recordings of a life lived. | ||
| DOVE | ||
| Appears on both Christian (usually Catholic) and Jewish cemeteries. Catholics see the dove as the Holy Spirit and Jews as a peace symbol. It also suggests innocence, purity and spirituality because of the dove's white color. | ||
| WINGED | ||
| Once common on New England tombstones representing death and the soul taking flight. | ||
| BIRDS | ||
| Souls, flight of the soul back to God. | ||
| IVY | ||
| Abiding memory of friendship. | ||
| WREATH | ||
| Saintliness and glory representing a large crown, indicates eternity in the afterlife, victory in death. | ||
| URN | ||
| Entombment symbol given after death. | ||
| DRAPERY | ||
| of anything...meaning mourning, deep sorrow. | ||
| ROSE or FLOWER | ||
| Brevity on earth, sorrow. | ||
| LAMB | ||
| Usually marks the grave of a child meaning innocence. Children have had little time to accumulate sin - Lamb of God. | ||