Gravestones, Tombs & Memorials (14 page)

FIG 5.11:
A very common epitaph which appears in the late 17th century and continued in use with variations into the 18th is the following: ‘As you are now so once was I, As I am now so you must be'. Note when reading them that what appears to be the letter ‘f' without the horizontal cross is an ‘s'.

Eighteenth-century inscriptions have a matter-of-fact attitude towards death, often recording details of the suffering endured by the deceased. Phrases like ‘a pale consumption gave the final blow' record the widespread loss of life to tuberculosis. The fact that there was little in the way of pain relief available until the early 19th century is shown in epitaphs like ‘Afflictions sore long time I bore, all human help was vain, ‘til God did please Death should me seize, and ease me of my pain'. The high infant mortality rate, especially in the first half of the century, is well documented on memorials; one
common phrase being ‘Received but yesterday the gift of breath, order'd tomorrow to return to Death'. Accidents were also recorded on many stones often with advice not to do the same. Loss in a shipwreck is common in coastal districts, while drowning is surprisingly widespread as few had reason to learn to swim.

FIG 5.12:
Another common 18th-century epitaph reminds us that there was little in the way of pain relief: ‘Afflictions sore long time I bore, Physicians ware in vain, Til God alone did hear my mone, And free me from my pain' (top example). Pain relief improved for the rich in the late 18th century, and became more widely available to others in the early 1800s, and ‘painful death' fades away on epitaphs as a result.

FIG 5.13:
Despite the rather grim and morbid theme to 18th-century memorial texts, there are some which record a long and healthy life. Some are clearly exaggerations or misprints with ages quoted well over 100, others are more believable as in the above example of 88. This stone also records that this gentleman bequeathed his relatives upwards of £2,000. Some 17th-and 18th-century stones also record charitable donations made by the deceased.

FIG 5.14:
Some inscriptions pour compliments upon the deceased, the top example because he ‘nobly sacrificed his life by striving to save a companion from drowning'. The bottom example appears more of a flood of emotion typical of some from the 19th century.

FIG 5.15:
Sudden death took away the chance for the deceased to say proper farewells or be given the last rites. The top example reads ‘Farewell my Parents Brothers Sisters all, I must obey my last and greatest call; In early life while you lamenting say, Alas how sudden I was snatch'd away'. The bottom example asks the reader to reflect that ‘When least expected Death may be at hand'.

FIG 5.16:
Many 18th-century epitaphs tend to concern themselves with the family left behind, and refer to ‘my wife and children dear' or ‘dearest friend', with assurances that the departed is missing them and thinking about their welfare. The above example reads ‘Farewell dear Husband my life is past, I loved you well while it did last, Think on my children for my sake, And ever on them pity take'.

FIG 5.17:
Murder most foul is clearly the subject of this gravestone of 1786 featuring a tree with a branch broken to signify a life cut short while the hammer may be the offending weapon. The inscription below is unrestrained in its condemnation of ‘a barbarous assassin', the victim describing the act as ‘by murd'rous hand my thread of life was broke; Dreadful the hour, and terrible the Stroke!'

From the turn of the 19th century the changing attitudes towards death are recorded in more romantic and sentimental epitaphs. Many use phrases like ‘meet with you again' to remind them that the family would reunite in Heaven, or celebrate their passing as the resurrection of the individual with ‘eternal joy' and ‘rise again' widely used. Others concentrate on salvation through faith with biblical quotes becoming popular, or simple phrases like ‘I have kept the Faith' or ‘I have fought the good fight'. In the Victorian period the verses which had been popular for nearly two centuries were replaced by short often repeated quotes from the Bible.

FIG 5.18:
The theme of resurrection and the desire of the deceased to meet their family again in Heaven are common on late 18th- and early 19th-century epitaphs. The top example states: ‘When we asunder part, It gives us inward pain; But we shall still be joined in heart, And hope to meet again'. The bottom one reads: ‘But though her corps lies here, her hope was this, To meet her darling Sons in endless bliss'.