Gravemarkers that make you look twice
Cemeteries are often a place of sadness. You go to a cemetery for a funeral or to visit a loved one. But, have you ever gone to a cemetery just to walk around, on a bright sunny day, when you are happy? You will see graves that peek your interest, and grave that get you scratching your head. You will see witty epitaphs, and very sad memorials. You will see lighthearted artwork, scary creepy sculptures, and things that appear to make no sense at all. You'll see the modest and conservative, and the colorful and outlandish. This lens is devoted to the weird graves. Well they are weird to me, with my implanted concept of what is normal.
Odd Grave Markers
There are some grave markers that just make you stop and stare, considering the possible circumstances in which they came about. Perhaps it is the epitaph, or the name itself, or perhaps it is the overall design of the gravestone/statue. There is a story behind each one. Imagining that story opens your mind to new possibilities.
Strange
Bizarre Hands
I love this!
Bottle Tree
Shel Silverstein drawing?
Strange
curated content from Flickr
Different Strokes for Different Folks
Traditions for grave markers differ dramatically around the world. What may seem odd, outrageous, or even inappropriate in one place is perfectly normal (and common) in another. Try not to be judgmental.
Graven Images: New England Stonecarving and its Symbols, 1650-1815
Amazon Price: $18.97 (as of 11/27/2009) 
Eternal Prairie: Exploring Rural Cemeteries of the West
Amazon Price: $9.95 (as of 11/27/2009)
Epitaphs and Images from Scottish Graveyards
Amazon Price: (as of 11/27/2009)
Rest Lightly: An Anthology of Latin and Greek Tomb Inscriptions
Amazon Price: $22.00 (as of 11/27/2009)
Pirates?
I guess everyone that lives must die, and everyone that dies must have remains somewhere. I guess I just never thought about stumbling upon pirate graves in a cemetery. Some of these may be that of pirates, while others may have just used pirate motifs in grave design. Who knows?
curated content from Flickr
Weird Grave Links
- Weird NJ Graves
- Graves that have appeared in the magazine Weird.
- Weird Michigan cemetery strangeness, odd graves, cemetery legends
- Cemetery strangeness, odd graves, cemetery legends...
- The Weirdest Grave in the West.
- The story behind one of the most peculiar (and most popular) grave sites in the entire United States. More than 60 years after it was completed, it still attracts tens of thousands of visitors a year.
- Weird Places And Things To Visit In North Carolina (Raleigh: house, community) - North Carolina (NC) - Page 2 - City-Data Forum
- Then there are the bizarre graves in The Old Burying Ground...here are a few of them...
- Bizarre Gravestone Epitaphs Part 1
- A list of bizarre gravestone epitaphs, quotes and quotations of people's last words on their tombstones.
Epitaphs
Preserving the Memory
The Old Stone Rubbing Kit: Preserving Epitaphs and Artwork from Historical Gravestones & Monuments
Amazon Price: $18.96 (as of 11/27/2009)
A Graveyard Preservation Primer (American Association for State and Local History Book Series)
Amazon Price: $29.20 (as of 11/27/2009)
Graveside Guestbook
What's the weirdest grave you've seen?
What kind of grave do you want? I'm leaning toward a grave that looks like rock-candy myself.
submit
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- Margaret daSilva Margaret daSilva Oct 16, 2009 @ 10:40 pm
- I think the people whose graves we look at would be happy to know that years...even centuries...after they died someone they didn't know stopped a minute and read about them....thought about them.
Perhaps it's time to stop calling them 'bizarre' or 'weird' and use 'creative' or 'unusual'.
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- ddd ddd Aug 6, 2009 @ 9:04 pm
- I know that the only pirate entombed is in the Sulina Cemetery in Romania (where the Danube flows into the Black Sea). The stone has the skull with crossbones and it's written in greek. The guy died around 1860
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- GhostWalker GhostWalker Jun 27, 2009 @ 9:23 am
- Really interesting...Rated ti a 5
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- hlkljgk hlkljgk Jun 23, 2009 @ 6:45 pm
- a friend of mine just got me this book, Stories in Stone: The Complete Guide to Cemetery Symbolism; it's quite interesting.
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- dc64 dc64 Apr 4, 2009 @ 1:10 pm
- I have always loved cemeteries, they are so peaceful and full of history. It is sad to come across the gravestones of children, and I can be so overwhelmed with sadness if I'm not careful, but I still love them. There are so many interesting epitaphs and designs on the tombstones, and walking through the rows makes me feel as if I am travelling through time.
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- WebSpinstress WebSpinstress Nov 14, 2008 @ 12:23 pm
- What a fun and unique lens! 5*'s and favorited. :-)
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- ElizabethJeanAllen ElizabethJeanAllen Nov 11, 2008 @ 5:09 pm
- I love to walk through graveyards. They are so peaceful and quiet. I've seen some strange headstones but not as strange as the ones you have here.
Lizzy
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- Culrec_Zandier Culrec_Zandier Oct 27, 2008 @ 5:43 am
- I found the Mexican monuments to be most interesting. Thanks.
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- LilliputStation LilliputStation Oct 14, 2008 @ 6:13 am
- I love walking in graveyards. I never thought to look for weird graves though. I like the gravestones that reveal a bit of the "history" behind the person buried there. These stones certainly do that!
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- Margaret_McKinney Margaret_McKinney Aug 18, 2008 @ 10:16 pm
- I also love to wander cemeteries to search for ancestors. I once found an obelisk with a man on one side and his three wives on the other surfaces. Some of my best memories are of spending Memorial Day Weekend with my Grandmother. Where I am from we plant red geraniums on the graves of all our ancestors on the Saturday before Memorial Day. Stop by my lens about my Grandmother to learn more about a truly wonderful woman.
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