Graveyard Symbols

Old grave stones are often decorated with carvings of angels, anchors, roses and so on. These were not meant to just be pretty decorations but were symbols of grief and immortality. An anchor on a stone doesn’t always mean a the deceased was a sailor, the anchor is also a symbol of hope. I have compiled a list of gravestone symbols:

Anchor - Hope or ‘at rest’. Early Christians used this as a symbol of St. Clement who in the 1st century was bound to a anchor and drop into the sea.

Angel - Agent of God guarding the dead.

Arrow - Mortality.

Book - Everlasting faith.

Butterfly - Resurrection.

Chalice - Honoring the sacraments.

Circle - Eternity.

Column - Mortality.

Cross - Christianity. There are over 285 different varieties of crosses.

Crossed Swords - Inverted signifies death in battle.

Crown - Heavenly reward. Faithful Christian.

Cypress Tree - Deep mourning.

Dove - The Holy Spirit or peace.

Fern - Grief.

Hands - Praying - praying for eternal life.

Pointing - path to heaven.

Clasped - Farewell.

Harp - Praise to God.

Heart - Love & devotion.

Horse - Generosity. Attributed to St. George, St. Martin, St. Maurice, & St. Victor.

Hour Glass - Passage of life.

I.H.S. - Jesus Hominom Saluator - Jesus Saviour of Men

Ivy - Friendship.

Lamb - Innocence.

Laurel - Victory or peace.

Lily- Chastity, purity, or innocence.

Lion - Resurrection.

Obelisk - Eternal Life.

Palm - Triumph of a martyr over death.

Pelican - Charity.

Phoenix - Resurrection.

Rose - Sinless.

Shell - Pilgrimage.

Sickle - Time.

Ship - Christianity.

Skull - Mortality.

Snake - Eternity.

Sun - Renewed life.

Sundial - Passage if time.

Sword - Justice or fortitude.

Tree - Knowledge.

Torch - Immortality.

Urn - Remembrance and immortality.

Wheat - The divine harvest.