Monthly Archives: June 2015

Race to the Finish

Posted on June 30, 2015 by gravelyspeaking

Before the Indy 500, and before the Grand Prix, there was the Gordon Bennett Cup, Europe’s first great car race which ran for 6 years from 1900 until 1905. For the last two years of the race, 1904 and 1905, … Continue reading →

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Rub it

Posted on June 27, 2015 by gravelyspeaking

For single Parisian women who are yearning to get married or married women who are wanting a better sex life there is one monument in Le Père Lachaise that can help, or so the legend goes…. Yvan Salmon was born … Continue reading →

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Stylistic Juxtaposition

Posted on June 25, 2015 by gravelyspeaking

Ferdinand Victor Eugène Delacroix (26 April 1798 – 13 August 1863) was a French romantic artist, influenced by the round and plump figures painted by Reubens, is now most famous for a painting he created titled, Liberty Leading the People. … Continue reading →

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A Long Layover in Paris

Posted on June 24, 2015 by gravelyspeaking

A walk through a cemetery rarely brings you to an equestrian memorial, but Le Père Lachaise is not an ordinary cemetery. In section 94, there it is an equestrian statue that honors General Antranik Ozanian, (February 25, 1865 – August … Continue reading →

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Pieta

Posted on June 21, 2015 by gravelyspeaking

The Del Duca Family monument in Le Père Lachaise features a bronze sculpture of the Virgin Mary holding the limp dead body of her son, Jesus Christ. In this sculpture Mary is lifting His body down from the Cross. Many … Continue reading →

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The grave can’t hold him

Posted on June 18, 2015 by gravelyspeaking

GEORGES RODENBACH 1855 – 1898 I took pictures of hundreds of gravestones at Le Père Lachaise and I think my favorite is the dramatic tomb of a little known poet and writer—Georges Rodenbach. Rodenbach is best known for his novel, … Continue reading →

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The Bat

Posted on June 15, 2015 by gravelyspeaking

Today’s post is dedicated to Tom Stryker, a fellow gravestone enthusiast and fan of Le Père Lachaise, the great Paris cemetery. Tom challenged me to write 10 posts about my tour of the cemetery. Not sure I will write that … Continue reading →

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Shakespeare

Posted on June 12, 2015 by gravelyspeaking

Ordinarily this space is confined to blog posts about North American graves. But, vacation abroad and a visit to one of the most famous graves in whole of England merits a slight and hopefully memorable change of pace. In 1564, … Continue reading →

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Lady of Tears

Posted on June 9, 2015 by gravelyspeaking

TRAVIS BERT W. 1911 – 1989 MILDRED M. 1919 – 1981 Together Forever The elegant and sleek mourning figure that marks the graves of Bert and Mildred Travis in the Fairmount Cemetery at Denver, Colorado, sits serenely in a chair, … Continue reading →

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Keeping up with the Joneses

Posted on June 6, 2015 by gravelyspeaking

The Soper Mausoleum in the Fairmount Cemetery at Denver, Colorado, was commissioned by Susan Soper in honor of her husband, Roger.  The mausoleum is constructed of rusticated sandstone, that is, the sandstone on the sides of the mausoleum are rough … Continue reading →

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