Blessed are the
pure in heart for
they shall see God.
SACRED
to the memory of
Mrs. Frederica Caroline
daughter of
Cart and Anna
E. SCHRICK
and beloved wife of
ANTONY BASLER
who was born in
Overnhausen, Prussia
on the 12th of Nov. 1819
and died in Savannah
on the 12th Nov. 1862
Aged 43 years.
Frederica Basler’s white marble gravestone in the Bonaventure Cemetery in Savannah, Georgia, is festooned with elaborate ornamentation, partially hidden by the growth of lichens. Atop the Gothic-style stone is a green lichen-covered Cross fleury or Cross flory—named such because the arms of the cross end with a fleurs-de-lys. The three-petaled tips at the end of the arms of the cross represent the petals of the lily.
The number three also has significance in Christianity and represents the Holy Trinity—the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost. This type of cross was also used in the symbolism of heraldry to represent the virtues of wisdom, faith, and chivalry.
The top third of the stone, set in the pointed arch, displays a hand reaching down from the Heavens holding an unfurled scroll. The message is a Bible verse from Matthew 5:8—“Blessed are the pure in heart for they shall see God.” This is a verse delivered by Jesus as precursor to the Sermon on the Mount. It is the sixth of eight beatitudes. During the time of Christ, cleanliness was a virtue oft preached about. However, here Jesus is speaking about purity of the heart which produced external purity.
Gravely Speaking 