Author Archives: gravelyspeaking

Claddagh Ring

Posted on August 8, 2017 by gravelyspeaking

Carved into a gray Vermont granite gravestone in the Hope Cemetery at Barre is a design consisting of three symbols—hands clasping a heart surmounted by a crown.  This design is a traditional ring design, known as a Claddagh ring.  Each … Continue reading →

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Locomotive

Posted on August 3, 2017 by gravelyspeaking

PAPA MAX SCHUSTER BORN OCT. 12, 1850 DIED SEPT. 17, 1895   MOTHER Louisa Bindeman Schuster 1853 – 1918 The rustic movement of the mid-nineteenth century was characterized by designs that were made to look like they were from the … Continue reading →

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Stairway

Posted on July 31, 2017 by gravelyspeaking

The stony entrance of This Sepulcher — GRENN MOUNT CEMETERY Dedicated Sept 15, 1855 — STOWELL BURIAL PLACE Ledge work commenced – Completed November 3 1898 KATE K STOWELL 1874 – 1968 STOWELL LOWE 1893 – 1925 RUTH L. DEMING … Continue reading →

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Real or Imagined?

Posted on July 26, 2017 by gravelyspeaking

Stories abound of the supernatural—apparitions that appear in gossamer gowns that fade into the murky night air, screams emanating from the “haunted” cemetery, sculptures that have eyes that glow red after dark.  How do these stories get started?  Are the … Continue reading →

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Compare

Posted on July 19, 2017 by gravelyspeaking

According to an article written by Cynthia Mills and published in Vermont History 68 (Winter/Spring 2000): pages 35-57, artist and writer Lorado Taft compared and contrasted Karl Bitter’s Thanatos and Augustus Saint-Gaudens’s Henry Adams funerary sculpture which became known as … Continue reading →

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Black Agnes, Isn’t!

Posted on July 13, 2017 by gravelyspeaking

The John E. Hubbard monument in the Green Mount Cemetery at Montpelier, Vermont, features a statue of Thanatos created by famed sculptor, Karl Bitter.  The monument is neither black nor Agnes—it is green and it Thanatos.  Thanatos, in Greek mythology, … Continue reading →

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Knights Templar

Posted on July 11, 2017 by gravelyspeaking

Next to several gravestones in the Hope Cemetery at Barre, Vermont, are small metal markers imbued with an amazing amount of symbolism.  The marker has at its center a cross and crown laid upon a triangle that is resting upon … Continue reading →

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The Benevolent Order of Scottish Clans

Posted on July 6, 2017 by gravelyspeaking

Next to several gravestones in the Hope Cemetery at Barre, Vermont, are small metal markers.  The markers have a shield displaying a rampart lion overlaid on two crossbars and atop another shield with thistle leaves and thistle flowers flanking the … Continue reading →

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The Bored Angel and the Tribute to a Stone Carver

Posted on July 4, 2017 by gravelyspeaking

LOUIS G. BRUSA 1886 – 1937 MARY 1890 — 1957 The Hope Cemetery at Barre, Vermont, features some of the best carved granite funerary sculptures in the United States.  The cemetery is a favorite on the rock of Ages granite … Continue reading →

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Tender Sentiments Carved in Stone

Posted on June 29, 2017 by gravelyspeaking

Tender epitaphs from the North Conway Cemetery at North Conway, New Hampshire pay tribute to fallen loved ones. Mrs. SUSAN K. Wife of Charles S. Whitaker & daughter of Capt. Nathaniel & S. Randell, Died March 18, 1833 Aged 33 … Continue reading →

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