Category Archives: Uncategorized

  In front of a Masonic society tomb in the Masonic Cemetery at New Orleans, established in 1865, is a small white-marble step with three symbols—the compass, the trowel, the 24 inch gauge.  Each symbol is used in the Masonic … Continue reading →

  The incised design of the double-headed eagle is centered inside a variant of the Maltese cross, a version known as a Formee Pattee. This version is on found on a light-gray granite obelisk monument erected to honor the Ancient … Continue reading →

  The double-headed eagle with a crown and a small triangle with the letters 32 inside also represents the 32-degree of the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite.  Again the eagle clutches a banner with the motto: “SPES MEA IN DEO … Continue reading →

  The double headed eagle without the crown and the triangle represents the 32-degree of the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite.  The banner being clutched by the eagle has a different motto: “SPES MEA IN DEO EST”.  That is Latin … Continue reading →

  The double headed eagle is an ancient symbol that has been associated with many empires including the Byzantine Empire as early as the 1400s, the Seljuk Turks, the Holy Roman Empire, the Russian Empire, and more recently, the Albanian … Continue reading →

  A common and oft heard remark from Christians is that when they die they will go to Heaven and meet with St. Peter at the “Pearly Gates” when they enter the Kingdom.  This is such a popular scenario that … Continue reading →

  A stalk of corn is carved into the Bone Family gravestone in the Walnut Hill Cemetery at Council Bluffs, Iowa. Corn is an ancient American crop that has been exported to all corners of the world.  More than 300,000 million … Continue reading →

A large sphinx sets across the grass circle from the Gothic chapel in the Mount Auburn Cemetery at Cambridge, Massachusetts.  The statue, sculpted by Martin Milmore, is a massive eight feet tall and fifteen feet long. Carved into the sides … Continue reading →

After the French and British occupations of Egypt, there was a renewed interest in Egyptian architecture and symbolism.  That Egyptian Revival was never more evident than in America’s cemeteries, especially large garden cemeteries.  The Egyptian symbol that is most commonly … Continue reading →

Throughout the South, war memorials were erected to honor the Confederate war dead.  Just as in the North, commemorative statues, often of a soldier perched on a pedestal, give voice to the loss and sorrow felt in the country after … Continue reading →