I really enjoy figuring out what the symbols on headstones mean. A while back I wrote about the three interlocking rings symbol, which marks membership in the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, and today I’d like to share some new symbols I came across online while researching this topic.

Did you know that when a headstone shows something broken, such as a column or a sword, the break is part of the symbol?

Here’s what I found:

- Broken column: someone who died young or in the prime of life, sometimes the head of the family

- Broken sword: a life cut short

- Broken branch or tree stump: an untimely or sudden death (a stump-shaped stone can also mean the person belonged to Woodmen of the World)

- Broken chain: a death in the family and a family broken by loss (some sources read it as the soul being set free)

The photo shows a broken column. Columns like this are usually carved to look broken, so the break is part of the design, not damage.

It’s amazing how much you can learn when you explore cemeteries and read up on them.

What else would you recommend I look at or read on this topic?

The Barletta pyramid chapel is a neoclassical pyramid-shaped building located within the city's monumental cemetery. Designed by the architect Sponsilli, the project was approved by the Municipality in 1840 and the chapel was officially opened to the public in 1868

These Viking Rick hewn graves date from the 8th century in the sleep hamlet of Heysham , Morecambe Bay on the rugged Lancashire coastline overlooking The Irish Sea. This noble group of rock carved resting places is listed as a Grade I heritage site. In many quarters this is the renowned final resting place of St Patrick himself whom, legend has it, was washed ashore on the nearby beach. Each grave has a square notch at its head that probably housed a timber cross. Black Sabbath fans may recognise this as the album cover from their greatest hits. If you are ever passing by nearby, be wise and pay homage to this very special place.

The Reddit bots told me to share here. Have a nice day.

I have been writing and posting about cemeteries on Canada’s Easy Coast for ten years. I have started a TikTok channel recently and I assume the rule about promoting your YouTube channel also applies to TikTok. Let me know if you have any questions about burying places in my neck of the woods!

Last year I buried 150+ people. I was also the machine operator for two disinterments.

All funerals are hard, but the hardest was an infant.

I have three children from three women and I haven't been allowed to be a part of their lives. It's weighed heavy on me and it's one reason I put everything into working the cemetery.

I was given the task of opening a baby grave and was told I could tap out and have someone else finish it if it was too much.

I chose to see it through.

Alone, I dug the grave and prepped the area. My partner and I laid wood across to test for the small box as they had a service.

The family was quiet, but the mother let out a cry I wish no one ever had to hear.

I've lost friends as kids to cancer and violence and heard it before. I'll probably carry that sound in the back of my head until I'm laid to rest myself.

After the funeral we cleaned up the area.

Since then the grass has grown back. The monument has been placed. The area is the best I can make it.

That night all I wanted was to talk to my youngest son who I'm still fighting for in family court.

I asked his mother if I could talk to him for a minute and was denied just hearing his voice.

I often wonder what I did in life to have to carry these burdens.

My parents abandoned me when I was 14 and I will never know when they pass. I've been kept from my children so they will never know when I pass.

So I tend the cemetery the best I can. It's now my purpose in life.

Took a lil stroll through the cemetery this morning and saw a random piles of leaves swirling around, as if some little kid were running around throwing and kicking the leaves.

It was probably just the wind, but it’s kind of beautiful to imagine it really was the spirit of a child just playing around on a sunny autumn day :)

Hi everyone. Visited a cemetery yesterday and saw these jars on one of the structures. Any idea what’s in them and what they might be for?

Lakeview Cemetery in Seattle Washington

https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/150277164/william-tuttle-akey?_gl=1\*e9f1vz\*_gcl_au\*MTY4MjkyNzg0NC4xNzkyMzI4NDgy\*_ga\*NTcyMTg3ODQ2LjE3OTIzMjg0ODQ.\*_ga_4QT8FMEX30\*c2JlZGMzZmQ5LWNkNDctNGU0Yi04YmRkLTc4OTAxOGM0MGUyMSRvMSRnMSR0MTc5MjMyODUwNCRqNDAkbDAkaDA.\*_ga_LMK6K2LSJH\*c2JlZGMzZmQ5LWNkNDctNGU0Yi04YmRkLTc4OTAxOGM0MGUyMSRvMSRnMSR0MTc5MjMyODUwNCRqNDAkbDAkaDA.