Memorial Inscriptions : A Look at the Graves of Shakespeare, Robin Hood & John Keats
http://www.culturesociety.net/articles/9025/1/Memorial-Inscriptions--A-Look-at-the-Graves-of-Shakespeare-Robin-Hood--John-Keats/Page1.html
Mark Thomas Walters
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Published on 02/11/2010
Headstones of famous people can be found in cemeteries around the world, and many of them contain epitaphs and inscriptions written by the deceased These epitaphs, far from being simply morbid, are often very interesting
Headstones of famous people can be found in cemeteries around the world, and many of them contain epitaphs and inscriptions written by the deceased. These epitaphs, far from being simply morbid, are often very interesting.
Take, for example, the headstone of William Shakespeare, which reads (translated into modern English): "Good friend, for Jesus' sake forbear, To dig the dust enclosed here, Blessed be the man that spares these stones, And cursed be he that moves my bones".
The reason for this somewhat strange inscription is that he lived in fear of his body being dug up or moved after he had been buried. Fortunately, Shakespeare's grave, which is in the English town of Stratford has remained, as his wishes, untouched.
John Keats's headstone, which is in Rome, is engraved with the design of a lyre with broken strings, which was added by Keats's friends Charles Brown and Joseph Severn, and contains no mention of his name. He wanted only the following inscription: "Here lies one whose name was writ in water".
His friends later added the following: "This grave contains all that was mortal of a young English poet who on his death bed in the bitterness of his heart at the malicious power of his enemies desired these words to be engraven on his tomb stone".
The location of Robin Hood's headstone is at a priory in Kirklees in England has been visited by thousands upon thousands of people over the years. The problem is it is the wrong place! The grave has been moved at least three times.
The original grave slab went missing around 1665. A replica was made, but this was chipped to pieces by 18th-century canal workers who were convinced that a piece of Robin Hood's headstone could cure toothache.
With a little bit of research, you will no doubt find that there are a few headstones in cemeteries near you that belong to famous people from past times. Whilst it may not make a great hobby per se, spending a day checking out these can be a cheap and interesting day out.
Alternatively, you can just search around online, where you will find lots of pictures of headstones belonging to famous people. Finding out what your deceased heroes opted to leave as their final parting message can really make you see them in a new light.
You might even get some ideas of what to use for your own! That is not meant to sound morbid or depressing, but it is something that you will need to think about one day, and it does not hurt to start early.
Remember, that your headstone will the final reminder of you for a lot of people, and something that they will come back to again and again. Therefore, you want to make sure that you get it right.
Obviously you should not directly copy something from a famous person’s headstone, but by seeing and reading some of them you will see that you are not restricted to simply stating your name, birth date and date of death.
Take, for example, the headstone of William Shakespeare, which reads (translated into modern English): "Good friend, for Jesus' sake forbear, To dig the dust enclosed here, Blessed be the man that spares these stones, And cursed be he that moves my bones".
The reason for this somewhat strange inscription is that he lived in fear of his body being dug up or moved after he had been buried. Fortunately, Shakespeare's grave, which is in the English town of Stratford has remained, as his wishes, untouched.
John Keats's headstone, which is in Rome, is engraved with the design of a lyre with broken strings, which was added by Keats's friends Charles Brown and Joseph Severn, and contains no mention of his name. He wanted only the following inscription: "Here lies one whose name was writ in water".
His friends later added the following: "This grave contains all that was mortal of a young English poet who on his death bed in the bitterness of his heart at the malicious power of his enemies desired these words to be engraven on his tomb stone".
The location of Robin Hood's headstone is at a priory in Kirklees in England has been visited by thousands upon thousands of people over the years. The problem is it is the wrong place! The grave has been moved at least three times.
The original grave slab went missing around 1665. A replica was made, but this was chipped to pieces by 18th-century canal workers who were convinced that a piece of Robin Hood's headstone could cure toothache.
With a little bit of research, you will no doubt find that there are a few headstones in cemeteries near you that belong to famous people from past times. Whilst it may not make a great hobby per se, spending a day checking out these can be a cheap and interesting day out.
Alternatively, you can just search around online, where you will find lots of pictures of headstones belonging to famous people. Finding out what your deceased heroes opted to leave as their final parting message can really make you see them in a new light.
You might even get some ideas of what to use for your own! That is not meant to sound morbid or depressing, but it is something that you will need to think about one day, and it does not hurt to start early.
Remember, that your headstone will the final reminder of you for a lot of people, and something that they will come back to again and again. Therefore, you want to make sure that you get it right.
Obviously you should not directly copy something from a famous person’s headstone, but by seeing and reading some of them you will see that you are not restricted to simply stating your name, birth date and date of death.