Knoblock - Portsmouth Cemeteries

More than anything else, perhaps, it is the art of the gravestone that captures the imagination. What do all the images carved upon them, some frightful, some tender, and others enigmatic, really signify?

The earliest gravestones were carved with stark images of death: winged skulls, hourglasses, drapery suggestive of the communal burial shroud, and tools of the gravedigger like the pickax and shovel. All of these were carved by stonecutters from the Boston area. The Calvinistic doctrine predominant in Massachusetts and New Hampshire preached, among other ideas, that the fate of everyones soul, children included, was predestined and that nothing could be done to change ones path either to Heaven or Hell. All that was certain was the uncertainty of ones fate after death, and death itself. Such ideas were a part of everyday life in New England, enforced by fiery preaching of ministers on the Sabbath. These sermons, with their stark visions of Hell, were augmented by the images found in local graveyards. Few individuals could read the Bible at this time, but all could understand the pictures carved in stone.

By the early 1730s, the zeal for such fiery thought had dimmed, and the portrayal of winged skulls, while still dominant, was now rather bland and no longer carried much meaning. When a religious revival, the Great Awakening, hit New England in 1740, a new kind of religious thought and fervorone offering hope and joyemerged. At this time, gravestone symbolism began to change. The use of the winged skull was soon eclipsed in favor of images that portrayed ideas of redemption and salvation. Popular were faces, often with wings, that have been variously called cherubs, angels, and soul effigies. These faces were carved in many different forms, both female and male. The expressions on their faces vary from the happy and quirky, the sad or foreboding, to the downright enigmatic. Gravestones with these faces convey a dual message. While the angelic figure represents the possibility of salvation, the faces expression reveals the hope, doubt, and a fear of the unknown associated with death.

Further changes in gravestone-carving traditions would evolve quickly as our country grew. The first and most enduring change was the use of the weeping willow tree and funeral urn. These symbols came from abroad, influenced by the Greek Revival in Europe and the discoveries made by the French in Egypt. Their use, often flanked by obelisks and architectural columns, became all the rage by 1790 and soon became a standard lasting nearly a century.

Other factors also influenced gravestone carving. Americans are a social people, and the symbols of various societies like the Masons and Odd Fellows are often portrayed on area gravestones, as are those representing a mans occupation or military service. Another influence came with the reign of Queen Victoria in England from 1839 to 1901, the sentimentality of which encouraged the use of such images as the lamb, the dove, and flowers.