![]() ![]() English poet and cleric, John Donne (1572-1631), wrote the line ‘for whom the bell tolls’ in a sermon to make a point that we are all interconnected and no man is an island unto himself.ĭonne wrote, ”. Sometimes families would send a child or servant to run ahead to the church to see who had died. To announce the event, a bell on top of the church was rung slowly and repeatedly until all had time to gather together. When someone prominent died in the 18th-century, a funeral was held at the local church. This Scottish gravestone includes the same four gravestone symbols of the skull, bones, hourglass, and bell. The final carving is across the bottom of the gravestone and it represents the deceased’s occupation as a farmer using a plow. The hourglass, crossbones, bell, and skull are frequently seen together on 18th-century gravestones. The bell is representative of a church bell that rings to call people to the funeral.Īnd the final symbol in the circle is a skull, another reminder of death. The third symbol, at the bottom of the circle, is a bit worn and hard to see but it is a bell. These crossbones are particularly interesting because they are somewhat anatomically correct femur bones, complete with the ball to fit into the hip socket. To the right, are crossbones which are, of course, a reminder of death. The sand passes through the hourglass, just as this person quickly passed through mortality. At the top of the circle, is an hourglass. Next, there are four more symbols loosely arranged in a circle. So read together, the symbol means the living soul who has died is passing through heaven’s gates. Starting at the top, there are some leaves beneath an arch. This gravestone above from Scotland has six symbols on it. Kirkmichael Cemetery, Kirkmichael, Perth and Kinross, Scotland Photo Source ![]()
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