The Problems of Being a Grave Hunter in Winter

I have run into a small snafu with my project.

Apparently in winter it gets cold, dark, and snows a whole heck of a lot. You'd think I would have noticed this before. Just slipped my mind, I guess.

All of this sub-zeroness makes me less than enthusiastic about hunting around for interesting or notable tombstones. But fear not! As I stated earlier, grave rubbings are but one of the purposes of this blog. I am a huge nerd, and as a huge nerd I love research. So, rather than hibernate for the winter, I will do a bit of research, and hope to bring you interesting articles and tidbits as I delve. I may still do some rubbings before the snow melts, but I'm going to wait for it to stop being so effing cold first.

For today, I wanted to highlight an interesting article I ran across a few weeks ago. In How to Read a Headstone, Linda Falkenstein explores the meaning behind common symbols found on tombstones, for example:

• Ever see a bunch of rocks sitting on a gravestone? This apparently comes from a Jewish Tradition, used as a way of showing someone has been to visit.
• Shaking hands symbolizes a parting with early life, or, if one hand in obviously feminine a farewell to a spouse.
• Ivy is frequently found on tombstones, since its verdant foliage symbolizes immortality. It can also mean fidelity or friendship as it clings to surfaces.
• Lamps, as symbols of wisdom, are often found on tombstones of educators.
• Acorns and Oak leaves are symbols of fruitfulness and endurance, although it leads one to wonder how fruitful the dead can really be. (Unless a fruit tree happens to grow on top of them, I guess)

Falkenstein also wrote an interesting article, Where the Bodies Are Buried, in which the author takes a trip through a cemetery, photographing and writing about the more interesting headstones she finds. Apparently I am not alone in my morbid interest on the subject.