Gravestone Symbolism Trivia Quiz

Answer: Taphophile

A "taphophile" is one who has an interest in gravestones or graveyards. Often called a "tombstone tourist", a taphophile will examine gravestones for unique names and symbols. They may also be interested in epitaphs, rubbings, art, and photography in graveyards.

Answer: A life taken too soon; an untimely death.

If an angel is shown with a person in its arms, it symbolizes carrying the departed to heaven. A single angel (not crying) represents divine wisdom or justice. If an angel is shown flying, it symbolizes rebirth. Many angels in the clouds carved into a tombstone represent heaven. If an angel is shown blowing a trumpet, it typically symbolizes the day of judgement or the call to the resurrection. A single angle carved with tears on its cheeks is typically found on the graves of young people, representing that the individual was taken too soon.

Answer: Eternal life

Although somewhat rare on gravestones in North America, the peacock was widely used on graves and in churches in early Romanesque and Byzantine times. Symbolizing eternal life, the bird's image embellished graves and catacombs, but also everyday objects like lamps that were used in churches of the time. If you have a keen eye as you travel through modern-day graveyards, you may spot the odd peacock adorning a headstone, indicating the the individual buried there is expected to have eternal spiritual life after death on earth.

Answer: Peace

This symbol comes from the story of Noah in the Bible. When the dove returned to the ark with an olive branch from the Mount of Olives in its beak, it was a sign of God's forgiveness, the end of the flood, and peace in the land. If you spot an olive branch or a dove on a headstone, it suggests that the person who is buried there is at peace. If there is a flying dove on a tombstone, it symbolizes the flight of the soul back to God.

Answer: Empty furniture

Small, empty furniture such as chairs or small beds, symbolize that a child is now gone, unable to fulfill her/his life. Sometimes these symbols appear with small shoes on the chair or beside the bed which symbolize the inability to achieve adulthood. A fleur-de-lis on a gravestone indicates passion and love. An owl on a gravestone suggests wisdom. Bells represent a call to worship.

Answer: False

Hands that point up symbolize the heavens or afterlife. Upward-pointing hands are also symbolic of life after death. A single hand that points down is typically a reminder of mortality or sudden death. Some suggest that a downward-pointing hand is also reminiscent of a secret Masonic handshake.

Answer: Drapes are a symbol of sorrow.

Drapes or veils have a long-standing association with sorrow or grief. Although the tradition is not very common anymore, in years past grieving female family members would wear a veil over their faces at funerals. As well, when wakes were held in the home years ago, drapes would be placed over furniture and pulled closed on the windows of the house to indicate to the public that the family was experiencing sorrow for the departed.

Answer: A last goodbye or guiding to the afterlife.

Clasped hands are one of the most interesting headstone symbols that you will find in a graveyard. They may all seem to be similar, but there are also some differences that symbolize different things. Most of the clasped hands show the right hand grasping the left, with the left fingers straight and the right fingers bent around the left hand. Clasped hands are usually a symbol of a last goodbye between individuals who share a close bond. If one cuff is frilly and one is not, the hands usually depict a married couple, with the frilly cuff representing the wife.

The member of the couple who died first appears on the right, holding the other's hand, guiding the spouse to heaven.

Answer: False

The books symbolize the Bible on most Christian graves. A book on a gravestone may also represent The Book of Life. If the individual was a scholar, the book may simply symbolize their vocation. If there are two or three books shown on a headstone, this is typically a grave for a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormons) and the books represent the Bible, the Book of Mormon, and Doctrine & Covenants (all holy books in the Mormon church).

Answer: Woodmen of the World Insurance Company

The Woodmen of the World Insurance Company was started in Nebraska in the 1890s. An early benefit for customers who had life insurance policies was that each was eligible for a unique and beautiful gravestone. The tree stump symbolizes a life cut too short.

The tombstone program was terminated in the 1920s because it was too costly, but the program existed for long enough to have examples of beautiful gravestones spread across the United States.