No slavish adherence to convention here ! No winged spirit & No cross bones. Is this the gravestone equivalent of a radical preacher breaking from convention. People have burnt for less ;o)

Apparently the deceased was a Leading Orthopaedics Consultant. Even now he studies hip joints for any sign of weakness.

We know nothing of the stonemasons who carved the vast majority of 18thC gravestones. But we can identify them by the Gravestones they carved for their own family, containing the insignia of their Mason’s Guild. David Scott carved this one in 1759 for his Wife & 3 of their kids.

Glove making was big in the 18th century. The preparation, dyeing, cutting & stitching of fine leather needed to make gloves required great skill. Some towns became centres of & famous for glove production. Perth was one of these & this stone marks the family grave of a glover.

A Butcher’s Gravestone. Here on the central shield are depicted the tools of the Butcher’s Trade. The knife, cleaver & sharpening tool. And “no” - the skull isn’t wearing spectacles, so rumours that they were an optician are false ;o)

A delightful bluebell covered burial ground with this modern ornately carved gravestone. Similar artistry, originality & personality to the 17th / 18th century Memento Mori type stones I normally feature here. It must be a very costly memorial, but so lovely & admirable.

I do so admire modern gravestones which have similar artistry, originality & personality to the 17th / 18th Memento Mori type I usually feature here. I am sure such ornately carved stones must be very costly, but by goodness, they are so memorable.

The two faces of the headstone raised for Cirsten Biset, who died in 1747. A whole chapter in a book about Memento Mori gravestones could be written about just this one stone. Which is good because that is exactly what I am busy writing just now :o)

This Stonemason has come up with a novel way of showing us both eyes of the skull, even though he has carved it in side profile. It shouldn’t work, but it does. Other innovations here include the Winged Spirit has no wings, these are replaced by scrolls. Self rated with 2 stars.

A DISAPPROVING SPIRIT Sometimes you get the feeling that the figure on the gravestone is looking at you. In this case, I don’t think they are impressed by what they are looking at.

Time takes its toll - but this one isn’t giving up. It isn’t how the Stonemason intended, but it still works, communicating its message that everything has a time to die.

Hold the front page ! Adam here is already chomping down on an apple, before Eve has even taken one from the Serpent. Was 2,000 years of misogyny based on a poor bit of journalism all along ? 😑

Abraham took a knife to slay his son. But the Angel of the Lord called out "Do not lay your hand on the lad or do anything to him; for now I know that you fear God”. Behind him was a ram, caught in a thicket by his horns & he offered it up as a burnt offering instead of his son.

The bigger the hair, the closer to God.