The markers for graves in graveyards (or cemeteries) can be made of a huge range of materials. Some are as simple as a piece of wood and some are as ornate as a carved statue. In most parts of the world stone is the most common material used to mark graves.
For this project you need to be able to identify gravestones that are made of white marble.
Marble Gravestones
Marble gravestones are quite easy to identify as they are normally white in color. In some locations the marble is light to dark grey, and even red has been seen. However, for this project it is the while marble headstones that you need to find.
Examples of marble gravestones
Other than marble, gravestones have been made out of granite, slate, sandstone and any local stone that could be carved. None of these stones can be used in this study, but it can be interesting to see what has been used in each graveyard.
Sandstone, granite and gabbro gravestones
Lead Lettering
Black or grey lettering on marble gravestones is a good sign that lead has been used to fill the letters. On new gravestones the lettering will be flush with the marble. On older gravestones the lead will stick out of the marble. Sometimes the lead completely falls out leaving the remains of the carved letters along with small holes in the marble where the lead once was.
Sometimes black paint has been used inside the carved letters to make the letters stand out. These will be easy to identify as the letters are below the surface of the marble. Also, the letters do not have the small holes drilled into them to help hold the lead.
From a brief web study, it seems that lead lettering was commonly used in the UK, Australia and parts of New Zealand. Also, in some countries brass letters are added to gravestones. These letters sit on (not flush) with the marble and therefore can't be used. So don't be disappointed if you don't find these marble-lead types of gravestone, as you can take measurements on marble gravestones without lead lettering.
Visiting graveyards in your local area or while you are traveling will be easy. Almost every town and village will have at least one. Most are open to the public during the day. Many have restrictions on entry at night (dusk to dawn) because of vandalism. Please make sure that you follow the local regulations, laws and customs when visiting the graveyard such as opening hours etc. Some graveyards occur in historic sites, parks and national parks. You may need to seek permission from the land manager before you collect data from these sites.
It is also very important to realize that graves are sacred places for many in the community and therefore you must take particular care not to walk on, disturb or damage a grave or gravestone in any way. Gathering data for this project can be done without walking on graves. Do so from the side of the grave and be careful not to mark or damage the gravestone in any way.
In this project you will need to collect quite an amount of information. To help you we have developed a Gravestones Project Datasheet that you can print off and take with you. Just fill in the data on site and then you can use the sheet to complete your EarthTrek log when you return to a computer.
If you have a digital camera, you can also upload images when you log the graveyard of each gravestone your measure and a general one of the graveyard. They need to be converted so that each photograph is 1 M or less in size.
The first task is to find the name of the graveyard. There may be a sign, or the name may be recorded on a map. You may need to ask a local official (town hall, police, library, museum). If it is associated with the church/house of worship, use the name of that place. Having the correct name is important, but not essential. Many old graveyard names have been lost or never recorded.
If the graveyard is very large (i.e. more than the size of a couple of football fields or a few hectares) then it is most probably divided up into sections. Each section is normally marked, often by religion or denomination. In this case you can treat each section like a separate graveyard, just remember to name the section as well as the graveyard in your log.
The second task is to go to the approximate center of the graveyard (or section) and record the latitude and longitude. This is the central location data for the graveyard and you will be asked the log this for each graveyard you visit. Write down the time you do this as well. You will need this for your log.
Your third task in visiting is to firstly walk through the graveyard and see if you can find any marble gravestones. Some graveyards will be full of these gravestones - others will not contain even one. It is very important that we know which graveyards do and don’t have the marble gravestones. If the graveyard has no marble gravestones, you can now go to step 3 and EarthTrekLog your data.
If the graveyard has marble gravestones, then you can either just go to step 3 and Log the graveyard, or continue to collect data at five different gravestones.
If you are not going to record marble gravestone data because either the graveyard does not contain marble gravestones or you do not have a micrometer to use for the next data collecting level, you can log (known as "EarthTrekLog") the graveyard data.
To log data, select the Log Gravestone Data link in the side menu. Click on the Log Data button and complete the online form. You will need to provide your EarthTrek logon name and password as part of the process.