Wednesday, September 21, 2011

Wednesday’s child: Martha Emma Boal


The small gravestone in Darby Township Cemetery for Martha Emma Boal (d. 1855) is as white today as it was in 1855, thanks to a recent restoration.

As a messenger of God, the dove in the carving carries away a rosebud—a symbol for the young life lost. But it is the whiteness of the stone, not necessarily an intentional symbol, that seems so perfect: purity, innocence.


MARTHA EMMA
Daughter of
J.F. & L. BOAL
DIED
Oct. 5, 1854,
Aged 1 year
8 mo. & 13 d’s.

Someday I’ll return and scrape away (carefully!) the dirt and debris at the bottom of the stone so I can read the epitaph.


Darby Township Cemetery, Madison County, Ohio

1 comment:

  1. Wow! That's beautiful after the restoration!
    My sister and I took a day last summer and went to many family headstones and cleaned them with a very soft toothbrush and water. We were amazed at the writing and images we found!
    I want to research cleaning/restoration of headstones a little more. We figure we're the caretakers of them for now. :-) So we ought to know the right way to preserve them.

    ReplyDelete

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