Empty chairs at empty tablesWhere my friends will meet no

more.~ Les Miserables

An empty chair is a symbol of a void caused by death.

This grave marker is for Paul Raymond Tully. Under his name, Tully is listed as "A Democrat." There are three parts to the memorial including Tully’s wooden work chair, a copy of the newspaper which was significant for the date, and two

coffee cups. His friends and family raised money to commission the bronze memorial sculpture. His eldest daughter was the lead artist for the sculpture.

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The Dead, Cemeteries, and Cultural MemorySummer 2017

Our First Public Parks

“… increasingly after 1830, [cemeteries] were places with winding roads and picturesque vistas. The idea being that you leave behind the mercantile world outside the gates and enter into the space where you can meditate, where you can come into contact with spirituality and concentrate. They were quite important spaces for recreation as well. Keep in mind, the great rural cemeteries were built at a time when there weren't public parks, or art museums, or botanical gardens in American cities. You suddenly had large pieces of ground, filled with beautiful sculptures and horticultural art. People flocked to cemeteries for picnics, for hunting and shooting and carriage racing.” ~ Keith Eggener, The Atlantic

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The Dead, Cemeteries, and Cultural Memory

Summer 2017

Gravestones designed to look like treestumps?

Generally carved from limestone and part of the rustic movement of the mid-nineteenth century, “treestones” were purposefully designed to look like trees that had been cut and left in the cemetery.  In funerary art, the stonecutters of such markers displayed a wide variety of carving that often reflected individual tastes and interests of the persons memorialized. These tombstones were most popular from about 1885 until about 1905

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The Dead, Cemeteries, and Cultural MemorySummer 2017

Do you think designing your own gravestone is

morbid?

Thomas Jefferson designed his!

Thomas Jefferson designed his own gravestone and prepared the text to be engraved on it. Jefferson also wanted his death to be on July 4th in order to provide a civic lesson to Americans.

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The Dead, Cemeteries, and Cultural MemorySummer 2017

Presidents sending Red, White, and Blue

Each year on the anniversary of a former president’s birthday, the current president sends a wreath made of red, white, and blue flowers to be placed on the grave.

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Disciplines:

The Dead, Cemeteries, and Cultural MemorySummer 2017