Stories in Stone: A Field Guide to Cemetery Symbolism and Iconography [Hardcover]

Douglas Keister (Photographer)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 5, 2004 | ISBN-10: 1567317766 | ISBN-13: 978-1586853211

Certain symbols abound in modern Western culture that are instantly recognizable: the cross signifies Christianity, the six-pointed Star of David is revered by Jews, the golden arches frequently means it's time for lunch. Other symbols, however, require a bit of decoding-particularly those found in cemeteries.

Cemeteries are virtual encyclopedias of symbolism. Engravings on tombstones, mausoleums and memorials tell us just about everything there is to know about a person- date of birth and death as well as religion, ethnicity, occupation, community interests, and much more. In the fascinating new book Stories in Stone: The Complete Guide to Cemetery Symbolism by noted author Douglas Keister, the secrets of cemetery symbolism are finally revealed. For instance, did you know that it is quite rare to see a sunflower on a tombstone? Did you know that the human foot symbolizes humility and service since it consistently touches the earth? Or the humble sheaf of wheat-while it is often used to denote someone who has lived a long and fruitful life, do you know other meanings it might carry?

Stories in Stone provides history along with images of a wide variety of common and not-so-common cemetery symbols, and offers an in-depth examination of stone relics and the personal and intimate details they display-flora and fauna, religious icons, society symbols, and final impressions of how the deceased wished to be remembered. Douglas Keister has created a practical field guide that is compact and portable, perfect for those interested in family histories and genealogical research, and is the only book of its kind that unlocks the language of symbols in a comprehensive and easy-to-understand manner.

Douglas Keister has photographed fourteen award-winning, critically acclaimed books (including Red Tile Style: America's Spanish Revival Architecture, The Bungalow: America's Arts & Crafts Home, and Storybook Style: America's Whimsical Homes of the Twenties) earning him the title "America's most noted photographer of historic architecture." He also writes and illustrates magazine articles and contributes photographs and essays to other books, calendars, posters, and greeting cards. Doug lives in Chico, California, and travels frequently to photograph and lecture on historic architecture and photography.

Editorial Reviews

From the Inside Flap

Stories in Stone

The Complete Illustrated Guide to Cemetery Symbolism

The language of symbols is one that has been with us from the beginning of recorded history. Our everyday life is full of symbols. We see many of them when we are driving: arrows point us in the right direction, upside-down pyramids tell us of slow-moving vehicles, and octagons caution us to stop. There are multitudes of business symbols we encounter everyday: a stylized pair of golden arches indicates there's a McDonald's restaurant located nearby; a checkmark called a "swoosh" subtly informs that its owner is wearing a Nike product; a polychrome apple with a bite taken out of it whimsically announces that its product is an Apple computer; a storefront displaying a symbol of three balls shows that its business is a pawn shop.

The meaning of most symbols has remained fairly consistent through the centuries: crosses for Christians, six-pointed stars for Jews, the yin-yang symbol for Buddhists-and hearts speak of love, lambs of innocence, and circles of completeness and immortality. But, nowhere is the language of symbols more apparent than in cemeteries. Dead men may tell no tales, but their tombstones do. Besides informing us of people's names and dates of birth and death, tombstones often tell us what religion they affilated with, what ethnicity they descended from, what clubs and organizations they belonged to, what occupations they worked in, and what thoughts they held on the afterlife.

Journey with us now into the little-known world of cemeteries. The author provides fascinating information and stunning full-color and black-and-white images of funerary architecture designed for eternal life, from mausoleums, chapels, and offices, to tombs, sculptures, and memorials. He then draws us into the very personal area of stone relics designed especially for the deceased, from likenesses of plants, animals, mankind, and mortality, to icons of religion, societies, clubs, and final impressions of how the occupant wanted to be remembered.

About the Author

Chico, California-based photographer Douglas Keister has photographed twenty-two award-winning, critically acclaimed books. His seventeen books on architecture include four books on Victorian homes (Daughter's of Painted Ladies, Painted Ladies Revisited, America's Painted Ladies and Victorian Glory); three books on bungalow homes (The Bungalow, Inside the Bungalow and Outside the Bungalow), a book on 1920s whimsical homes (Storybook Style) a book about cemetery art and architecture (Going Out in Style), a book on Spanish architecture, (Red Tile Style), six books on bungalow details and Classic Cottages, that will be published by Gibbs Smith Publisher in the Spring of 2004. Keister photographed and wrote an award winning children's book (Fernando's Gift), has two monographs of his personal work (Black Rock and Driftwood Whimsy), a book on classic travel trailers, (Ready to Roll) and a book on cemetery symbolism, Stories in Stone: The Complete Illustrated Guide to Cemetery Symbolism, that will be published by Gibbs Smith Publisher in the Spring of 2004. His wealth of books on architecture has earned him the title, "America's most noted photographer of historic architecture."

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 256 pages
• Publisher: Gibbs Smith (April 5, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1567317766
• ISBN-13: 978-1586853211
• ASIN: 158685321X
• Product Dimensions: 7.1 x 0.8 x 9.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (48 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #69,136 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #8 in Books > Arts & Photography > History & Criticism > Themes > Religious
  • #12 in Books > Arts & Photography > Sculpture > Appreciation
  • #26 in Books > Travel > Pictorial

More About the Author

Photographer-writer Douglas Keister, has authored and co-authored thirty-six critically acclaimed books. He also writes and illustrates magazine articles and contributes photographs and essays to dozens of magazines, newspapers, books, calendars, posters and greeting cards worldwide. His twenty-five books on architecture include five books on Victorian homes (Daughter's of Painted Ladies, Painted Ladies Revisited, America's Painted Ladies, Victorian Glory and 500 Victorians); twelve books on bungalow homes (The Bungalow, Inside the Bungalow, Outside the Bungalow, 500 Bungalows and eight small format books on bungalow details), a book on 1920's whimsical homes (Storybook Style) a book about cemetery art and architecture (Going Out in Style), a book on Spanish architecture, (Red Tile Style), four books on cottage (Classic Cottages, Inside Classic Cottages, Cottages and 500 Cottages a book on cemetery architecture (Going Out in Style) and a book on Courtyards. Keister photographed and wrote an award winning children's book (Fernando's Gift), has two monographs of his personal work (Black Rock and Driftwood Whimsy), and four books on classic recreational vehicles, Ready to Roll, Silver Palaces, Mobile Mansions and Teardrops and Tiny Trailers. His wealth of books on architecture has earned him the title, "America's most noted photographer of historic architecture". His book on cemetery symbolism, Stories in the Stone: A Field Guide to Cemetery Symbolism and Iconography, has garnered a number of glowing reviews. Sunset magazine said, "Keister has done for cemetery exploration what Audubon did for birding."
He recently photographed and wrote two bilingual children's books in China, To Grandmother's House: A Visit to Old-Town Beijing (January 2008), and Tao Tao's Green Gift (future release). Three other books came out in 2008: Forever Dixie (a book on southern cemeteries), Teardrops and Tiny Trailers and a book featuring his collection of glass negatives. Lincoln in Black and White 1910-1925.
His thirty-seventh book, "Forever LA" which will feature cemeteries in the Los Angeles Area, will come out in the fall of 2009
Doug frequently gives presentations in conjunction with his books and speaks at related events. In the past few years he has lectured in Los Angeles, San Francisco, San Diego, Chicago, Atlanta, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Spokane, Kansas City, Boston, Milwaukee, Vermont, Winnemucca and Carson City, Nevada, Lincoln, Nebraska, The Smithsonian in Washington D.C. and the Cooper-Union in New York.
He lives with his wife, Sandra Mclean, in Chico, California.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

38 of 39 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Photos July 18, 2004

By John C. Martine

Format:Hardcover

It is beautifully illustrated. You really can confidently buy this for the photos alone.

I like the book a lot. It is pretty comprehensive and the types of symbols are broken down into like flora and fauna which makes it easy to reference, there is a nice listing of orginizations in the back. Nice bits of historical changes in the basic meaning of symbols.

No book of listings of symbols is ever complete, I can think of a few things that could have been added, but buy it anyway. Great photos and you won't be disappointed.

And remember, just because someone had ivy carved on their gravestone does not mean that it symbolizes eternity, they really may have just thought it looked pretty.

53 of 58 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Essential Guide to Demystifying Cemetery Symbolism August 19, 2004

By Rebecca of Amazon HALL OF FAMETOP 100 REVIEWERVINE™ VOICE

Format:Hardcover

It's been said that a person has one chance to make a first impression. Conversely, one only has one chance to make a last impression, and where better to make that impression than the cemetery, where your statement has the best chance for longevity? ~ Douglas Keister

Since I was very young, graveyards have always fascinated me. I love the look of graveyards at night, although I've yet to venture into them in the middle of the night. I live vicariously through the Buffy show as I watch the DVDs. While watching the Buffy show I became rather interested in the symbolism of various statues and objects.

Now, with all the seriousness of death in our society, you would not expect to find humor in a book about gravestones and iconography, but it is definitely present in the most witty fashion. I have rarely found a book that made me laugh out loud as many times and at such surprising times. Douglas Keister has a wicked sense of wit and in the midst of decoding a certain symbol or discussing history he will bring in an ironic twist that is shockingly amusing. He also explains the real meaning of "skeleton in the closet" and explained the uses of exploding torpedo coffins. Who knew. He has taken high-quality photographs which not only set the mood for this book, they help to emphasize the details being discussed.

On a more serious note, Stories in Stone is essential for gravestone scholars and cemetery sleuths. Suddenly you will view graveyards with a new appreciation.

Douglas Keister discusses Classic, Egyptian, Islamic, Byzantine, Romanesque, Gothic, Italian Renaissance, Baroque and Neoclassical architecture. Through pictures and in depth research, he explains the oldest burial monuments and why a tumulus is mostly found in Western Europe.

Some of the Contents includes: Funerary Architecture: Designed for Eternity, Mausoleums, Chapels, Offices, Tombs, Sculptures, Memorials, the Sarcophagus, Stone Sentinels: Designed for Remembrance. Symbols: Plants and Flowers, Fruits, Grains, and Vines, Trees and Bushes, Animals, Fowls and Insects, Fishes and Mollusks, Reptiles and Amphibians, Mythical Creatures, Tradesmen's Tools, Religious Icons, Emblems, Insignias, Tokens, Death Seals and Angels.

You will also find informative and highly entertaining sections about:

Mortality Symbols
Christian Symbolism
Hebrew Symbolism
Chinese and Japanese Symbolism
Secret Societies

I now understand the relationship between Persephone and pomegranates, between the weeping willow and immortality and why my father objected to me dating a boy who gave me an anthurium-style flower.

While I don't intend to die anytime soon, I've already designed my own monument/gravestone which will be a girl peacefully sleeping with a cat on a bed and a butterfly perched precariously on the edge of the book resting in her sleeping hand. The girl will have angel wings and there will be at least three candles and of course, 5 stars placed somewhere in a row above a favorite quote. I also liked the idea of the tear vial and a key, not to mention a favorite flower. Perhaps someone could plant lavender around the grave or they could work lavender into the carving on the stone. I don't actually want to be buried, maybe they could just sprinkle my ashes around the stone and I could be reborn into the lavender plants.

Not only does this book inspire, make you laugh in places and bring enlightenment to anyone who loves to study gravestones, this book also has romance! Yes, there is a story of the Blocher Mausoleum in buffalo, New York. It is a story of love, loss and reminds us all that we only get one chance to live and love. So while this book gave me ideas for how to design my own sarcophagus, this book also reminded me of how much life I still want to live.

Oh, the cover is especially wonderful and the size of the book makes it perfect to stash away in your long black coat as you wander aimlessly through graveyards in the middle of the night.

~The Rebecca Review

22 of 23 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars tells the story October 31, 2006

By R. Newberry

Format:Hardcover

Received my copy today and went to the cemetery and immediately begin to understand the symbols and meaning behind them. If you are interested in the meaning of cemetery iconography, this is the book to get.