A Chainsaw on your gravestone?

[Tom D]

We were working in a graveyard today which has some interesting old headstones, almost all the old ones feature the skull and crossbones as that seems to be the tradition in the 15th century. more interestingly some featured carvings depicting what was presumably the trade of the deceased, one in particular had an axe and a hammer as well as a compass, so presumably a carpenter..

 

The last pic is from just up the road a wee bit, nice countryside round there...

[Robert_S]

Wheres that Tom? that looks lovely

[Tom D]

ettrick valley, it really nice up there, takes a while to get there though.

[penfold]

a carpenter or stone mason would have a mitre and set square on his head stone that looks like a pick and shovel to me

[Graham]

Nice old stones. The skull and crossbones was widely used in 17th-18thC as a reminder of man's mortality.

[Highland Forestry]

I was once told that the skull and crossed bones on head stones was often used when the deceased had died from the black death plague... not sure if that's true or not but seems to make sense

[skyhuck]

The skull and cross bones represented the resurrection, it was believed that your skull and long bones were required for god to recreate you.

 

This was is why some criminals were dismembered and the parts buried in different parts of the country, so they would not be resurrected come judgment day.

 

The church changed this teaching after the first world war, as so many people were totally destroyed or even vaporised. This change in teaching also led to cremation becoming much more popular.

[Tom D]

a carpenter or stone mason would have a mitre and set square on his head stone that looks like a pick and shovel to me

 

The third pic has the axe and hammer look carefully and you can see the compass too:001_smile: