PARK AND cemetery: 
112 
ORIGINALITY IN DESIGN OF SMALL MONUMENTS 
The necessity for more originality and artistic improvement 
in the design of headstones, tablets and small monuments 
has been frequently noted in these pages, and the following 
contribution by Alfred Borrowdale in The Stone Trades 
Journal seems to indicate that there is in England a similar 
scarcity of good designs and the same awakening to the 
necessity for improvement . 
One cannot help but notice in traveling about in various 
parts of this country and visiting the different cemeteries and 
churchyards, how little the monumentalist seems to devote 
to the designing of the memorials he erects. 
Invariably they are the common hack designs of some stock 
sheets, or books, sent in to him, and for the most part 
atrocious Gothic top, and with the inevitable splashing about 
of natural foliage dropped on here and there. Personally, 
I never could quite understand why our masons should insist 
upon reproducing other men’s stock sheets, when original 
designs are so easily obtainable and, if thought necessary, 
patented. 
Then again the over-elaboration of memorials is a thing 
much to be deplored. Most of this elaboration is totally 
unnecessary, either from the esthetic point of view, or 
utilitarian. Then again take the lettering of memorials. A 
great deal more time and thought ought to be put into this 
important part of a memorial. To begin with, in any good 
job, the lettering ought to be all drawn out full size on 
paper first before the letter-cutter starts, and, moreover, the 
lettering out to be in harmony with the design (?) part 
of it, as it were. Just consider for one moment the splendid 
possibilities of the introduction on a nice neat modern-de- 
signed headstone of, say, French antique letters. Why, these 
characters well-set out and engraved are in themselves quite 
sufficient to make any passer-by stop and ponder. I am 
quite sure that if monumentalists are to uphold the status 
of our ancient craft, and to keep out agents, funeral fur- 
nishers, and other sundry interlopers from entering our trade, 
and ourselves eventually becoming merely agents to supply 
factory-made stuff we will have to introduce more individu- 
ality into our work. Make it uncommon as you like, any- 
thing rather than the miserable common place multiplica- 
tion of hackneyed designs one sees in their hundreds in any 
of. our cemeteries. And this can be done, I am quite sure, 
if our masons will only give more time and attention to 
their designing, and turning out good clean workmanship, 
and, lastly, but certainly not of least importance, more at- 
tention to the apprentice, showing him his necessity of using 
the local School of Art in his spare time, and if he shows 
promise, the employer ought readily to pay his school fees. 
To more clearly show what I mean by individuality in de- 
signing, etc. I herewith introduce a perspective sketch. 
It is a first impression of, say a new design ; then make scale 
drawings, laying out carefully any detail, such as mould for 
panel, depth, etc. Then draw out full size the lettering to 
suit design. Then model the panel, and have it cast in bronze. 
The one shown was made in Freetown granite, and the 
lettering is all risen from the surface about of an inch. 
The plate is 1 in. thicker at bottom than at top. Another, 
a small Blue Robin Hood freestone, has also a bronze 
panel introduced, and carefully lettered. The design is origi- 
nal, and was marked out straight away on the stone. These 
bronze panels in each case have a good broad clamp to let into 
storie, and are set in cement. By this drawing I wish only 
to illustrate what I mean by a little individuality in working 
up simple little designs, and striving to keep away from the 
common-place. That good work is being done by certain 
firms I readily admit and no one enjoys more keenly than 
the writer when that work is to be seen, but it is the almost 
entire absence of thought and care in the great bulk of the 
work that I am deploring. 
Simplicity should be the keynote of memorial designing; 
if it is too ornate and showy it simply kicks out sentiment 
straight away. Make perfect proportions, and careful clean 
workmanship, and then you have something with character 
about it. 
There are great possibilities open to masons who will 
study carefully and introduce the “New Art Movement” into 
their work. People are beginning to look for something 
different nowadays, with their better education and the splen- 
did facilities given to the young men of today. This repeti- 
tion of hack designs won't do much longer. We must learn 
to mould new ideas, not put our ideas into a mould, and 
let them stay there for ever and a day. 
I sincerely trust our newly formed Asosciation or Guild 
(I don’t know at this moment what name it will exactly take) 
will help in 'every way possible the craftsman. I am quite 
alive to the almost impossible side of this question in face of 
the cheap (miserably cheap), shall I say, dumping down of 
marble jobs. But I am quite as confident that if better de- 
signs (more English in feeling) are introduced we shall be 
able to stay this wholesale importation of. for the most part, 
badly-worked, and certainly badly-designed memorials ; as, 
after all, the local mason has a great deal of say in this mat- 
ter — his clients must take what he has in stock or what he 
cliooses to push. I am looking forward with interest to the 
part our Association will play in these matters, and hope they 
will have open competitions and give prizes for l;)est designs, 
and modeling, drawing out letters, etc., and have an annual 
exhibition of the work sent in. This would bring about a 
much healthier condition of affairs in our ranks. 
ENGLISH DESIGN FOR TABLET. 
