The article below shows the meaning behind: Cut tree – someone who has died young Acorn – Continuity of life or greater life after burial Ball – Cycle of life, eternity Vessel – the body is considered to be the…
Category: Jewish Tombstones
Highlighting interesting or unique tombstones we have photographed
How to read a gravestone
Rivka Goldblatt of Jewishfamilyresearch has helped us by reading some Hebrew inscriptions, here she explains how she did it. We, at CemeteryScribes, are very grateful for her assistance. Old gravestones. Even worse, photographs of old gravestones. How to decipher them?…
SOME CORNER OF A FOREIGN FIELD………
At 20.20 hours on 10 August 1941, an RAF Liberator took off from Ayr Scotland, destination Gander Newfoundland. 20 minutes into its flight, the plane crashed into a ridge on Mullach Buidhe, just North of Goat Fell, the the highest…
Olympics – 100 years ago!
Taking part in the 1912 Olympics in Stockholm was the son of a salesman, David Henry Jacobs. David was born in 1888 Cardiff, Wales to John and Sarah Jacobs. He was one of at least 6 children. In 1911 the…
Are Jones and Cohen the hardest names to research?
What happens when you are looking for both names for 1 person? A couple of years ago we received an email from Belgium asking for more information on an entry we had under Lauriston Cemetery. The enquirer was interested to…
Confusion in the stars!
The Star of David (Mogen David) is frequently seen on tombstones but not all are Jewish and many cause confusion. We were recently contacted by Evelyn Simak who very kindly photographed tombstones at Jewish cemeteries in East Anglia for us.…
Tombstone symbols – Fish
We have two examples of ‘fish’ symbols from tombstones in Brady Street Jewish Cemetery. In both cases there is a single fish, although we understand that 2 fish may be featured and look identical. or very similar, to the symbol…
Tombstone Symbols – Pitcher & water, Levi
The symbol of a hand pouring water from a jug or pitcher into a bowl is the symbol of the Levites one of the 12 tribes of Israel. Levites were responsible for cleaning the hands of the Temple Priest or…
The First Jewish Cremation in Britain – 1888
We have many entries on the CemeteryScribes database for individuals who were famous for their charity and good deeds , their professional and financial achievements, or their contributions to the Arts and Sciences, but this is the story of a…
Tombstone Symbols – Cohen Hands
This is the first of a series of blogs we want to run on the various tombstone symbols we have seen so far. Here are some examples of ‘Cohen Hands’ the priestly blessing. This symbol indicates that the person buried…