tombstone

(tūm'stōn')
n.
A gravestone.

The first biblical mention of a tombstone was the one which Jacob erected over the grave of Rachel (Gen. 35:20). During talmudic times, it appears that one of the major purposes of tombstones was to prevent priests from coming in contact with the burial places of the dead, for such contact would result in their ritual defilement. Along the same lines, the Mishnah (Shab. 1:1) indicates that the public authorities were required once a year, in the month of Adar, to mark out the graves in their areas so as to prevent the ritual defilement of people on their way with the paschal sacrifice. A later Mishnah in the same tractate (2:5) indicates that if money were collected for the burial of a person and there was some left over, it should be used for a tombstone on the grave, evidently as a memorial. On the other hand, the Jerusalem Talmud (Shab. 2:5) notes an opinion that tombstones are not to be placed over the graves of the righteous, for their sayings are their memorial. This ruling is also codified by Maimonides (Yad, Hil. Avel, 4:4). Further, Joseph Caro rules (Sh. Ar., YD 364) that tombstones are not obligatory. The kabbalist Isaac Luria, on the other hand, regarded the tombstone as imperative, even seeing it as important for the well-being of the deceased. In recent centuries, it has been a universally accepted Jewish custom that the grave of the deceased be marked by a tombstone.

Practices differ concerning the position of the tombstone and the time at which it is to be erected. The Ashkenazi custom throughout most of the world is to have a vertical tombstone at the head of the grave. The Ephardim, as well as the Ashkenazim in Israel, have a horizontal tombstone over the entire grave. In Israel, the custom is to dedicate the tombstone 30 days after death, but in the rest of the world this is usually done only after the first year.

The ceremony that has evolved for the consecration of a tombstone generally includes the recitation of verses in Psalm 119 (which is an alphabetic acrostic) to spell out the name of the deceased, followed by verses to spell out the Hebrew word neshamah (soul). This is followed by El Malé Raḥamim---a prayer invoking God's mercy on the deceased---and the mourners' Kaddish.

Generally, epitaphs on Jewish tombstones have been engraved in Hebrew and the first line has customarily been an abbreviation for the Hebrew words "Here lies." The last line of the tombstone has generally offered a prayer for the soul, using a standard formulation such as, "May his/her soul be bound up in the binding of life," "May his/her memory be a blessing," or "May he/she find rest in Eden" (i.e., Paradise). Since the 19th century, other languages have been used in addition to, or in place of, Hebrew.

Various artistic motifs appear on tombstones, including different animals or birds. When the person's name was that of a specific animal (e.g., "Dov Ber" = bear, "Aryeh" = lion), a representation of that animal might be carved on the tombstone. Another motif, especially on the graves of those who died young, is that of interruption, symbolized, for example, by an incomplete pillar or a felled tree. When the deceased was a priest, it is customary to have on the tombstone two hands held as for the Priestly Blessing, while the tombstones of Levites show water being poured, a reference to the duty of the Levites to wash the hands of the priests before the priestly blessing.

In some places, elaborate structures ("tents") are put up for distinguished or wealthy individuals (and sometimes as a family tomb). For great scholars or saintly individuals, especially in Muslim lands and in Ḥasidic circles, an ohel (tent) was erected over the grave, which became a center of pilgrimage. In certain communities, when visiting a grave it is customary to place a stone on the tombstone, as a sign of respect for the deceased.

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Vertical or horizontal inscribed grave-marker or memorial set up over a tomb.

Bibliography

• Weaver (1915)

The full bibliography for this book is available to download as a pdf file.
Download the bibliography for A Dictionary of Architecture and Landscape Architecture (PDF: 1.2MB)

[Ar]

A stone monument marking the position of an essentially subterranean burial. Tombstones usually bear some kind of epitaph.

IN BRIEF: A stone that is used to mark a grave.

Do not save your loving speeches for your friends till they are dead. Do not write them on their tombstones, speak them rather now instead. — Anna Cummin

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Dansk (Danish)
n. - gravsten

Nederlands (Dutch)
grafsteen

Français (French)
n. - pierre tombale, dalle funéraire

Deutsch (German)
n. - Grabstein

Ελληνική (Greek)
n. - επιτύμβια πλάκα, ταφόπετρα

Italiano (Italian)
lapide

Português (Portuguese)
n. - pedra tumular (f), lápide (f)

Русский (Russian)
надгробие, надгробный камень, надгробная плита

Español (Spanish)
n. - lápida

Svenska (Swedish)
n. - gravsten

中文（简体）(Chinese (Simplified))
墓石, 墓碑

中文（繁體）(Chinese (Traditional))
n. - 墓石, 墓碑

한국어 (Korean)
n. - 묘석, 묘비

日本語 (Japanese)
n. - 墓石, 墓碑

العربيه (Arabic)
‏(الاسم) بلاطه ضريح, شاهد‏

עברית (Hebrew)
n. - ‮מצבה‬

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