In ancient times, to commemorate a great event or a beloved person's death, people would sometimes erect a stone of remembrance. This was a tremendous stone, rising as much as 20 meters above the ground. Carved upon it were the name of the person, or a depiction of the event and sometimes a few words about them, or what occurred. The closest we have to stones of remembrance in modern society are headstones, though mobile memorials in the form of vinyl decals on the rear doors or windscreens of automobiles are becoming more and more common.
The only problem with a headstone is that only those who come to the gravesite will ever see it. A standing stone, while often raised on the final resting place of the deceased, were also raised in locations where they would be seen by those passing by. So that any man, wight or god could read of the love felt by kith and kin for the fallen.
No comments:
Post a Comment