Tombstone Tuesday-Curtain Symbol
A curtain on a tombstone symbolizes the passage from one life to the next, the passage from one existence to another. Curtains conceal and block the view of something and they also provide protection. A curtain is sometimes referred to as a veil.
Curtain symbol, Riverside Cemetery, Mercer County, Ohio.
The inscription on this tombstone is a good example of a curtain. The curtain, which is pulled back, indicates that the pathway to the next life has been revealed and is open. The unbroken column on the left indicates that the persons lived full and complete lives.
Curtains and veils are of great Biblical significance and are mentioned several times in the Bible. A curtain or veil covered the Ark of the Covenant. It symbolized the entrance to the presence of God and protected mortals from the Ark’s radiance. The temple curtain was torn in two after Christ’s crucifixion, signifying that Christians had a pathway into the presence of God.
Karen
Greetings from the Chattanooga, Ohio, area. Yes, Ohio has its very own Chattanooga, aka Chatt, a small village in west-central Ohio, near the Indiana border. I have been doing family history research for over 20 years and am a Board-Certified genealogist, certified by the Board for Certification of Genealogists®. My main genealogical interests are family research, cemetery research, and historical and genealogical research of the Chatt area, with a focus on two area Lutheran Churches, both named Zion Lutheran, one in Chatt and the other in Schumm, Ohio. Family names I am researching include Miller, Schumm, Brewster, Rueck, Reid, Headington, Huey, Bryan, Whiteman, Schinnerer, Scaer, Breuninger, Bennett, and a few others. I belong to several lineage societies, including the Daughters of the American Revolution, U.S. Daughters of 1812, First Families of Ohio, and First Families of Mercer and Van Wert Counties. I am also a retired dental hygienist and our church organist. I hope you enjoy Karen's Chatt.
