Digging For Answers 1/13/2011

Digging for Answers -- GRAVESTONE RUBBINGS

Welcome to the Digging for Answers column on the Graveyard Rabbit Online Journal.

This column will depend on your submission of questions about cemeteries, gravestones, burial practices, and other topics that concern a Graveyard Rabbit (other than where his next carrot is coming from!). So please send some questions to the editor, who will pass them along and keep the columnist hopping.

Question: What is the best procedure for making a Gravestone Rubbing?

Answer: Gravestone rubbings have been used for many years to convey the size and texture of a gravestone artwork and inscription, especially before digital cameras became commonplace.

The Association of Gravestone Studies website has a Frequently Asked Question response to this question (http://www.gravestonestudies.org/faq.htm_) saying:

"Please Do

Check (with cemetery superintendent, cemetery commissioners, town clerk, historical society, whoever is in charge) to see if rubbing is allowed in the cemetery.

Get permission and/or a permit as required.

Rub only solid stones in good condition. Check for any cracks, evidence of previous breaks and adhesive repairs, defoliating stone with air pockets behind the face of the stone that will collapse under pressure of rubbing, etc

Become educated; learn how to rub responsibly.

Use a soft brush and plain water to do any necessary stone cleaning.

Make certain that your paper covers the entire face of the stone; secure with masking tape.

Use the correct combination of paper and waxes or inks; avoid magic marker-type pens or other permanent color materials.

Test paper and color before working on stone to be certain that no color bleeds through.

Rub gently, carefully.

Leave the stone in better condition than you found it.

Take all trash with you; replace any grave site materials that you may have disturbed.

Please Don't

Don't attempt to rub deteriorating marble or sandstone, or any unsound or weakened stone (for example, a stone that sounds hollow when gently tapped or a stone that is flaking, splitting, blistered, cracked, or unstable on its base).

Don't use detergents, soaps, vinegar, bleach, or any other cleaning solutions on the stone, no matter how mild!

Don't use shaving cream, chalk, graphite, dirt, or other concoctions in an attempt to read worn inscriptions. Using a large mirror to direct bright sunlight diagonally across the face of a gravemarker casts shadows in indentations and makes inscriptions more visible.

Don't use stiff-bristled or wire brushes, putty knives, nail files, or any metal object to clean or to remove lichen from the stone; Soft natural bristled brushes, whisk brooms, or wooden sticks are usually OK if used gently and carefully

Don't attempt to remove stubborn lichen. Soft lichen may be thoroughly soaked with plain water and then loosened with a gum eraser or a wooden popsicle stick. Be gentle. Stop if lichen does not come off easily.

Don't use spray adhesives, scotch tape, or duct tape. Use masking tape.

Don't use any rubbing method that you have not actually practiced under supervision.

Don't leave masking tape, wastepaper, colors, etc., at the grave site

There is a short (two minutes) video on How To Make a Grave Rubbing at http://www.wonderhowto.com/how-to-make-grave-rubbing-380057/. It violates some of the Don'ts listed above, but is useful in showing the method used.

Much more information about the process can be found in the article "Gravestone Rubbing for Beginners" by Jessie Lie Farber at http://www.justcallbob.com/grave.htm on the Niemayer Family website. The site gives this reason for making a gravestone rubbing:

"A gravestone rubbing is an excellent document, accurately reproducing, life-size, the design and surface condition of the stone. Rubbings are, therefore, useful as records. Some rubbings are works of art in their own right and are in the collections of galleries and museums. Unfortunately, most rubbings are ephemeral novelties, souvenirs, which find their way to dorm and den walls on their way to the waste basket--hardly a justification for encouraging the novice rubber, armed with coloring materials, to try his hand on handsome and vulnerable old gravestones."

You can find many more articles and webpages about gravestone rubbings by putting "gravestone rubbing" in an Internet search engine.

As a Graveyard Rabbit, I wish the folks doing this would leave some carrots and lettuce when they leave.

Readers - please submit questions to the Online Graveyard Rabbit Journal editor, and she will pass them along for me to dig into and answer.
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Randy Seaver
Chula Vista, California
South San Diego County Graveyard Rabbit
http://ssdcgraveyardrabbit.blogspot.com/

I am a native San Diegan, a graduate of San Diego State University, a retired aerospace engineer, a genealogist and a family guy. My wife (Angel Linda) and I have two lovely daughters and four darling grandchildren. We love to travel, visit with family and friends, and stroll around graveyards.