John P Quelos
This is a very rare headstone. The index finger of this hand is
pointing down. I have catalogued 455 hand sculptures on
headstones. This is the only one I found that points down. John
Cox of NC sent me pictures of two stones with down pointing
fingers. (Unfortunately the date is obliterated on one and
cannot be added to the database. I have seen one other on a
website but it’s information was also incomplete) This is an
incidence of 0.659 percent.
It is easy to mistake a hand holding something in a draping
fashion as a down pointing index finger; on close examination
this reveals itself.
To my mind this stone seems to say, “Here lies.” Without access
to the work’s maker this remains open to interpretation.
In order to preserve the stone’s integrity and safety I erased part
of the name; the stone is in California. Shortly after this picture
was taken the stone toppled and the top quarter of the stone
broke off. We repaired it.
This is a very unusual
stone for two young sisters.
Most often families
maintain consistency and
use the same symbols for
double burials.
Location: St. Helena Public
Cemetery, St. Helena, CA
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Courtesy of John Cox, Charlotte,
NC. Loc: Cheraw, S.C.
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This is the oldest stone with a hand icon I
have found. It is dated 1785 and located
in North Carolina. (Thanks to John Cox.)
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