William Grimes, 1766, Lexington, MA |
Here lies the
Body of Mr. William
Grimes who died
November 3d 1766
In the 60th year
of his age
I find this stone puzzling because there seems to be a disconnect between the borders and the lettering. The letters are much more straight and rigid than the fluid lines of the borders, and borders appear to be of a much older design than the stated date. The iconography looks very much like the carving coming out of the Lamson shop in the 1710s.
Compare this stone to the Margaret Leverett stone (1716, Cambridge, MA):
See also the William Wyer stone (1709, Charlestown, MA. Also, I know I've seen that face before, but I can't quite place it and Farber is failing me.
Could this stone be a copy of an earlier style? Or an old, left-over blank someone found sitting in the shop 40 years after it was made?
1 comment:
I'm glad to hear that my eye is getting sharp, but maybe I should go re-read Forbes to save myself some time!
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