New Orleans, Louisiana

Burial or Cremation?  If you are going to be buried, one possibility is to be buried above ground. The most famous city for above-ground burials (though one wonders if the word burial is correctly applied here) is New Orleans, where the city's cemeteries have become star tourist attractions. The person buried in this vault was Étienne Boré, the first appointed mayor of New Orleans when the French acquired Louisiana from Spain, and the first mayor of New Orleans when the United States purchased Louisiana from France. St. Louis Cemetery No. 1. [2014]

Bogalusa, Louisiana

Headstone Sculptures:  There is nothing more innocent than a baby lamb, and that is why it is used so often for the graves of infants and children. In this case, the infant was born and died on the same day. What makes this a bit unusual is that we don't know whether the infant was a boy or girl. Chapel Community Church. [2018]

Bogalusa, Louisiana

Voices from the Land of the Living ~ First Person Plural Subjective Case:  "We shall meet again." Chapel Community Church Cemetery. [2018]

Metairie, Louisiana

Bequeathed to the Living ~ Soothing Solace:  "It is what it is." So sayeth Bimp, who will spend eternity under the fleur de lis. Garden of Memories. [2018]

Baton Rouge, Louisiana

The Confederate Battle Flag Lives On:  Here lies a woman who was born two generations after the Civil War, yet she carries a Confederate battle flag on her headstone. She probably didn't see it as a symbol of hate, but that is what it has become. Even the U.S. Congress, in 2016, passed legislation banning its use in national cemeteries. Magnolia Cemetery. [2011]

Brusly, Louisiana

Twas the Week Before Christmas:  "Merry Christmas Mom & Dad / Maw & Grandpa." Here is what we have become. We still try to make you proud of us. "We ❤ you and miss you." St. John the Baptist Catholic Cemetery. [2011]

Thibodaux, Louisiana

Crux Immissae:  Simple crosses of the same size and proportions give an egalitarian aura to this Roman Catholic cemetery. Even the above-ground mausoleums have crosses that are no bigger than those on the burial plots. Every cross on this landscape is elevated as if it is standing atop Mount Calvary, the place where Jesus was crucified. Just think how unlikely it is that the cross, a symbol of death, has come to symbolize a religion that promises eternal life. St. Joseph Cemetery. [2009]

New Orleans, Louisiana

Shabtis ~ Egyptian Revival?  In ancient Egyptian eschatology, a member of the nobility would need servants in the afterlife. So, little figurines known as shabtis were entombed with the deceased. Some say the original custom was to bury flesh-and-blood servants with departed royalty. Today, many graves in North America are adorned with helper elves drawn from the ken of popular culture. After greeting the Mardi Gras shabti from the present, take a look at one of his ancestors, a few shabtis who now reside in the British Museum. St. Louis Cemetery No. 1. [2014]

Baton Rouge, Louisiana

Singling Out Historical Cemeteries: The historical marker that relates the significance of Magnolia Cemetery was erected by the City of Baton Rouge. With more control over marker design at the local level, BR and Baton Rouge appear in red. You can be sure that would have never happened on a state historical marker! The Civil war is the foundation of everything historical in the South, and Magnolia Cemetery seems to be no exception. Magnolia Cemetery. [2011]

New Orleans, Louisiana

Focus on St. Louis Cemetery No. 2:  Do you think this Powerball billboard has found the right audience? Actually, its location is not so puzzling. What you can't see is what defines the northern border of the cemetery: Interstate-10. [2014]

New Orleans, Louisiana

Focus on St. Louis Cemetery No. 2:  Marble has one big advantage over granite: It can be carved into all sorts of sculptural art, like the cherubs seen here. Can you read the inscription on Madame Charbonnet's tomb? Not surprisingly, it's in French. Could she be one of the many refugees who came to New Orleans after the revolution in Haiti? [2014]

New Orleans, Louisiana

Focus on St. Louis Cemetery No. 2:  These are wall vaults or "oven vaults." They constituted the lowest priced tombs in St. Louis Cemetery. The body (presumably un-embalmed) was entitled to the tomb for a year and a day. At that point, the remains were pushed to the back of the vault and into the caveau below. Then, the space became available to someone else. [2014]

Plaque in St. Louis Cemetery No. 1

New Orleans, Louisiana

Focus on St. Louis Cemetery No. 1:  In 2010, a new national treasurer was added to the cemetery landscape of New Orleans oldest extant cemetery.  It's a pyramid tomb, and it awaits the remains of Nicholas Cage. Money must talk when it comes to the Diocese of New Orleans, because room was found for a large new mausoleum even though almost every square inch of space in St. Louis Cemetery is already occupied. [2014]

Omnia Ab Uno
"One from Everything"

New Orleans, Louisiana

Focus on St. Louis Cemetery No. 1:  Everybody who comes here wants to see the tomb of Marie Leveau, New Orleans' most famous voodoo priestess. After the revolution in Haiti, which ended in 1804, many Haitian refugees arrived in Louisiana and revived the practice of voodoo. Marie, herself, was a practicing Catholic, having been married in the St. Louis Cathedral.  When she lost her husband, she took up with a man who became the father of her 15 children. It is in his family tomb, the Glapion tomb, where her remains are interred (probably). [2014]

New Orleans, Louisiana

Focus on St. Louis Cemetery No. 1:  When founded in 1789, it was on the edge of town. Now, it's just a few blocks north of the French Quarter. What you see in the background, though, is the downtown skyline of New Orleans. Why are bodies in vaults above ground?  (1) French and Spanish tradition, and (2) high water tables. Burials still take place here, but mostly in family vaults. [2014]

New Orleans, Louisiana

Zoning Out ~ The Burial Zone:  A spatial analysis of cemeteries is facilitated by recognizing the existence of four zones: (1) burial zone, (2) grave marker, (3) contiguous zone, and (4) land use zone. The most important from a functional perspective is the burial zone. It is the space that envelops the mortal remains, whether corpse or ashes. Here, the earth is being prepared to take back its offspring. End of story. Holt Cemetery. [2011]

Port Allen, Louisiana

Sectarian Portals ~ Methodist:  How do you explain the above-ground vaults? The slight rise to the left is a levee. The level of the Mississippi is above the level of adjacent land. Think what that means for burial practices in this part of Louisiana. Gulf Coast hydrography requires adaptation, a new take on human-environment relationships. Scott United Methodist Cemetery. [2011]