Perhaps no other area of study offers better insight into the Victorian-era fascination with symbolism than that of the nineteenth century cemetery. Even the word "cemetery" has symbolic overtones: it was adapted by the early Christians from the Greek word "koimerterion" meaning sleeping place of dormitory.

All cemeteries built during the Victorian period are full of symbolic references from the cemetery's design to the motifs and the design on the monuments.

The connection of stone and religion is strong. Stone conveys images of firmness and timelessness so it is quite natural that both Western and Eastern religions have embraced the use of stone as a media for their grave memorials. The messages conveyed on stone will in theory be eternal and mark an individual's life on earth.