Custom Shaped Granite Memorials

There are many memorial dealers throughout the US that offer standard granite monuments such as markers, bevels, serp tops, ledgers and other "usual" die and base combinations. But for some, their last wish is to stand out in the cemetery, not just blend in with the other grave markers. Do you want your memorial to mimic the other stones resting in the cemetery?

     

If you said no, then a stone manufacturer could be your new best friend! The ability to quarry unique sizes and shapes in raw granite allows total customization of the rock. A sculptor and client can often work directly on the specifics of the project together. Once the conceptual part of the monument is complete, the project becomes a collaborative effort between the manufacturer and the family member, often assisted by service couselors within the funeral home or cemetery. 

Suggestions from the client include changes to scale, texture, color, shape and finish-and are often very helpful in drafting out the custom piece. Many drawings and photos are provided throughout the sculpting process to insure the final result meets the family's expectations and original vision.

The client's expectations are relayed to the sculptor, and after cutting and shaping, the flow of the monument through final "finishing" areas within the plant, keeps the project moving forward on the manufacturers projected schedule. The resulting memorial is one that will stand out among other stone memorials in any chosen resting place. And can be accessorized with matching (multiple or stepped) bases and with single or double round and square vases.

Cemeteries and funeral counselors may be able to help answer questions that you may have. Be sure to choose a granite manufacturer that can offer previous examples, photos or drawings to help you through the creation process.

Some Basics for Funeral Home Signs

The architectural plans were finished and followed when you built your funeral home. And whether you chose a gable roof, cast-stone columns, or a square tower with masonry accents, you've managed to create a warm and welcoming place for bereaved families. But don't overlook the importance of designing and installing a coordinating sign to welcome visitors and market your business. Whether letter choices on the sign are serif or san-serif, roman or script, it should collectively be a reflection of you, and your commitment to those that you serve. A manufacturing company or a drafter/designer can help you put the pieces together.

Placing a coat of arms, for example, on the sign can reflect the fact that your family has passed down this profession for generations; leaving families with a greater sense of trust in their time of need. Or maybe you've just completed a large-scale renovation and want your sign to reflect the modern updates to your facility. A redesign might be needed to update older (and potentially weathered or damaged) signs. Granite is a good material choice for signage because of the strength and durability that comes from solid rock.

Whatever you choose to include on your sign, make sure the address is clearly visible (if included) and be sure the overall size of the sign fits both the space it's occupying and the surrounding space(s). Also ensure that the size is large enough to be easily read from different directions, and by cars driving past at varying speeds. Make sure color choices provide a nice visual contrast and be sure to include landscape lighting, so your investment will be visible at night.

Cremation Memorialization Options

The number of people choosing cremation has risen to include more than 40 percent of all funerals throughout the US each year. Religious beliefs, family customs and ethnic cultures can all be contributing factors for the vast number of families choosing cremation over tradition ground burial today.

The cost for cremation can also be considerably less than traditional burial funerals. With everything environmentally required for a traditional burial, families sometimes have no choice when it comes to the financial aspect of paying for the funeral. They inevitably have to choose the less expensive service.

No matter what the reason, the options for memorialization after cremation are diverse. And whether in a cemetery or on private land, granite and marble products are lasting, touching tributes to loved ones. They can hold cremated ashes, or retain their empty spaces, the choice is up to the family. But many are designed to hold small containers, such as granite urns or cremation boxes. A columbarium is a good choice for families wishing to be kept together, and can be manufactured with several doors to access each holding area or "niche" to place individual urns.

Benches can also be used for holding cremated remains. Many are designed with core holes to keep the remains in separate and sealed areas within the bench. Other designs have niche openings, similar to the columbarium style of memorial, which holds the actual urn. Either cremation memorial choice can be sandblasted or laser etched (usually on the niche doors themselves) to include family member names, birth and death dates, personal artwork and epitaphs, to further personalize each granite or marble memorial.

Granite and Marble Cemetery Statues

For centuries, man has sculpted marble and granite as a form of self expression, to further the study of mankind and the body, to represent mythical creatures and animals, and to create images of religious figures. These pieces often adorned places of worship, funeral spaces and cemetery properties.

Not only can sculpture be realistic in its execution, it can also be spiritual and emotional, depending upon the subject of the sculpture. Funeral statues often emit powerful feelings of grief and grieving; or loss and love taken away. For many families choosing to use memorial sculpture, it is a way to honor the deceased, while also helping them through the grieving process.

The time it takes to draw, design, commission and sculpt a statue can give great comfort to someone that is grieving the loss of their loved one. This process can last a few months or even years, depending on many different variables. But when the statue is finally completed, and placed at the memorial site, it can become a symbol of closure. Many people grieve pets in the same way. You can find marble and granite animal statues at pet grave sites or at the owner's grave site, suggesting the pet and owner will be reunited.

Of great importance in Chinese myth and culture, the tiger is one of the 12 Chinese zodiac animals. Also in various Chinese art and martial art, the tiger is depicted as an earth symbol. Tigers are admired for their great strength, ferocity and grace and are also considered guardian deities. Tiger statutes are usually seen at monuments, temples and palaces, to help ward off evil spirits.

Choosing or designing a memorial statue can be overwhelming for most people. Cemeteries and funeral counselors may be able to help answer questions that you may have. Look for a seasoned artist that is knowledgeable in funerary art and choose a granite or marble manufacturer that can offer catalogs, photos or drawings to help you through the sculpting process.

Creating Cemetery Headstones

Look around any cemetery and you'll notice monuments - from the simplest of grave markers - to some of the most beautiful and intricate granite memorials manufactured. As you can imagine, granite is not an easy material to work with. To begin with, it's harvested in large granite quarries that can be very dangerous to work in. Not to mention the shear weight of these large sections of rock make it difficult to quarry with the need for heavy equipment, for moving the blocks, and heavy trucks for transport to the plants.

At the plant, the granite rocks are configured into smaller, more manageable pieces. The granite is cut, broken or sawn dependent upon what pieces can be extracted from within each large section of granite.

Once the smaller sections are created, the granite goes into various finishing stages, where much of the work is done by skilled craftsman and much of it still by hand. From removing extra pieces around the edges to create a rougher finish, or removing enough granite to create a recessed area for a QR piece or a ceramic portrait, the granite makes its way through the plant.

Once the finish and shape of the monument has been established, the granite is then sent to sandblasting where lettering and flat designs are added. These designs are based upon graphic files created by a drafting team of designers, who supply templates for the design of the memorial.

Manufacturing a granite memorial is obviously much more complex, but this is a shortened version so you can see some of the workmanship and talent that goes in to each and every granite memorial manufactured here at Eagle. From quarry to work of art...the process is a highly specialized and organized process!

Memorial Bench Ideas

A memorial is an object which serves as a focus for the memory of something, usually a person (who has died) or an event. Popular forms of memorials include landmarks, objects or art such as sculptures, statues or fountains, and even entire parks are designed to serve as memorial places of remembrance. Benches can be incorporated into the design and are often personalized for multiple life events, historical events or for individuals themselves.

Many people plant garden memorials in honor of a loved one. The garden can be filled with flowers, statues, benches and personal items from the deceased, to become an area of peace, solitude, and reflection. Whatever memory you are hoping to create, there are many ways to memorialize that cherished remembrance with memorial benches.

Perhaps your memory includes a place, such as where you camped growing up, or where you played a hobby or sport together? Memorial benches can be personalized and donated to the property where these memories remain. Families usually hope to create unique and personal areas to visit time and time again.


When someone passes, the family may request that a memorial gift be given to a designated charity, or that a tree be planted in memory of the person. Sometimes, when a student has died, the memorials are placed in the form of a scholarship, to be awarded to high-achieving students in future years, or in tree plantings on school grounds. The idea of a granite memorial bench to sit quietly under a planting can add an extra special touch to tree memorial gift giving.

A Place to Focus Grief for Survivors

The reasons for choosing cremation are as diverse as they are personal. There has been an increase in the number of people making this choice over ground burial more and more. When a loved one is cremated, some survivors keep the cremains (ashes) in an urn at home, while some decide to scatter the ashes in a place that holds special meaning.

However, scattering can sometimes leave the survivor with regrets. Maybe there was not adequate closure time, or perhaps they cannot go back to that special place where they scattered their loved one's ashes? Psychologists have long seen the importance of viewing the deceased at the funeral and for having the opportunity to say goodbye and to grieve (at your own pace and in your own way).

The decision to scatter ashes can leave some with the feeling of not having enough time to say goodbye. Or even the feeling of disconnect from their loved one. Because they have chosen to scatter, they find nowhere to "connect" with their loved one any longer.

Ask your local cemetery about your cremation options. Many have specialized buildings to house cremains where family members can visit and reflect. There are also cremation garden areas where cremation monuments are a more personal and private option. The cremains can be housed within the monument to help with grieving and connecting to the deceased. This is appealing because it gives survivors multiple options; some ashes are held in the permanent memorial, some are spread at their special place, and some are even kept close in an urn or cremation jewelry.

Families now have options to help them get through this very difficult time in their lives, while protecting the connection to loved ones for years to come.

To find out more about cremation monuments, please visit us at www.eaglegranite.com