Gravestones (a.k.a. headstones / tombstones) in modern American cemeteries are usually made of "granite" - a term in the retail trade for any hard stone that will take a fine polish. Geologically, some are granites and some are not. In the 1800s, many gravestones were made of marble, a crystalline-textured metamorphic rock composed of calcite (calcium carbonate, CaCO3). Rainwater is naturally acidic (slightly) from carbonic acid - H2CO3. Over time, marble will slowly dissolve in rainwater. Older marble gravestones often have poorly legible or non-readable carvings.
Locality: St. John's Lutheran Church Cemetery, northern side of Holston Road, Wytheville, southwestern Virginia, USA
Tags: weathered weathering marble gravestone gravestones headstone headstones tombstone tombstones Wytheville Virginia St. John's Lutheran Church Cemetery Holston Road
Gravestones (a.k.a. headstones / tombstones) in modern American cemeteries are usually made of "granite" - a term in the retail trade for any hard stone that will take a fine polish. Geologically, some are granites and some are not. In the 1800s, many gravestones were made of marble, a crystalline-textured metamorphic rock composed of calcite (calcium carbonate, CaCO3). Rainwater is naturally acidic (slightly) from carbonic acid - H2CO3. Over time, marble will slowly dissolve in rainwater. Older marble gravestones often have poorly legible or non-readable carvings.
Seen here is a closeup of an 1842 gravestone showing discoloration of the marble and patches of living lichen.
Locality: St. John's Lutheran Church Cemetery, northern side of Holston Road, Wytheville, southwestern Virginia, USA
Tags: weathered weathering marble gravestone gravestones headstone headstones tombstone tombstones Wytheville Virginia St. John's Lutheran Church Cemetery Holston Road lichen
Gravestones (a.k.a. headstones / tombstones) in modern American cemeteries are usually made of "granite" - a term in the retail trade for any hard stone that will take a fine polish. Geologically, some are granites and some are not. In the 1800s, many gravestones were made of marble, a crystalline-textured metamorphic rock composed of calcite (calcium carbonate, CaCO3). Rainwater is naturally acidic (slightly) from carbonic acid - H2CO3. Over time, marble will slowly dissolve in rainwater. Older marble gravestones often have poorly legible or non-readable carvings.
Seen here is a closeup of a 1887 gravestone showing discoloration of the marble.
Locality: St. John's Lutheran Church Cemetery, northern side of Holston Road, Wytheville, southwestern Virginia, USA
Tags: weathered weathering marble gravestone gravestones headstone headstones tombstone tombstones Wytheville Virginia St. John's Lutheran Church Cemetery Holston Road
Gravestones (a.k.a. headstones / tombstones) in modern American cemeteries are usually made of "granite" - a term in the retail trade for any hard stone that will take a fine polish. Geologically, some are granites and some are not. In the 1800s, many gravestones were made of marble, a crystalline-textured metamorphic rock composed of calcite (calcium carbonate, CaCO3). Rainwater is naturally acidic (slightly) from carbonic acid - H2CO3. Over time, marble will slowly dissolve in rainwater. Older marble gravestones often have poorly legible or non-readable carvings. The example seen here has a readable date of 1887.
Locality: St. John's Lutheran Church Cemetery, northern side of Holston Road, Wytheville, southwestern Virginia, USA
Tags: weathered weathering marble gravestone gravestones headstone headstones tombstone tombstones Wytheville Virginia St. John's Lutheran Church Cemetery Holston Road 1887
Gravestones (a.k.a. headstones / tombstones) in modern American cemeteries are usually made of "granite" - a term in the retail trade for any hard stone that will take a fine polish. Geologically, some are granites and some are not. In the 1800s, many gravestones were made of marble, a crystalline-textured metamorphic rock composed of calcite (calcium carbonate, CaCO3). Rainwater is naturally acidic (slightly) from carbonic acid - H2CO3. Over time, marble will slowly dissolve in rainwater. Older marble gravestones often have poorly legible or non-readable carvings. The example seen here has a readable date of 1842.
Locality: St. John's Lutheran Church Cemetery, northern side of Holston Road, Wytheville, southwestern Virginia, USA
Tags: weathered weathering marble gravestone gravestones headstone headstones tombstone tombstones Wytheville Virginia St. John's Lutheran Church Cemetery Holston Road 1842