Monuments and Memorials Week 20

Above and around are photographs of a gravesite at the cemetery in Franschhoek in the Western Cape, which is located next to the Huguenots Memorial. Many of the tombstones in this site were erected as a result of deaths during the flu epidemic in 1918. This grave may be among these many; however, we do not know for certain, as the text on the gravestone offers a minimal amount of information. It doesnt even include the year(s) of the deaths. One could argue that this is because the children would not have died at the same time, but in different years and this tombstone must have been put up after the death of all three of the children. It is possible that these babies either did not live a long enough to be considered a part of history, and were therefore not given a year of death, or because they lived for such a very short time. The text of the gravestone reads: In Tere Nagedagtenis Aan JOHANNA, OUD 1 MAAND CHRISTIE, OUD 7 MAANDE DANIEL, OUD 6 MAANDE BEMINDE KINDERTJIES VAN C. EN S. STALS.

There is also a line of text at the bottom of the tombstone that reads:HOE LIEFLIK IN HULLE ONSKULD (How lovely in their innocence) What draws the passerby to look upon this gravesite more than others in the immediate area is the delicate angel that stands guardian over this grave. Its small scale and intimate quality is perhaps fitting as it is suitable for the grave of babies. The angel is a Christian symbol, and the grave has been done in a very Christian manner. The angel holds flowers gently in both of its hands. The fact that its appearance has been weathered and some of its figure is now covered by moss and/or damaged makes it artistically more interesting than one that hasnt. This single angel completes a gravesite that is arguably more attractive than many others in the graveyard, especially in comparison with the newer, more grotesque looking ones with their shine and extravagance. The gravesite itself is situated in a demarcated space, enclosed by a metal fence. This can be seen as marking a family space, in which other relatives could have been buried. The parents could have been Huguenots, though this is not certain. When the death of an individual becomes that of a figure of stature, an individual seen within a context of authority, the way in which their remains are laid to rest shifts drastically. When this ordinary grave in remembrance of three small children, all of whom didnt live a full life, is compared to the grandeur of one-time French emperor Napoleon Bonapartes Tomb, which required the high altar of a historical domed church to be redesigned by architect Louis Visconti, we can see just how drastic that shift is. As a site, the simple grave in Franschhoek is part of a cemetery that is the standard place in which most ordinary people are buried, unless of course they are cremated and their ashes scattered over a specific area. The type of burial Napoleon received in 1861, where his body is adorned in greatness in a central place (to dominate) under the Dme des Invalides at Les Invalides in Paris, surrounded by low relief sculptures and general praise of his achievements, fits common practice in history for a figure such as this.

The site of remembrance is no longer one of intimacy and personal detail or hints/suggestions of the actual person, but one in which the persona of the person is glorified and becomes the main focus. The tomb has been constructed around Napoleons commonly assumed notion of having a big ego and being the greatest conqueror history has ever seen, and ignores intimate facts of his life as well as the physical build of the man. This is evident in the fact that Napoleon is known to have been small man, yet in the tomb his body lies within six separate coffins, each of which are created with distinguishable expensive materials; perhaps suitable for his (once) larger than life ego. They are made of iron, mahogany, two of lead, ebony and the outer red porphyry. Also in contradiction to the real-life size of the man, is an accompanying statue of the French leader himself in coronation robes, standing at an extremely tall 2.4 metres. The grandeur of the display is also built to boast and very masculine, as could be expected. The tomb sits on a green-granite base surrounded by 12 pillars of victory. There is a circular band around the coffin complex, on which the names of famous battles in which Napoleon led his army to victory are recalled. In addition to this, there is a laurel wreath band, done in the same way that is reminiscent of Roman Emperors. Though other male members of his immediate family are also buried there, they share the space with other military figures that featured prominently in French history, from 1867 to 1967. In terms of text, of which there is perhaps a similar absence as in the case of the Franschhoek grave, there is no inscription on the actual tomb, though there is one above the door of the room that one walks through o reach it. The inscription reads of his last wish, "Je dsire que mes cendres reposent sur les bords de la Seine, au milieu de ce peuple francais que j'ai tant aim." ("I wish that my ashes rest on the edges of the Seine, in the medium of these French people that I liked so much.") (Source: Emmanuel (Manu) Desanois, webmaster of Historie et Figurines.) In terms of the attitude to death, in the first case it would be that it was a tragic loss that will remembered within the private circle of relatives and friends, whereas in the second it is almost forced upon the world to forever remember the might of Napoleon in setting up a legacy with such a large physical embodiment of a tomb in memoriam as this is. In these two cases, of a private and public memorial, it is evident that the type of burial/memorial is governed by social and economic circumstances. Where the three children, unknown to the world, were buried in the standard manner of being laid to rest among other everyday people, Napoleon, a world-renowned figure, was given an emperors burial.

Left: Detail around base of tomb

References: Anon. Dme des Invalides. A view on cities. [online] Available at: http://www.aviewoncities.com/paris/domedesinvalides.htm [Accessed 28 September 2011]. Desanois, E. What is the Inscription above Napoleon's Tomb? [online] Available at: http://napoleonic-literature.com/Facts.html [Accessed 28 September 2011]. Hughes, V. 2010. Napoleons legacy: ashes, tombs and DNA. *online+ Available at: http://www.lastwordonnothing.com/2010/10/19/napoleons-legacy/ [Accessed 28 September 2011].

http://www.parislogue.com/featured-articles/14-famous-people-buried-in-paris.html (how to reference a tweet?)