Page 71 - Demo

AdultsThe statues decorating courthouse lawns and city parks are almost exclusively male. But, in cemeteries, the vast majority of the adult statues are idealized young women%u2014and they are often mourners. They weep, they lament, they look skyward with sorrowful expressions. Yet, others have upturned faces filled with radiance, jubilation, and joy. In their rapture, they look toward the glory of the celestial kingdom to come. To have one of these beautiful females eternally guarding the grave of a man must have had great appeal. But these statues were also erected over the resting places of women, having, no doubt, been commissioned by grieving husbands. It%u2019s touching to me that, in an age when women were often undervalued, these men chose to show a special honor to their departed wives. Of the statues depicting men, many are soldiers%u2014in the traditional male role of protector and defender. These uniformed warriors, as well as all the other men, tend to have a stoic, serious appearance, lacking in any emotion, such as sorrow or rejoicing. Green Hill CemeteryLawrence Co. (284-05)St. Joseph%u2019s CemeteryDubois Co. (339-11)