January 19, 2022
For centuries, headstones have been used to commemorate or honour a loved one who has passed away. A headstone is used as a generic term to refer to any stone-made memorial for a grave.
Many people opt for different types of headstones depending on their culture, preferences and the type of memorial they want to use to pay tribute to their loved one. You can add anything on the memorial, from inscriptions of praise and religious emblems to quotations, images, dates and names.
When designing a monument for your loved one, there are several things you have to consider. However, the most common question that comes to mind is what material you should use for the headstone.
Even though the term headstone refers to a stone-made memorial, people have been opting for metallic memorials made of bronze and iron for decades. However, nowadays, stones like granite are usually the first choice for memorials.
Also Read: How To Design A Long-Lasting And Durable Monument
In this blog, we have listed some of the top materials that are used for designing a headstone. These are:
Granite is one of the most beautiful and durable natural stones around and has been a popular choice for making headstones. It is a very strong material that comes in a variety of colours. Some of the most popular colours in granite stone that are commonly used for designing headstones include:
In addition to their appearance, these stones also vary in quality and the place where they are quarried. For example, the Blue Pearl is quarried in Norway and is a coarse grain granite while the Regal Red is a medium grain granite quarried in India.
You can ask the memorial company you have selected to carve designs and lettering on the granite. Due to its durability, the design and letters will stand the test of time for years to come and it is by far the first choice for people looking for a material to use for a memorial headstone.
Bronze has been around and has been used for centuries to make headstones. One of the reasons people choose bronze is that it requires very little maintenance. Bronze headstones are usually placed flat on the ground or attached to a granite or cement foundation.
They come in a variety of designs and options as well. However, after exposure to weather, Bronze memorials turn into a greenish colour (called patina) as this is a natural chemical reaction that happens with bronze as it oxidizes over time.
Marble was widely used for headstones in the early 1900s as it was fairly inexpensive and easy to carve. Artists could easily make very elaborate and intricate designs by carving this stone.
The downside to using marble as a headstone is when it is exposed to the elements of weather over the years, the inscriptions and designs can become unreadable. Marble is a “soft” stone which is why it wears over the years.
Fieldstones were the earliest forms of headstones. In the very early years, they were left unmarked or undecorated as there was no way to add lettering or designs to these stones.
Eventually, people started marking the name with possibly a symbol using a metal tool. Now, a fieldstone is usually used with a bronze or stainless steel plaque attached to it with the information about the deceased. Engraving on fieldstone is very hard to do since the stone is very brittle. Hence it either ends up breaking away or cracking.
Let us help you honour your loved ones in the best way possible. Our specially trained staff tries to make the toughest time of your life a little bit easier by providing high-quality memorial services and products. The headstones that our craftsmen build are the best in the business. The granite headstones we provide in Alberta and Saskatchewan are guaranteed to never wear out or crack due to normal elements and weather conditions.
At Summit Memorials, we provide our customers with premium quality and well-crafted monuments, headstones, tombstones, and grave markers. For more information about our services, visit our website or contact us here today.
