Shanice Aga is a Khoja-American designer, and visual artist.
A trained architect and material culturalist,
+ Report
Fort Chiswell, Virginia
Telltale Tombstones: German Folk Influence on 19th-C. Virginian Stonecutting, 2019
Looking uphill across a field of crooked, sunken tombstones, weathered reliefs of carved flowers, colonettes, pinwheels, and other ancient forms emerge from the landscape. These symbols not only mark the lives and deaths of those buried, but also reflect the enduring German traditions that shaped the folk art and culture of Wythe County.
This report will focus on the work of one such stonecutter, Laurence Krone, who carved tombstones in the McGavock Family Cemetery between 1816 and 1830.2 Widely regarded as "the best of the region's Germanic carvers,"3 Krone's gravestones stand apart from their English counterparts of the same period in that they are decorated on both sides, in keeping with German tradition.1 While the inscription typically appears on the inward face with minimal design, the outward side often features intricate decorative elements that reflect Krone's distinctive style.
Krone’s typical design in this cemetery involves using sandstone to craft headstones with “rounded shoulders and a three-quarter disc” at the top.3 The inward face usually features a reeded border, a simple design at the center of the disc (often a rosette), and an inscription that reads: “In memory of (name), departed this life (month, day, year), aged (years, months, days),” with occasional variations such as “wife of” or “daughter of.” Sometimes, simple designs appear at the base of the stone or as spacers between the inscribed letters.
The most common outward facing design on these headstones includes a rosette at the center of the disc, flanked by either another rosette or a tulip at each shoulder. These elements are connected by stems that form a heart-shaped frame beneath the central rosette, containing two more rosettes. It is incredibly precise, centered and symmetrical. A less common variation includes colonettes on each side that meet pinwheels at the shoulders, with a flower in the center of the disc. The back may feature either no additional design or another symmetrical floral motif, with stems forming a circular frame around more flowers or organic forms.
Krone also carved footstones, which are simplified miniatures of the headstones. These share the same curvy shoulders and disc form, with a reeded band, but lack the intricate decoration seen on the larger stones. Instead, only the initials of the deceased are inscribed on the inward face, while the outward face typically features a single circular motif, such as a pinwheel or rosette. This stripped-down design emphasizes utility and subtlety, offering a stark contrast to the more elaborate decorations on the headstones.
LUCINDA KENT (LK)
To explore Krone's work in greater depth, I will focus on a headstone marking the grave of Lucinda Kent (LK), which stood out due to its size, pristine condition, and a slight variation from the typical design Krone used in this cemetery. Following folklorist Henry Glassie’s approach to understanding "the logic behind [Krone’s] action," I will examine the "form, decoration, and technology" of Krone’s craftsmanship on this particular stone.4
The cemetery, located uphill from the McGavock family mansion, is rectangular in shape—longer than it is wide—and enclosed by a black, gated metal fence, one of whose bars is shaped into a cross. The tombstones are scattered throughout the site, generally arranged in orderly rows, with Krone’s stones standing out due to their uniformity in shape and size. These are interspersed with larger obelisks and stones not cut by Krone.
This initial observation of the cemetery hints at how its design influences the way people approach and move through the space. The elevated position of the cemetery, along with the enclosing fence, establishes a clear hierarchy. It serves as a private resting place for the McGavock family, a physical boundary between the living and the dead. The fence, in particular, functions as a transitionary threshold: within the gates, family members can mourn their loved ones, while beyond the gate, downhill, the everyday life of the living family continues.
The form of Lucinda Kent’s headstone, like all of Krone’s stones, follows a rectangular base with rounded shoulders. This shape resembles the headboard of a bed or an archway, evoking symbolism of rest, peace, and the transition into death—or even as a portal to the afterlife. This interpretation aligns with the broader layout of the cemetery, reinforcing the idea that the arrangement of the space reflects a careful organization of life and death, mirroring the societal order that defines the McGavock family’s worldview. As we shift focus to the decoration of LK’s headstone, it becomes clear that Krone's stylistic choices were not just about form, but about embedding deeper meanings into his work.
DECORATION
The role of decoration in Krone’s craftsmanship can be understood through Glassie’s definition, which describes decoration as an element that “exhibits a hierarchy of values” between tradition, fashion trends, the tastes of the maker, and the cultural expectations of the local community.4 To explore these traits, I will focus primarily on the more intricately detailed outward face of the headstone, while also addressing the symbol within the disc on the inward side. Krone’s headstones feature three significant symbols derived from German tradition but adapted to local tastes and his own distinctive carving style: the sun, flowers, and the tree of life.
On the outward face, the pinwheels carved into the shoulders symbolize the sun. While the sun is represented in various ways by regional stonecutters, Krone consistently uses the pinwheel design. This motif can be traced back to its Germanic origins as the “fylfot cross,” essentially a “four-lobed” pinwheel. Krone’s version retains the rounded lobes of the fylfot but is thinner and divided into many more sections, creating a more intricate pattern. The sun symbolizes the source of light and life, the cyclical nature of existence, and is also associated with “luck and good fortune.”5
Krone also incorporates several floral elements into this headstone, including a lily and four “daisy-like flowers,” with two at the center inscribed with smaller roses.5 In place of additional flowers, Krone carves a cluster of wheat in the center of a circle beneath the flowers. This choice is particularly significant to this cemetery and locality, as many of the family members were farmers who grew wheat as their livelihood. Flowers, common in Southwestern German folk art, are often used to symbolize the continuity of life and the eternal soul, with their roots representing the enduring legacy of future generations.5 Krone’s stylized flower designs, however, put a more contemporary spin on these traditional motifs, blending old and new influences.
On the inward face of the headstone, Krone carves a unique variation of the tree of life. Unlike his typical representations, where the tree’s branches grow from flowers, here the tree is composed entirely of wheat. The symbolism of the tree of life is deeply rooted in its form: the “drooping lower” elements represent death and decay, while the “triple-branched top” signifies that life continues beyond death.5 Whether made of flowers, stems, or wheat, the tree of life motif maintains its universal meaning—life’s persistence despite the inevitable decay of the physical world.5
TO CLOSE
K rone demonstrates his skill as a folk artist in his stone carvings for the McGavock family, blending tradition with innovation. As a craftsman, he was not only focused on refining his personal style and technique, but also on preserving and adapting a well-established German tradition to meet the needs of the local community. His work reflects the balance he struck between personal expression and the cultural expectations of his time.
Krone’s headstones serve as an important historical record of the German influence in Wythe County, offering insight into the values, social structures, and worldviews of the community. Through their study, we can better understand how these people viewed life, death, and their hopes for future generations, shedding light on the local cultural identity during this period.
By comparing Krone’s work to that of other German stonecutters of the era, as well as to non-German stones from the same time, we can trace how German motifs evolved, adapted, and eventually gave way to larger American cultural trends as assimilation took hold in the later years.
Above: Topographic map showing the location of the cemetery.3
Below: Water COlor analytique by Shanice Aga
Below: Water COlor analytique by Shanice Aga
2 The True Image: Gravestone Art and the Culture of Scotch Irish Settlers in the Pennsylvania and Carolina Backcountry, Daniel W. Patterson, 2012.
3 Archival Document: National Register of Historic Places, Nomination Form, 1979.
4 From a no longer reachable article previously found at: http://www.arch.mcgill.ca/prof/mellin/articles/folkloristic.pdf
5 Folk Art in Stone-Southwest Virginia, Klaus Wust, 1982.