The rise and fall of the disc-headed grave marker.

Gravestones have a special place in the history of material culture. From the earliest use of stone to mark a burial site and commemorate the deceased to the present funerary practices, the physical forms of memorials have demonstrated the creativity and inventiveness of those who made them. 

Distinctive amongst these is the round-headed or ‘discoid’ marker. Throughout history the use of this distinctive markers has come and gone. The reason for its occurrence throughout the Western World is enigmatic. This book traces the history of the discoid marker across Europe, North America and beyond and suggests the possible rationale for its form and origin. Although much has been written about gravestones and other funerary markers, discoid gravestones have received little attention other than from specialist academics. 

Ever decreasing circles pulls together the many strands of the topic, both spatial and temporal, aiming to bring these artefacts to the notice of a wider readership and to form the basis for further study.

Author Bio

George Thomson has many years’ experience of research on funerary markers and has written many books and published several hundred academic papers on the subject. He is a visiting Professor at St Francis Xavier University, Nova Scotia, Canada and an Honorary Research Associate at the university of Glasgow, Scotland.