Daily AncestorButterfly
A butterfly on a gravestone stands for the soul and the resurrection; on a child's grave it can also mean a life cut short.
The three stages of a butterfly's life, caterpillar, chrysalis and winged adult, stand for life, death and resurrection. The ancient Greek word psyche meant both butterfly and soul.
Butterflies are fairly rare on old stones and most often appear on children's graves, where the insect's short life adds the idea of a brief life.
As seen in a recordTown cemetery, 1860 to 1930
Butterfly carved above the name: Our Darling Lulu, dau. of S. and E. Pruitt, 1886 to 1890
Sources
How to cite this page
Daily Ancestor. "Butterfly." Dictionary of Old Record Words. https://dailyancestor.com/dictionary/gravestone-symbols/butterfly. Last checked 2026-10-15.