Daily AncestorDove
A dove on a gravestone stands for peace, purity and the Holy Spirit; a dove carrying a broken rosebud marks a child's death.
Doves are found in abundance in Victorian cemeteries. A dove can stand for the Holy Spirit, purity or the soul, and as a winged messenger of God. With an olive branch or a ribbon reading Rest in Peace it wishes peace to the soul.
A dove flying upward with a broken rosebud in its beak marks a child's death. Catholics usually read the dove as the Holy Spirit; in Jewish cemeteries it is read as peace.
As seen in a recordMidwest town cemetery, 1850 to 1920
Dove flying upward with a rosebud in its beak: Infant dau. of P. and M. Hollister, 1879
Sources
How to cite this page
Daily Ancestor. "Dove." Dictionary of Old Record Words. https://dailyancestor.com/dictionary/gravestone-symbols/dove. Last checked 2026-10-15.