Daily AncestorGrapes
Grapes on a gravestone stand for Holy Communion and Christ's blood, or for a person of mature years, ripe for God's harvest.
Colonial carvers used a vine with grapes for the sacraments, and later stones keep the link to Christ's blood and the Last Supper, especially when grapes appear with wheat.
A study of Victorian stones adds a second reading: grape clusters usually mark a person of mature years, ready for harvest. Several clusters together are common. Grape leaves without fruit have no settled meaning.
As seen in a recordChurch or town cemetery, 1800 to 1910
Two grape clusters with leaves above the inscription: Elder Thomas B. Rawlings, 1799 to 1881
Sources
- Messages in Stone: Symbolism on Victorian Grave Markers, by Loren N. Horton (The Palimpsest, State Historical Society of Iowa, 1989)
- The Silent Language of Stone: Cemetery Iconography (Bellefontaine Cemetery and Arboretum)
- Early American Gravestones: Introduction to the Farber Gravestone Collection, by Jessie Lie Farber (American Antiquarian Society)
How to cite this page
Daily Ancestor. "Grapes." Dictionary of Old Record Words. https://dailyancestor.com/dictionary/gravestone-symbols/grapes. Last checked 2026-10-15.