Fugit Hora: Rubbings from Puritan Gravestones (Window Box)

These rubbings were done in the 1970s by Dr. Nancy Chesworth (MSVU Tourism & Hospitality Management), in Massachusetts graveyards. Spanning the period 1678 through 1758, the gravestones represented in the exhibition are exceptions to the Puritans’ strict rule forbidding graven images. The self-taught stone carvers who were active in rural New England did not try to mirror theological dogma. Their project, which answered a need on the part of bereaved families, was to express in visual symbols the joys of life to come and the beauties of an invisible world. Nova Scotians may recognize similarities to folk art.