The Stone of Remembrance is a standardised design for war memorials that was designed in 1917 by the British architect Sir

Edwin Lutyens Sir Edwin Landseer Lutyens ( ; 29 March 1869 – 1 January 1944) was an English architect known for imaginatively adapting traditional architectural styles to the requirements of his era. He designed many English country houses, war memorials ...

for the Imperial War Graves Commission (IWGC). It was designed to commemorate the dead of

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, to be used in IWGC war

cemeteries A cemetery, burial ground, gravesite, graveyard, or a green space called a memorial park or memorial garden, is a place where the remains of many dead people are buried or otherwise entombed. The word ''cemetery'' (from Greek ) implies th ...

containing 1,000 or more graves, or at memorial sites commemorating more than 1,000 war dead. Hundreds were erected following

, and it has since been used in cemeteries containing the Commonwealth dead of

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

as well. It is intended to commemorate those "of all faiths and none", and has been described as one of Lutyens' "most important and powerful works", with a "brooding, sentinel-like presence wherever used".

Design

The initial thoughts for the design were sent by Lutyens in letters and memoranda in May and August 1917 to Fabian Ware, the founder and head of the Imperial War Graves Commission, before and after the period in which Lutyens and other architects visited the wartime cemeteries in

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

in July 1917 at the request of Ware, to give their initial thoughts on what should be done to commemorate the dead: Part of the design is the three-stepped platform on which each stone rests. Architectural historian

Gavin Stamp Gavin Mark Stamp (15 March 194830 December 2017) was a British writer, television presenter and architectural historian. Education Stamp was educated at Dulwich College in South London from 1959 to 1967 as part of the "Dulwich Experiment", then ...

, in ''Silent Cities'' (1977), quotes further from Lutyen's 1917 correspondence with Ware, where Lutyens describes the proposed stone as: In a later work in 2006, Stamp identifies a similarly abstract and geometrical concept that was part of Lutyens' creative process, citing a letter that Lutyens wrote to his wife while on the July 1917 visit to France, describing how a 'solid ball of bronze' could be used to make a permanent monument.''The Memorial to the Missing of the Somme'', Gavin Stamp, 2006 By the time of Ware's 1937 report, published as ''The Immortal Heritage'' the same year, some 560 Stones of Remembrance had been erected for World War I cemeteries and memorials in France and Belgium alone.

Symbolism

The Stone of Remembrance is one of the standard architectural features of Commonwealth War Graves Commission cemeteries and memorials, the other being the

Cross of Sacrifice The Cross of Sacrifice is a Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth war memorial designed in 1918 by Sir Reginald Blomfield for the Imperial War Graves Commission (now the Commonwealth War Graves Commission). It is present in Commonwealth War grave ...

by sir Reginald Blomfield. In contrast, the design for the Stone deliberately avoided "shapes associated with particular religions". The shape of the Stone has been compared both to that of a

sarcophagus A sarcophagus (: sarcophagi or sarcophaguses) is a coffin, most commonly carved in stone, and usually displayed above ground, though it may also be buried. The word ''sarcophagus'' comes from the Greek language, Greek wikt:σάρξ, σάρξ ...

Stone of Remembrance
Australian Government Department of Veterans' Affairs, accessed 01/03/2010. and an

altar An altar is a table or platform for the presentation of religion, religious offerings, for sacrifices, or for other ritualistic purposes. Altars are found at shrines, temples, Church (building), churches, and other places of worship. They are use ...

, but was always intended to be abstract and appeal to all denominations. There was, however, controversy over the symbolism, both during the design and approval process and subsequently. Lutyens and those supporting the concept of secular architecture and equality of remembrance (including Ware) had to contend with those (including other architects advising the Commission and Anglican bishops) who wanted the overt Christian symbolism of a cross, or who objected to the pagan overtones of the proposed Stone. Lutyens corresponded with a wide variety of people to gain support for his idea. Eventually (by January 1918), the decision to use both Cross and Stone was taken, and the two designs were adopted in different ways. Blomfield's Cross was built in different sizes according to the size of the cemetery, with Lutyens' Stone staying the same size but not being used in the smaller cemeteries (of less than 1,000 burials) where it was thought it would overwhelm the setting.

Geometry

The geometry of the stone structure was "based on studies of the

Parthenon The Parthenon (; ; ) is a former Ancient Greek temple, temple on the Acropolis of Athens, Athenian Acropolis, Greece, that was dedicated to the Greek gods, goddess Athena. Its decorative sculptures are considered some of the high points of c ...

".Architecture
Commonwealth War Graves Commission, accessed 01/03/2010 According to the Australian Government Department of Veterans' Affairs each stone is 3.5 metres long and 1.5 metres high. It was designed using the principle of entasis.Remembering the Great War with Lutyens
Tim Skelton, British Archaeology, Issue 109, Nov / Dec 2009 This involved incorporating subtle curves into the design, so that the stone does not have straight sides, but has circular lines that if extended would form a sphere 1,801 feet and 8 inches (549.15 metres) in diameter. The effect of the stone monument has been attributed to its geometry: "...its curious power and symbolic strength derive from its careful proportions and the application of a subtle entasis to all its surfaces."

Inscription

The phrase inscribed on the stone, one of several suggested during the design phase, was proposed by the British author, poet and Nobel laureate

Rudyard Kipling Joseph Rudyard Kipling ( ; 30 December 1865 – 18 January 1936)''The Times'', (London) 18 January 1936, p. 12. was an English journalist, novelist, poet, and short-story writer. He was born in British Raj, British India, which inspired much ...

, whose only son had died in the war. Kipling's role was to advise the IWGC (now CWGC) on inscriptions and other literary matters, and the phrase used on the Stones of Remembrance is a quote from the Wisdom of Sirach.
Ecclesiasticus 44:14

Gallery

File:Bretteville-sur-Laize Cemetery.jpg, Bretteville-sur-Laize Cemetery File:Thiepval mémorial (pierre du souvenir) 1.jpg, Thiepval Memorial File:Ortona 2006 -Moro River Canadian War Cemetery- by-Raboe 03.jpg, Ortona Cemetery File:Britfriedhof04.jpg, Berlin War Cemetery File:Niederzwehren Cemetery-Altar.jpg, Niederzwehren Cemetery File:Stone of Remembrance at Sai Wan War Cemetery in 2022.jpg, Sai Wan War Cemetery, Hong Kong File:CWGC - Stone of Remembrance.jpg, Buttes New British Cemetery, Belgium File:Rookwood Garden of Remembrance 3.JPG, Rookwood Garden of Remembrance File:Kemmel - Kemmel Chateau Military Cemetery 3.jpg, Kemmel Chateau Military Cemetery File:Gedenksteen - Holten Canadian War Cemetery.JPG, Holten Canadian War Cemetery

Notes

References

External links

{{commons category, Stones of Remembrance
The Secret of the Cenotaph
Andrew Crompton, AA Files 34, 1999, pp. 64–67
Lutyens and Le Corbusier: from heritage to history
Jane Ridley, 3 October 2001 1918 introductions 20th-century inscriptions Commonwealth War Graves Commission World War I memorials World War II memorials War memorials by Edwin Lutyens