Classical Tombs Project

Our project examines the central role of classical style in the new park cemeteries of the USA, UK and her colonies in the mid-1900s, focusing initially on Kensal Green (London) and Green-Wood (New York). The tombs here turn attention from civic appropriation of classical models to the personal, offering insight into how they were adapted to commemorate loss and reflect cultural and social status, political and religious affiliation. They show us how the classical operated and evolved according to different needs around the world as communities developed their own ideas around and practices of death.