We must all have had the frustration of finding a probable ancestral grave and being unable to decipher the inscription on the tombstone, due to erosion of the stone, overgrowth with lichen or whatever. Does anyone have a non-destructive solution to enhancing the readability of inscriptions? I feel that chemical or abrasive cleaning does irreversible damage, particularly to softer stones. Perhaps there are photographic lighting tricks that could help. Any ideas? Eddie

Hi here are two very good websites for gravestone information. The second one contains the information you need. http://www.savinggraves.com/ Seems to me saving graves and genealogy go hand in hand. From the website: "Saving Graves, the world's leading website dedicated to the protection, restoration, and preservation of endangered cemeteries worldwide, is a completely free-access online resource that provides to its visitors a wide assortment of preservation information and records. It's primary goal is to promote and emphasize the use of the Internet as a means to provide protection of human burial sites from unauthorized and unwarranted disturbance, by man or nature." Here's a website for The Association of Gravestone Studies http://www.gravestonestudies.org/ From the website: "...answers to basic questions about gravemarkers, such as, "Gravestone Rubbing Do's and Don'ts", "Tools and Materials for Gravestone Cleaning Projects", and "Symbolism on Gravemarkers". Our members have many areas of study or specialization and we strive to assist the new member in finding the information they seek in an efficient manner." Best, dianne ----- Original Message ----- From: "Eddie Parsons" <eddiep@onetel.net.uk> To: <IrelandGenWeb-L@rootsweb.com> Sent: Monday, October 07, 2002 11:16 AM Subject: [IGW] Deciphering inscriptions on tombstones >. Does anyone have a > non-destructive solution to enhancing the readability of inscriptions?> > > ==== IrelandGenWeb Mailing List ==== > To contact the list administrator, please send an email to admin-irelandgenweb@rootsweb.com > >