Well, it looks like there are alot of opinions on this tombstone protection thing. So I thought I had better pass these ideas along to you. So here goes. Jane ****************** That's a really neat idea! I'd like to add another idea that my son came up with that work also. My gggrandparents tombstones were broken into several pieces by cattle be allowed to roam in the cemetary. He took them to his workshop and laid the stones flat down on their faces, (pieced back together) and put a bolt in the back of each piece. He then built a form around the headstone twice the depth of the stone and poured concrete to fill the form and to cover the metal bolts. This way the stones were stood back up in their original places, and will last as long as the concrete does. This one works for me. There may be others out there that also work. Margaret ************** I hope they are not using the clear acrylic coating. I did some rocks with it to bring out the color and set them outside. After a few years of just going through all the weather the coating yellowed and is still peeling in bitty pieces. Frances ************** Oops on the clear coating. All stone has moisture in it. especially marblesand sealing it will cause it to freeze and slough off in layers so that the front will just fall off. I have worked in Tombstone work for along time. It's horrible what it does. It will speed up the damage if it can't breathe or expand, somewhat like a concrete sidewalk, it needs expanders and the coating seals it in. It might work in the dry desert but I doubt if its needed there. Tombstones are so easy to damage that even someone repeatedly resting their hand on a corner will make it go yellow. There was one in my family that always got 'patted' right in the middle, now some 30 years later it is yellow right there. Another thing people do is try to scrub out the lichen growing on a granite or marble. the cleaners make it look good for a few years then it will cause it to crumble and turn a yellow color.lichen grows deep inside before you see it enough on the outside of the stone to bother you. Just buff it off with a soft flannel cloth. It has already made thin cracks inside the stone itself..These rootspaces are full of plant material and water , little compost bins sort of. There is a tombstone near me that I am still trying to figure out. I have sifted through the soil and found the letters in one and two's and trying to spell it out. it was a native stone that exfoliated its layers offdue to freezing and thawing. They came off neat as puzzle pieces I just don't have all the letters yet. I have seen all kinds of frames put on the old ones, some work well, but really need afiberglass infiltrated epoxy so it won't expand and contract like cement. though some of the new cement to fiber mixes seem not to do so much of it. If you have to resection one, use nylon sticks that are put through a pipe threader, they are used as pegs to epoxy the parts back together. You can also get a plastic epoxy grid made to hold sections of a broken tombstone. It can be shaped by any company who makes the outdoor type of resin decorations and tables etc. They never expand and contract or react to the chemicals in stone. I have seen horror stones! Some in Weatherford Texas where 'saved' by laying them flat into concrete! They were marble and the letters are being frozen and cracked and weatherd right out of them. They needed to be 'rested' and epoxyed against a wedge shaped cement or stone so the water would drain from it. Epoxy being a lot more forgiving and the least chemical reaction. Cement is limey and will eat marble and disolve it eventually. Another commonly seen disaster is the mending with metal screws and plates, they always rust and iron gets inside the stone If you need a cleaner get Orbus,from a farm store. It is the only approved one used by museums and societies, as it leaves the least chemicals. Marble is the biggest challenge, it acts like a sponge and is sovery soft. Check with your State Historical Commission , most of them have a website devoted to the subject or will send a pamplet. Much of their research comes from people who restore buildings and statues as that is where the money is. Your local restorer can give you the names of any epoxy you want to try or where to get the nylon rods or plates needed. I got a call from someone recently who observed a man who was painting the inside of each letter of the Confederate Soldiers stones in a cemetery with gold metalic paint. I thought I had seen everything! The commission still has no idea of how to remove it as it has metal in it and it is aborbed already by the marble. They may never be cleaned from that. I collect interesting tombstones and recently saw some of tombstones that has fake jewels epoxied onto the cement, very unique! Susan in Texas ***************** I forgot to add the epoxy shielding the top of the stones acts like glass in the heat, the mosisture comes up from the ground, though pourous marble and cement and can't get out through the top , the sun heats the stuff into steam and cracks it up. Put a piece of glass on a sidewalk even when it is dry and in the mornings it will be wet from condensation underneath most days. The chemicals also will collect in the steam and make the epoxy go foggy after a while or rusty looking if the ground around it has iron in it. Susan ****************** To all: I know you mean well but this is not an accepted method of preservation of gravestones and will cause the stones to deteriorate. The stone needs to "breathe". The stone absorbs moisture from the ground and it has no way to evaporate if the stone is sealed. This leads to the stone crumbling. The chemicals in the sealer could also interact with the materials in the stone. Please read the following Do's and Don'ts of cemetery repair at: http://members.aol.com/ctgravenet/dosdonts.htm#TOP Susan **************** Dear Jane, Several people have sent me copies of the "new idea" you are sharing on the Internet. Please consider contacting those you have dispersed this message to and letting them know that it is an extremely damaging and irreversible technique and should never be done to any stone. While the stones that you saw may have "looked" fine, it is the result over time that counts. Similar techniques have been tried in the past with the same results; the technique will greatly hasten the deterioration of the stone, and it and the acrylic top coat will form a thick film of mildew and/or algae. Please understand that marble is a highly porous stone. Lying flat on the ground, it will be wicking up moisture from the soil. With the acrylic top coat preventing the normal respiration, coupled with the extreme heat that will be generated on sunny days, much like a greenhouse, the imprisoned gravestone will "cook" in a moisture-laden environment. Furthermore, the stone will become highly impregnated with water, leaving it at much greater risk for internal disintegration during freeze/thaw cycles over the winter. Additionally, as I said in reply to one of the Rootsweb lists in which your note appeared, anyone caught doing this type of gravestone desecration is liable, depending on the laws of that state, for civil and/or criminal prosecution. I realize that your intentions in sharing this information were honorable and applaud your willingness to pass on what you thought was a good idea. In the future, please contact the experts at the Association for Gravestone Studies (info@gravestonestudies.org) before acting on your impulse to help. I have often told my readers that more damage is done in cemeteries by well-meaning preservationists using improper techniques (household bleach, wire brushes, power washers, flat concrete encasements, etc.) than by vandals. The best tool to preserve our cemeteries is proper education. The source is out there and free to anyone. Again, thank you for caring, Jeanne Robinson, Executive Director Oregon Historic Cemeteries Association, Inc. PO Box 802 Boring, OR 97009] (503) 658-4255 - Fax (503) 658-3111 ohca@oregoncemeteries.org www.oregoncemeteries.org Preserving the Past for the Future