Tree Shaped Tombstones - Mayville Wisconsin

I know I've seen several of today's "Tree Shaped Tombstones" on an earlier trip to Mayville Wisconsin.  But I don't appear to have featured them in a dedicated post.  And there are a few oddities that warrant taking a focused look.

Here's a personal favorite, although I may be reading too much into it.  The name HENRY on the little projection at the bottom is unique in my studies of the subject.

And about that that odd little "stump" at the bottom.  Seen from the side...

It makes me wonder if Henry Bosin was a bit of a jokester.  That addition sticking out the front - we'll call it Lil' Henry - is suggestive.  The message on the placard is fairly pedestrian and is based on text from the Book of Hebrews.  Perhaps he'd have played the joke better with a quotation from Matthew 28-6.  "He is Risen...".

On a more somber note, these little tombstones with lamb and tiny tree are always for children.  

Here's a nice family grouping.  Main Tree and subsidiary markers.  The upright stump on the right is one of four such that defines the edges of the family plot.

There were several vintage examples of this "Tree and Book" style.

I was surprised to encounter this one.  It was in a newer part of the cemetery, an area I did not pass through on my previous visit.

A rare modern specimen.  Worth a few close up views.

It appears that Mr. Rhora is still with us, but has his spot reserved.  The inscription on the front of the trunk, 10-10-81 is their wedding date.  I have to assume that Becker, getting space on the back and down low, was a pet rather than a child.  Even in these callous times we'd do more to remember a young life lost.*  

These new version Trees are thought provoking.  I like to see the old forms survive.  They are probably made with modern computerized carving machinery.  The quality of stone looks to make them more durable than their classic predecessors.  But every time I see one I remind myself that I'll be needing something along these lines one day.  And I'm not ready to start shopping.

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* Here is Ms. Rhora's obit.  I think it's Becker in the photo.  He must have been a Good Boy.