Terra Cotta Marker
Location: Area A/Lot 116
Date of Placement: July 1874
Decedent: Arfue Brooks
Monument inducted into the Hall in August 2022 (Class #2)
Location: Area A/Lot 116
Date of Placement: July 1874
Decedent: Arfue Brooks
Monument inducted into the Hall in August 2022 (Class #2)
One of the smallest grave monuments within Mount Olivet is also one of the most thought provoking. In addition, this final resting place of a child, who died in 1874, is among the most eye-catching, as it clearly stands out against a backdrop of 40,000 other gravesites. The memorial in question is not made of marble or granite, and deceives some into thinking that it could be an above ground crypt—crafted in the shape of a small sarcophagus from ancient time.
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Before receiving a thorough cleaning a few years back from cemetery superintendent J. Ronald Pearcey, you wouldn’t have even noticed this memorial to Arfue Brooks. And if, indeed, you did find it, an attempt to read the name carved on the exterior would have been a futile and frustrating chore—but not anymore.
A bas-relief figure of a sleeping child conjures up a melancholy feeling as the onlooker is tipped off to the occupant’s age and innocence. In contrast, a sudden feeling of warmth (in any season) may follow, thanks in part to the brown-orange hue of the monument— a diversion from the vast sea of whites, grays and blacks that can be found throughout the grounds. As far as I know, this is the only terracotta monument of this color and design within the cemetery. Through research we learned that Arfue's memorial was made by a firm in Philadelphia.
A bas-relief figure of a sleeping child conjures up a melancholy feeling as the onlooker is tipped off to the occupant’s age and innocence. In contrast, a sudden feeling of warmth (in any season) may follow, thanks in part to the brown-orange hue of the monument— a diversion from the vast sea of whites, grays and blacks that can be found throughout the grounds. As far as I know, this is the only terracotta monument of this color and design within the cemetery. Through research we learned that Arfue's memorial was made by a firm in Philadelphia.