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Lying down or reclining, used here to refer to a feature which is lying flat, or almost flat, on the ground.
Left, a memorial to J Bassett is inscribed on a recumbent tablet on the surface of the family grave at Ashover.
A carving that protrudes from a flat background. Varations include bas-relief or low relief, which only protrudes slightly, or high relief, which is more prominent.
Left, the memorial to A Shaw in Long Eaton Cemetery has a trefoil panel at the head containing foliage in low relief.
A painted or sculptured screen behind and above an altar. (Pronouned rear-doss.)
Left, the altar and reredos at All Saints' Church, Bakewell.
Made or marked so as to resemble a net or network.
Left, reticulated tracery at St Michael and All Angels' Church, Hathersage.
A roll of honour is a list of names, generally of personnel who enlisted for service in the armed forces. They are often written or printed on paper which may be framed and glazed and hung on a wall. However, some such lists which are inscribed on a board, plaque or tablet may be described as a roll of honour. We define a roll of honour as a list of names on a sheet of paper or similar material.
Left, a roll of honour at Ashford in the Water.
A general term for a style of lettering based on historical use and comprising squarish characters with lines of different thickness and with serifs. In ancient Roman texts the characters were generally upper case but lower case versions are now also employed too.
Left, two examples of roman lettering.
A circular disc used as a symbol.
Left, the memorial plaque to D Jenkins at St John the Evangelist's Church, Derby has roundels containing a cross at each corner.
The practice of colouring certain letters or sections of text in red. The practice is derived from the style of mediæval munuscrpts where red ink was used to highlight certain important sections of texts, known as rubrics.
Left, rubrication on the memorial at All Saints' Church, Ockbrook.
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Sandstone is a sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand grains compressed into a hard layer by the enormous weight of other layers above it. Sandstone may be any colour, but the most common colours are brown, yellow, red, grey, pink, and white. Sandstone is often cut into blocks and used for the construction of buildings and monuments, or into slabs to form memorial tablets. Some sandstones are very hard and durable but some are soft and weather easily. Coarse grained sandstones (sometimes considered to be greater than 2mm) are known as gritstones.
Left, the memorial at Milford is of finely dressed sandstone
A style often used in calligraphy and based on rounded, flowing handwriting, generally sloping and often incorporating large decorative loops and swirls. Script lettering is most likely to be found on rolls of honour or in books of remembrance, but can sometimes be found incised into stone memorials.
Left, two examples of script lettering.
Originally a scroll was a large sheet or strip of parchment with handwriting on it and which, for storage purposes, was rolled up. Sometimes the term is now used for rolled ceremonial certificates. Scrolls are frequently encountered depicted on memorials in two particular styles. One style is a carved representation of a broad scroll unfurled vertically over the surface of a wall. The second style is of a long narrow scroll unfurled horizontally, especially across a stained glass window or across a roll of honour. In all cases the scroll generally bears the commemorative inscription.
Left, this memorial to W H Wright in Heanor Cemetery is in the style of an unfurled scroll.
Sculpture is an artistic representation of a subject in three dimensions. Sculptural techniques traditionally use carving where material is removed to reveal the subject, and moulding where material such as clay is built up to form the subject. Typical carved sculptures are made of stone or wood but metal sculptures may be cast from a prepared mould. Some modern sculptures are made by welding or other display techniques. Stone and metal sculptures survive well outdoors but wooden sculptures may be encountered indoors.
Left, the cast bronze sculpture of a mother and child that forms the dominant component of Derby's war memorial.
A curved arch that is part of a circle, but less than a semicircle.
Left, the memorial tablet to Gnr H Ablett at Clay Cross has a segmental arch top.
Slate is a fine-grained rock derived from clay or volcanic ash that has been compressed and hardened by extreme pressure or heat. When expertly split many slates will form smooth flat sheets of stone that have long been used in construction and for memorial tablets or backboards. Slate is grey to black in colour and is very durable and will retain delicate carving or inscriptions for many years.
The roughly triangular area of wall between two arches or between an arch and a rectangular enclosure.
Left,
A sculpture, usually full length and close to life size or larger, of one or more people or animals including allegorical subjects such as Victory.
Left, the statue of Florence Nightingale on London Road, Derby.
A pattern of small dots sometimes used to simulate depth or solidity in the background of a piece of artwork.
A relatively small piece of rock used for construction purposes. In the context of memorials stone is often cut into slabs to create tablets or into blocks to construct monuments. Typical stone used in this way might be alabaster, granite, gritstone, limestone, marble, sandstone or slate but many specialist types may be encountered.
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A stone panel bearing an inscription, decoration or both.
Left, this tablet at Derwent Dam is a memorial to 617 Sqn and bears their badge in addition to the inscription.
An abbreviation for Territorial Decoration, a medal awarded for long service in the UK Territorial Army or Territorial Force.
Intersecting ribwork in the upper part of windows. There are many forms associated with different styles of architecture.
Left, tracery at the head of the memorial window to Lt Gen Sir W R Marshall GCMG KCB KCSI at Normanton-by-Derby.
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A style of lettering developed in the fourth century and originally written entirely in capital letters of a rounded shape using a broad nib.
Left, an extract from the memorial plaque at the Moravian Lecture Hall at Ockbrook.
The national flag of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. There is considerable debate on whether the correct name should be Union Jack, some people claiming that it is only a jack when flown from the jack staff at the bow of a ship. We use the term flag. There are many protocols defining how and when the flag should be flown.
Left, a depiction of the Union Flag.
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The hinged side wing of a triptych. Volets typically have a decoration on the inner surface which runs contiguously with that on the centre panel to produce an overall image, text or decoration, but when the volets are closed the image is hidden and the external faces of the volets may form some other design, or may be blank.
Left, This triptych at St Laurence's Church, Long Eaton commemorates Christopher Osborn. It has a crucifixion scene on the central panel and a small shield on each of the volets. When the volets are closed the backs are blank.
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A traditional custom originating in the Derbyshire and Staffordshire peak district in which wells, springs or other water sources are decorated with designs created from flower petals pressed into clay in wooden frames. Designs originally featured biblical scenes or texts especially those relating to thanksgiving for pure water supplies, but much wider themes are now often selected, including the anniversaries of military actions, units or personnel. In recent years the custom has spread to other areas in the UK.
Left, The 2014 well dressing at Stoney Middleton commemorated the centenary of WW1.
A decorative ring usually constructed from flowers or leaves, many of which have acquired symbolic meanings. Wreaths of red poppies often placed on war memorials signify armistice, while wreaths of white poppies signify peace. Depictions of wreaths often appear on memorials themselves where oak leaves imply strength and laurel wreaths imply victory. A bound laurel wreath has crossed ribbons around it and indicates that laurels won or battles won
Left, a carved depiction of a bound laurel wreath on the war memorial at Ashbourne.
A tough malleable form of iron alloy originally wrought, or worked, by hand. Wrought iron was used extensively in engineering and construction during the industrial revolution but has now been almost completely replaced by mild steel which has similar properties. Products such as gates and railings, traditionally made of wrought iron are now made of mild steel.
Left, the railings around this memorial at Matlock are described as wrought iron but are almost certainly mild steel.
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