Grove Street Cemetery Gateway, New Haven, Connecticut, 1845
The Egyptian Revival cemetery gateways became stylish after Jacob Bigelow’s design constructed in 1832 for America’s first rural cemetery, Mount Auburn. For example, new Egyptian Revival gates were added to the existing Old Granary Burying Ground in Boston (cemetery founded in 1660s and gate added in 1840) and the Grove Street Burial Ground (cemetery founded in 1797 and gate added in 1845) in New Haven, Connecticut.
The winged sun at the top is an ancient pagan symbol from Egypt and the Middle East associated with the power of royalty and the gods. Even though this gateway was inspired by pagan Egyptian symbols and architecture, “The Dead Shall Be Raised,” a reference to Christian Bible verse was inscribed on the lintel from 1 Corinthians 15.52: “For the trumpet will sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we will be changed.”
For more about cemeteries see Discovering Quacks, Utopias, and Cemeteries: Modern Lessons from Historical Themes