Monument parts and forms
- Base
- The lower stone component that supports the main monument and provides a stable footprint.
- Bevel marker
- A low rectangular marker with a slightly sloped top face.
- Columbarium
- A memorial structure containing niches designed to hold cremation urns.
- Die or tablet
- The principal upright body of a monument, usually set on a granite base.
- Grass marker
- A low memorial installed flush with or close to the surrounding grade.
- Ledger
- A memorial slab positioned horizontally over most or all of a grave space.
- Slant
- A monument with an inclined inscription face, commonly installed with or without a separate base.
- Upright monument
- A vertical die or tablet mounted on a base above ground level.
Fabrication and surface terms
- Chamfer
- A narrow angled cut that removes a sharp square edge.
- Etching
- Artwork or portrait detail applied to a polished granite surface by laser or hand techniques.
- Frosted panel
- A matte, lightly blasted area used to contrast with polished granite and improve lettering visibility.
- Joint
- A prepared surface where one monument component meets another.
- Margin
- A contrasting finished band around the edge of a panel or stone surface.
- Polished
- A smooth, reflective granite surface produced through progressively finer abrasives and buffing.
- Rock pitch
- A deliberately rough edge or face shaped by controlled hand pitching.
- Sandblast carving
- Lettering or ornament cut into stone by directing abrasive through a prepared stencil.
- Steeled or dusted
- A smooth matte surface created by blasting rather than polishing.
Lettering, artwork and setting
- Epitaph
- A memorial phrase or inscription honoring the person being remembered.
- Lithichrome
- A color treatment used to increase contrast in lettering, panels or carved details.
- Raised lettering
- Letters left above a recessed surrounding field during carving.
- Stencil
- A resistant pattern adhered to stone to control where abrasive removes material.
- V-sunk lettering
- Letters cut with angled sides that meet in a V-shaped recess.
- Setting compound
- Material placed between monument joints to help seal and cushion assembled stone components.
- Wash
- A sloped exposed base surface designed to direct water away from the monument.
