Julia

Julia, originally uploaded by jiwasz.

Location: Laurel Hill Cemetery in Philadelphia.

Its graves date back to the early 1800s. It is the second rural cemetery (i.e. not a church cemetery) in the country and is situated overlooking the Schuylkill river. Back then, it was so far away from the city center that many funeral processions would arrive by boat.

This is just one of the many ornate gravestones spotted throught the grounds. Stephen Kingston was one of the founders of the 19th Army Regiment of volunteers founded in Philadelphia in the 1840s. Back then, women did not get their own gravestones and were often buried in the same lot as their husband. This one is unique in that regard.

I like that the stones on the side are dark bringing focus to Julia Kingston's headstone. A little desaturation and unsharpen mask made this one more appealing than the original shot. Graveyard photos are fairly common and so I plan on keeping my cemetery submissions to a minimum.

Photo by John Iwasz, Philadelphia, USA.