Famous Epitaphs (Inscriptions on Headstones)

A

A tomb now suffices for him, for whom the world was not enough.
Alexander the Great, Greek military commander (356BC - 323BC)

B

No Man Is Indispensible But Some Are Irreplaceable
Wallace Beery, American actor (1885 - 1949)

When I am dead, I hope it may be said: His sins were scarlet, but his books were read.
Hilaire Belloc, writer (1870 - 1953)
From his collection of poems, 'Sonnets and Verse.'

That's all folks.
Mel Blanc, American voice actor and voice for Bugs Bunny (1908 - 1989)

If I should die, think only this of me: That there is a corner of a foreign field That is forever England
Rupert Brooks, war poet (1887 - 1915)
From his poem 'The Soldier.'

C

My Jesus Mercy
Al Capone, American gangster (1899 - 1947)

Here lies a man who knew how to enlist the service of better men than himself.
Andrew Carnegie, Scottish American businessman and philanthropist (1835 - 1919)

Steel true, blade straight The great Artificer Made my mate.
Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, writer (1859 - 1930)
From the poem 'My wife' by R.L. Stephenson.

D

She did it the hard way
Bette Davis, American actress (1908 - 1989)

A Gentle Man and a Gentleman
Jack Demsey, American boxer (1895 - 1983)

John Donne Undone
John Donne, poet and preacher (1572 - 1631)

Here lies my wife, here let her lie ! Now she's at rest, and so am I
John Dryden, poet and playwright (1631 - 1700)

E

Hic est Edwardus Primus Scottorum Malleus
Edward I, King of England (1239 -1307)
Translation: Here is Edward I, Hammer of the Scots.

F

Good Night Sweet Prince And flights of angels sing thee to thy Rest
Douglas Fairbanks Sr, American actor (1883 - 1939)

G

Life's a jest, and all things show it; I thought so once, and now I know it
John Gay, poet and dramatist (1685 - 1732)

H

I

J

Vocatos atque non vocatus Deus aderit
Carl Jung, Swiss psychiatrist (1875 - 1961)
Translation from the Latin: Invoked or not invoked, God will be present.

K

This Grave Contains all that was mortal Of a young English poet Who on his Death-bed In the bitterness of his heart At the malicious power of his enemies Desired these words to be engraven on his tomb stone Here lies one whose name was writ in water
John Keats, poet (1795 - 1821)

L

Stan Laurel A Master of Comedy His Genius in the Art Humour Brought Gladness To the World he Loved
Stan Laurel, American comedian (1890 - 1965)

Now boast thee, death, in thy possession lies A lass unparellel'd
Vivian Leigh, actress (1913 - 1967)
From the play 'Antony and Cleopatra' by William Shakespeare.

In
Jack Lemmon, American actor (1925 - 2001)

The stone the builders rejected
Jack London, American writer (1876 - 1916)

Free at last. Free at last. Thank God Almight I'm Free At Last
Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr, American civil rights leader (1925 - 1968)
From the lyrics of an old negro spiritual song.

M

Everybody Loves Somebody Sometime
Dean Martin, American Entertainer (1917 - 1995)

Duirt me leat go raibh me breoite
Spike Milligan, comedian (1918 - 2002)
Translation from the Gaelic: I told you I was ill.

N

Nature and Nature's laws lay hid in night: God said, 'Let Newton be!' and all was light.
Isaac Newton, physicist and mathematician (1643 - 1727)

O

P

Q

R

S

To strive, to seek, to find, and not to yield.
Capt. R.F. Scott R.N. (Scott of the Antartic) (1868 - 1912)
From the poem 'Ulysses' by Alfred Lord Tennyson.

Good friend for Jesus' sake forbeare To dig the dust enclosed here Blest be the man that spares these stones and curs'd be he that moves my bones
William Shakespeare, poet and playwright (baptized 26th April, 1564 - 1616)
He is believed to have written the epitaph that appears on his tomb in the Holy Trinity Church, Stratford upon Avon.

The best is yet to come.
Frank Sinatra, American singer (1915 - 1998)

No greater friend, no worse enemy
Lucius Cornelius Sulla, Roman general and dictator (138BC - 78BC)

T

U

V

W

Against you I will fling myself, Unvanquished and unyielding, O Death !
Virginia Woolf, novelist and essayist (1882 - 1941)
From her 1931 novel, 'The Waves.'

Lector, si monumentum requires circumspice.
Sir Christopher Wren, architect (1632 - 1723)
Translation from the Latin: Reader, if you seek his monument look around.
He is buried in St. Paul's Cathedral, his most famous building.

X

Y

Cast a cold eye On Life, on Death Horseman, pass by !
W.B. Yates, Irish poet (1865 - 1939)
From his poem 'Under Ben Bulben.'

Z

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