"To William David Jones, died 1721."

There is, however, another at Higham of about the same date, in which,
supposing a skull to be intended, the inspiration of the bones appears
not to have caught the artist. The portrait theory may possibly better
fit this case.

FIG. 16.--AT HIGHAM.

"To Mr Wm Boghurst, died 5th of April 1720,
aged 65."

That some of the carvings were meant for portraits cannot be denied,
and, in order to shew them with unimpeachable accuracy, I have taken
rubbings off a few and present an untouched photograph of them just as
I rubbed them off the stones (Fig. 17). The whole of the originals are
to be found in the neighbouring churchyards of Shorne and Chalk,
two rural parishes on the Rochester Road, and exhibit with all the
fidelity possible the craftsmanship of the village sculptors. They
will doubtless also excite some speculation as to their meaning.
My belief, as already expressed, is that the uppermost four are the
embodiment of the rustic yearning for the ideal; in other words,
attempts to represent the emblem of death--the skull. Nos. 1 and 2 are
from Shorne; Nos. 3, 4, and 5 from the churchyard at Chalk.

In No. 1 we have, perhaps, the crudest conception extant of the
skeleton head. The lower bars are probably meant for teeth; what the
radial lines on the crown are supposed to be is again conjecture.
Perhaps a nimbus, perhaps hair or a cap, or merely an ornamental
finish. The inscription states that the stone was erected to the