Gravestones in South Africa

Click on a picture below to open the section.

Unless otherwise stated in each album, assume that the pictures represent only a personal selection by the photographer. The pictures are generously donated by the various photographers.

eGGSA itself does not organise the photography of cemeteries and graveyards - we accept donated photographs for display in this section of our web site. If you would like to contribute photographs of South African graves, please contact either Alta Griffiths at cemphoto@genza.org.za, who manages this section; or Richard Ball at richard@eggsa.org.

Remember, though, if you stop to photograph some graves yourself, you could be providing a service to posterity if you take the extra time to photograph all the graves and make an accurate note of the location of the graveyard. Tomorrow those gravestones may no longer be there.

Here is some advice on Photographing Gravestones.

The Genealogical Society of South Africa (parent body of eGGSA) runs the National Cemetery Recording Project whose aim is the systematic recording of gravestone inscriptions in South Africa and there are also a number of local initiatives by other branches of the GSSA.

We have captioned the pictures with names and dates as they appear on the gravestones. Additional information may be added as a comment. If you have any questions or contributions, or if a typo error has been made with the names please contact me, Richard Ball - richard@eggsa.org

We photograph these gravestones and make them available on our web site firstly because they are a valuable record of the details of many people, now gone, often preserved nowhere else and secondly in order to preserve them, at least as a photograph, since they are subject to weathering over the years. And so many graveyards are now being cleared for re-use, or vandalised, robbed and the gravestones destroyed - we wish to record these for posterity.

We see our photo project as an extension and preservation of the monuments in the grave yards all over South Africa. No disrespect is intended and we see our project as honouring those who have gone before us by preserving their memory.