Contents
What is a cenotaph? How do I designate a memorial as a cenotaph?
What is a Monument? How do I designate a memorial as a monument?
How can I link a cenotaph and an actual burial memorial together?

What is a cenotaph? How do I designate a memorial as a cenotaph?

A cenotaph is a marker within a cemetery placed in honor of a person whose remains are elsewhere. It may also be the original marker for someone who has since been reinterred elsewhere.

It is possible for a deceased person to have multiple memorials due to having cenotaphs. Each headstone or marker (in different cemetery locations) should have its own memorial. If there is a cenotaph within a cemetery and the remains were 'not buried in a cemetery' (having an other burial type), then the cenotaph in the cemetery should be the only memorial on Find a Grave. The information about the other burial type can be added to the cenotaph page in the biography (e.g. cremated, ashes scattered).

You can designate a memorial as a Cenotaph when adding a memorial and also editing or suggesting edits for a memorial. On the Add Memorial page, you will see other options as you scroll down under Gravesite Details. Open 'Additional grave marker options.' Label the memorial as a Cenotaph by using the toggle switch. When you have filled out all known fields, select Add Memorial.

It is similar on the Edit or Suggest Edits page for a memorial. Select Edit or Suggest Edits. Scroll down and you will see other options under Gravesite Details. Open 'Additional grave marker options.' Label the memorial as a Cenotaph by using the toggle switch and save your changes.

When both a cenotaph/monument and the actual burial exist, only add relationship links to the actual burial memorial. When a memorial with the actual burial location doesn't exist and there are multiple cenotaph locations or cenotaph and monument locations, add relationship links to one of the memorials and then hyperlink to the other memorials through the biography.

Memorial plaques, memorial bricks, roadside accident memorials, and state and local service monuments are not considered cenotaphs and are not allowed.

What is a monument? How do I designate a memorial as a monument?

A Monument is a marker or structure erected in honor of a group of people with something in common whose remains lie elsewhere. These structures are generally within cemeteries. These could be national monuments which often include thousands of names. Other times these are structures or headstones that list a smaller number of people with something in common.

National Monument

When adding a national monument, you would first add the national monument as a cemetery and then create a memorial in that "cemetery" for each person named on the monument and label those memorials as Monuments using the "Additional grave marker options" under Gravesite Details. If needed, you can contact us (select support request) when adding a national monument and we can help mark each memorial as a Monument all at once. To keep duplication to a minimum, we allow national monuments but not state or local monuments to be added. Often the names listed on state and local monuments duplicate those named on national monuments.

Monument in a cemetery

When a smaller number of people are listed on a monument in a cemetery, add one memorial to the cemetery that includes the heading on the marker or what they have in common, such as War Memorial WW I, and place the entire heading in the last name field. You can add the individual names on the monument to the biography or the inscription and if you'd like Create a Hyperlink for each name that leads to the memorial with their actual burial location. If they don’t have a specific burial location then you can link to the cenotaph memorial.

If a Monument is an individual’s only point of commemoration, then a memorial for the individual named is appropriate and as it is the only memorial, relationship links are added there. You can designate a memorial as a Monument when adding a memorial and also editing or suggesting edits for a memorial. On the Add Memorial page, you will see other options as you scroll down under Gravesite Details. Open 'Additional grave marker options.' Label the memorial as a Monument by using the toggle switch. When you have filled out all known fields select Add Memorial.

It is similar on the Edit or Suggest Edits page for a memorial. Select Edit or Suggest Edits. Scroll down and you will see other options under Gravesite Details. Open 'Additional grave marker options.' Label the memorial as a Monument by using the toggle switch and save your changes.

How can I link a cenotaph and an actual burial memorial together?

You can link a cenotaph and actual burial memorial together by adding a hyperlink in the biography field. In the biography on the actual burial memorial, you’ll want to add a link to the cenotaph. In the biography on the cenotaph, you’ll want to add a link to the actual burial memorial. We suggest using words for the hyperlink that show clearly what memorial or memorial type you are linking to.

It's simple to link to another Find a Grave memorial from the biography. When editing the bio field, add the text that will display for the link and then highlight it. Select the link symbol in the editor and add the URL for the memorial you are linking to in the field provided, clicking save. Scroll down and Save Changes. For step-by-step instructions about this process go to Create or Send a Hyperlink.

When you save the biography the text you highlighted will show up as a hyperlink to the other memorial. If there is more than one memorial to link to, you can add the hyperlinks to the bio field.