In religious art a ring of light around the head of divine or sacred persons. The nimbus can take different shapes.

The cruciform nimbus is usually the attribute of Christ. A triangular nimbus, the symbol of the Trinity, belongs to God the Father. A square nimbus is for ecclesiastical and secular contemporaries, such as popes, emperors and founders. The well-known circular halo belongs in particular to Mary, to angels and saints.

In Western culture, the heart mainly symbolizes religious and worldly love, think of a heart with thorns or a valentine heart.

Besides the cross, the heart is one of the most used symbols in the world. The meaning of the heart as a symbol differs per culture. In the East it is mainly associated with intelligence and wisdom.

In Christian symbolism, the heart generally refers to Jesus ("the sacred heart of Jesus") and is found in the open chest containing a heart with a flame. There are also hearts with a crown of thorns or surrounded by sun rays. A heart crowned with thorns is the emblem of the Jesuits. A heart surrounded by flames refers to religious inspiration. A heart with three nails through it and surrounded by a crown of thorns is the Christian 'Sacred Heart'.

In the Bible the heart is the 'inner man': "But the Lord said to Samuel, Look not on his form, nor the height of his stature, for I have rejected him; for it is not as man sees, for man look on the outlook, but the Lord looks on the heart. " (1 Samuel 16: 7).

In funerary use, the heart appears on many gravestones as a symbol. As a general symbol for love and marriage, but also in combination with the Anchor and Cross which together represent the main Christian virtues: faith, hope and love. It also symbolizes the bond with Christ.

The VOC consisted of six Chambers (Kamers) in port cities: Amsterdam, Delft, Rotterdam, Enkhuizen, Middelburg and Hoorn. Delegates of these chambers convened as the Heeren XVII (the Lords Seventeen). They were selected from the bewindhebber-class of shareholders.

Reference to the body of Christ and the Bread of Life, the Eucharist or the Lord's Supper. Mostly depicted in combination with a chalice on Catholic priests tombs.

The hourglass indicates the fleeting nature of life and the steadily approaching the hour of death. The hourglass first appeared in the late Middle Ages as a symbol of death.

Most hourglasses have wings. They symbolize the passing of time and the transience of man. Usually it is the wings of a dove, but it also happens that the hourglass has one pigeon wing and one bat wing. This symbolizes the passing of life, day and night, in good and evil. The reversibility of the hourglass is seen in the Christian tradition as the new life and the resurrection.

The name Jesus Christ: in Greek the I and the C form the first and last letter of 'Jesus', the X and the C of 'Christ'.

Are the first three letters of the Greek form of Jesus. In Hoc Salus means: herein lies salvation. In Hoc Signo (vinces): in this sign you will conquer. When the Roman Emperor Constantine saw this last sign in a vision and believing in it, he went into battle and won, he turned to Christianity.

Stands for 'Iesus Nazarenus Rex Iudaeorum' (Jesus of Nazareth, King of the Jews). These letters usually hang above a crucifux.

As an evergreen plant, ivy was already the symbol of eternal life in ancient times. But also of loyalty, attachment, patriotism and persistence of desire. This is because the plant attaches tightly and firmly to a wall, tree or grave monument.

And later in the early Christian era, ivy leaves were depicted on sarcophagi and catacombs as a symbol of eternal connection and life. Even if the body was dead, that soul lived on. A pious saying of Hohberg (1675) reads: 'The ivy winds high around an oak, no gusty wind can tear it free. If someone enjoys God's assistance, then he comes up soon; no accident can harm him. '

Sometimes the funerary monuments are completely invisible in both summer and winter because of the ivy (Hedera helix). This creeping or climbing shrub with its dark green glossy leaves is sometimes undesirable and sometimes desirable because it contributes to the patina of a cemetery.

the crown of the Torah, symbol of a rabbi.

The sacrificial animal in the religions of the ancient Near East and adopted by the early Christians as the symbol of the sacrificial Christ.

The lamb as Christ's symbol is justified by the fact that John the Baptist calls Christ the Lamb of God (Agnus Dei). (John 1:29). The lamb, depicted with a cross and nimbus, is the symbol of the sacrificial death of Christ and of purity and innocence.

A laurel wreath made of bay leaves is a symbol of eternal life, eternal friendship, victory, fame and tribute through the green leaves. The oldest meaning of laurel is that of cleanliness (Apollo). A skull with a laurel wreath symbolizes the reign of death over the living.

Symbol of purity and cleanliness. especially associated with Mary and virgin saints. The Archangel Gabriel, who announced the birth of Jesus to Mary, is usually depicted with a lily.

As a funerary symbol, the white lily is found - sometimes broken - on children's graves or graves of young girls. In addition, the lily is also a symbol of Christian mercy.

The lily of the valley symbolizes purity and simplicity. It is one of the earliest spring flowers and heralds spring. This made the plant a symbol for the coming of Christ. As a symbol of purity, it can be found on funerary monuments for children.

In the European Middle Ages, the lion was a symbol of the Resurrection because, according to the bestiaries (medieval descriptions of animals based on ancient writings), the cubs lay dead for three days after birth, until their father brought them to life by feeding them the face to breathe.

The winged lion, an apocalyptic animal, symbolizes the evangelist Mark. "And in the midst of the throne, and round about the throne, were four living beings full of eyes in front and behind. And the first being was like a lion, and the second being like a calf, and the third being had the face of a man, and the fourth being was like a flying eagle." (Revelation 4: 6-7 (KJ)). In European heraldry, the lion is the most common heraldic animal next to the eagle. Because the lion, as 'king of the beasts', embodies warriorism and power, he was often taken up in arms in the Middle Ages. In medieval funerary monuments the lion can often be seen at the feet of the knight, who is depicted lying on his back.