Commemorate a Life
With its harmonious combination of natural beauty and thoughtfully designed built structures, Mount Auburn Cemetery is an ideal place for reflection and remembrance. Mount Auburn’s services include the setting of new private memorials, the completion of inscriptions on Cemetery-owned shared markers, and the installation of temporary memorial plaques on trees and benches.
Special Tributes
A loved one need not be buried at Mount Auburn to have a presence here. A plaque placed on a tree, bench or window is simple, elegant way to celebrate a life.
ARRANGING FOR A PRIVATE MEMORIAL
All new monuments and markers must be pre-approved by the Cemetery before installation. Please contact a monument dealer to initiate this work. The monument dealer will communicate directly with Mount Auburn to determine the permitted size, style, and material and will then work with the family on a design meeting the Cemetery’s specifications. After receiving Cemetery approval of the design, the monument dealer will fabricate your memorial.
Read More The size of a monument and its foundation requirements will determine the cost for installation. Mount Auburn will invoice the family for this work. Please note that Mount Auburn requires payment of all outstanding fees associated with a grave or lot before it installs any new memorials. Upon receipt of payment, Mount Auburn’s staff will prepare the foundation, coordinate delivery of the monument from the memorial dealer, and set the monument in its final location. The Cemetery will notify the family when the work is complete. Memorial setting is a seasonal activity, occurring between April and November. Any monuments completed during the winter will be delivered to the Cemetery the following spring. 
Benches
Choose a teak or granite bench in one of several locations around the Cemetery.
Tree Plaques
Select one of our existing trees for a plaque that honors someone special.
Chapel Interiors
Other memorial possibilities include our historic stained glass windows and pews in our chapels.
Special Services of Remembrance
Mount Auburn hosts two annual services to commemorate those we have lost. Both events combine readings, speakers, and music and are open to the public.
- Service of Commemoration.
Each year on the Saturday of Memorial Day weekend we gather on Bigelow Chapel Lawn to remember the dead. The program includes the names of those for whom in memoriam contributions have been made throughout the year. - Candle Lighting Service.
Because we know that the holiday season can be particularly difficult for those in mourning, we offer a special service each December. This joyful event is an opportunity to light a candle in honor of a loved one.