In a quiet corner of St Mary's Churchyard in Monmouth stands an enigmatic monument to a Victorian workman named John Renie. He would be all but forgotten were it not for his unique tombstone - which at first glance bears a grid of 285 jumbled letters.
As a child I found it an interesting curiosity; but no-one seemed to know much about it. I have TV presenter Johnny Ball to thank for finally unravelling it for me. He featured it in a children's TV programme, and later on Father Lionel Fanthorpe delved further into its history in his Talking Stones programme.
It is a puzzle known as an Acrostic - a visual riddle that has been about since Roman times. It is the only tombstone of its kind in the country.
To read the inscription one has to start reading at the central letter in the grid, (a letter "H") and from there, one can read in two different directions the legend "Here lies John Renie". It can be read across and upwards, across and downwards, backwards and upwards (or downwards) but not diagonally.
So who was John Renie? And why was he given this fantastic stone?
We know that he was born in 1799 and died tragically young at the age of 33 in 1832, possibly poisoned by the compounds he used in his work. Parish records state that he was a house painter, but there are hints he may have been something of an eccentric and radical, being a founder member of the Oddfellows, a friendly society of the 19th Century.
Father Fanthorpe suggests that the tombstone may have been designed to confuse the Devil and so ensure John a path to heaven. This would not be the first time funeral arrangements were arranged to keep the deceased's soul safe. In Liverpool Cemetery, a certain James Mackenzie arranged to be buried upright in a pyramid, holding a hand of cards: it is said he lost his soul to the Devil over a game of Poker, and his internment above ground guarantees him immunity from Hell.
I believe that John Renie, being a creative and alternative character, designed and carved the stone himself, as stated in Kelly's Directory of Monmouthshire. He would have had the know-how to do it, and falling ill with a lingering ailment would have also have had the time.
Perhaps he simply wanted something of his life's work to live on, after he himself was forgotten.
your comments
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George de Valk, Rotterdam, the Netherlands
In 1992 I photographed the tombstone on a trip through England and Wales. For a while I believed that Renie might be the same man as John Rennie, whose bridge in Chepstow I admired. Now I know who Renie was. Probably quite a character.
John, Brighton
I read that close-up for ages to try and find the message, before giving up, reading the explanation and realising the close-up only shows part of the headstone. Argh!
Ben Morse from Usk
I am in fact the great-great-great-great nephew of John Renie. His children, and their generation of the family, changed the spelling of the surname to Rennie; as can be seen from the lower entries on the tombstone itself. John Renie's widow Sarah Howells moved to London some time after her husband's death and there are currently direct descendants living in the South East of England. On the family tree it says this of John Renie: "Lived all his life in the same house as his father in Monmouth. Was a PGM of Oddfellows. House decorator. Good public speaker. Literary taste. Was a Wesleyan. He wrote a square of 285 letters which reads beginning at the centre... which was cut on his tombstone, and still to be seen there." On a personal note, I too walk past the tombstone as much as eight times a week and the tombstone never ceases to catch my attention - at least for a moment.
john renie
he was a disgrace to my family
Mari-Anne Hughes from Raglan
I didn't figure out the way the tombstone was meant to be read until I was about 12.
I used to pass the tombstone nearly everyday while I attended Monmouth Comprehensive & never thought once to think about its past or reasons as to why John Renie wanted a tombstone like this.. I guess we learn something new everyday
Sirel Hanies, Monmouth
I have seen this tombstone and the stories are that the devil took his soul, and to stop him taking his body they made this puzzled tomb stone to stop the devil finding him. But I'll keep looking into it.
Stephanie Medew from Byron Bay, Australia
I am researching people who have died at the age of 33. Yet another case! Also even from this short excerpt there is given the impression that John Renie was a unique, creative individual. As is the case of so many who have died at this age.
Suzy Donald has a reply to David's comment below:
It's easy to see why such a mysterious looking stone would attract such legends. In the era you speak of(late Victorian, there was a very strong belief in the Devil. People used to go to church much more, and people died much younger than they do today because we didn't have the medical knowledge we now have. So I think perhaps that's where your friend's idea came from.
10 yr old David Harris from Monmouth has seen the tombstone:
I am still very confused about all of this. My friend said that his family had a curse and they all died at the age of 33 for reasons unknown. I have also heard that the Devil played around with a lot of people in that era. What does anyone else think?
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