Historic 1684 Gravestone of Captain John Drake - Colonial Era Cemetery Artifact #1237215 (License: Personal Use)

The gravestone marks the burial of Captain John Drake, who died on November 21, 1684, and features a prominent winged death’s-head-a common 17th-century symbol representing mortality and resurrection. Carved from brown sandstone, the inscription includes a moral verse reflecting Puritan beliefs about virtue, mortality, and divine judgment. The stone stands amid fallen autumn leaves in a quiet, historic New England cemetery, surrounded by other early colonial markers.

Used on heritage tourism websites, historical society pages, or digital archives focused on early American funerary art; matches user intent to research colonial gravestones, genealogy, or material culture of 17th-century New England.