"IHS", What Does It All Mean?

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I love a good graveyard.

Graveyards are often quiet, peaceful, full of nature, and have a gothic beauty about them that means I can't stop taking photographs.

I once had a first date in a graveyard. Great first date it was too.

Graveyards are also full of stories. Snapshots of a time, lives encapsulated, raising questions at each headstone.

This graveyard, Monmouth Cemetery, (what's the difference between a "graveyard" and a "cemetery") brought up the question, "What or who is IHS?", as seen on a number of the ornate headstones?

Turns out it is a who, it's Jesus himself:
In the Latin-speaking Christianity of medieval Western Europe (and so among Catholics and many Protestants today), the most common Christogram became "IHS" or "IHC", denoting the first three letters of the Greek name of Jesus, ΙΗΣΟΥΣ, iota-eta-sigma, or ΙΗΣ.
I have been learnt, and so have you.

Stone cross in a graveyard. The stone cross has twiddly decorations carved in, with "IHS" at the crosspiece.
Osbaston Rd, Monmouth NP25 3AX, UK

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