Visitors to St. Louis Cemetery No. 1 on the edge of the French Quarter got a little lagniappe during their tours on a recent morning.
Rather than simply view the tomb believed to be that of Marie Laveau, who died in 1881, and learn about its history, they saw preservation in action thanks to Save Our Cemeteries and the Preservation Resource Center.
Michelle Stanard Duhon and Juliette Hotard with Bayou Preservation used appropriate tools and techniques to tend to the tomb that is a beacon for defacement and graffiti.
Most common are X’s that are scrawled on the tomb as part of lore related to Laveau and her purported ties to voodoo.
Duhon and Hotard cleaned the tomb first, washing away dirt that accumulated since it was last cleaned several years ago and gently scraped away wax from candles that had hardened in some spots. That was followed by new plaster where it was needed. Fresh coats of lime wash would follow.
“She’ll be bright white and clean, at least for a few days — hopefully longer — until someone tries to come and mark her up again,” Duhon said.
The work was paid for by Save Our Cemeteries, a department of the PRC, which is overseen by Sara Lowenburg. She said the restoration is an important part of the department’s mission.
“Like the entire Preservation Resource Center, we are dedicated to the ongoing preservation, restoration and education around historic New Orleans, especially our cemeteries,” Lowenburg said.
Danny Monteverde is the editor of Preservation in Print.
