Neoclassicism and Greek Revival style. So began the decline in Puritan influence. During the first two decades of the 19th century, elaborate borders on headstones were rapidly replaced by simple lines and sometimes abstract designs. Often borders resembling pillars were used, further exemplifying the neoclassical influence during this time. Along with Urns and Willows, sometimes designs featuring sunsets were used instead, particularly by Rhode Island stonecutters. Monumentalism and Modern Plain Style By the early 19th century, as social classes emerged and became more important, graveyards lost their earlier egalitarian uniformity and simplicity; up until that point all headstones were of similar size and plots were grouped together. Plots in certain areas of existing graveyards became more expensive as a marked difference emerged between cemeteries in well off as compared to less affluent areas. The graveyards of the former tended towards grandiosity and monumentalism, while the latter are characterized by crowded rows of simple headstones. The change was especially seen from the 1840s, when a trend towards integrating nature and landscape emerged, leading to the use of obelisks, columns, and statues, while the use of slate, brownstone and schist was largely phased out in favor of marble, In addition, disease and odor concerns in urbanized areas pushed graveyards toward the outskirts of towns and cities, no longer an integral part of the central landscape. It is at this point that the Puritan traditions in funerary art end. The historian Karen Wenhworth Batignani describes New England headstones from 1900 as "far less interesting than their predecessors. Polished granite blocks that offer names and dates but few clues as to who the deceased were." She, like other historians, attribute this is a culture of denial of death, in which large sums of money are spent on "steel lined, gorgeously cushioned caskets [and] air conditioned tombs". Inscriptions Epitaphs Epitaphs become common from the later 17th century. From these, it becomes possible to tell something of the attitudes and outlook of both the masons and the deceased. They often take the format of memento moris: These early examples reflect the pessimistic puritan outlook of the time, in that they do not mention an afterlife or the resurrection of the dead, and thie text often include imagery of worms, decay and dust. It is only on the much later cherub stones that more personalized goodbyes to loved ones, or mention of an afterlife, begin to appear: