Memorial Plaques

Memorial plaques are plates etched or engraved with text or images, or both, and are typically found in churches, government buildings, cultural venues, commercial establishments and some public places like parks and plazas. They are used to mark an event associated with the place where they are found, like a church or a museum, or to identify a special spot in a place, like a building in a university.

Memorial plaques usually serve two common purposes: to recognize a special person's relation, contribution or help in erecting the place where the plaque is displayed, and to inform the public about an event of historical or personal significance.

Memorial plaques are meant for public display, and as such, they are made of materials to weather the outside elements like dust or rain. These materials include concrete, metal, brass, stone, wood and tin, or combinations of two or more of these. The text are either etched and painted over with gold paint, or engraved and polished.

Memorial plaques need not be stand-alone commemorative edifices. Some are plastered on big monuments while there are memorial plaques that are made right on the surfaces of buildings, like panels, walls or doors.

Likewise, memorial plaques need not be part of a structure. A common form of memorial plaques are those that are personalized to be given out during important or solemn occasions, like the plaques for families of military members killed during combats or wars. They are also handed out in place of traditional trophies and medals to winners of competitions, and as a token to officers of a company, government agencies and other important people.