‘A clash of cultures’: Irish opinion split over Travellers’ elaborate headstones

Community representatives say a good sendoff' is a religious necessity, but others say it introduces a competitive element

The latest addition to Ballyhaunis cemetery in Ireland's County Mayo towers over neighbouring headstones in a blaze of white marble and ornamentation. Rose-wreathed pillars frame a tableau of statues showing Jesus, angels, cherubim and biblical scenes, including an engraving of Leonardo da Vinci's The Last Supper.

Marble tablets express bereavement in gold letters, a photo of the deceased gazes from a carved stone bench and lanterns with diamond-shaped bulbs and electric sensors flank the central slab.