Robert Sutherland's Latin Epitaph: Text, Translation, and Commentary

Abstract

Sutherland was one of the earliest graduates of Queen’s University, as well as the University’s first black graduate; he was also an early benefactor of the school. He graduated with honours in Classics and Mathematics in 1852, winning 14 academic prizes. Queen’s has honoured its first major benefactor in many ways, including naming the Policy Studies Building and a room in the John Deustch University Centre after him, and designating several awards and scholarships in his name. The first major honour, ordered by Principal George Monro Grant in 1878, was a Latin inscribed monument set up over Sutherland's grave in Toronto's Mount Pleasant Cemetery. Sutherland's contributions to Queen’s and Principal Grant’s installation of the monument are well documented, but the monument itself has received almost no attention. There is no image of it or its epitaph in the Queen's Archives, and publications including the inscription do so only in English translation. In Queen's 175th anniversary year, the need to document this monument and its Latin inscription is clear. The goal of this research project was to photograph Sutherland's tombstone in Mount Pleasant Cemetery, transcribe the Latin text, translate the text into English, and provide a historical and grammatical commentary.