Bronze Memorializes 'DIMEBAG' DARRELL

John Austin of the Fort Worth Star Telegram has issued the following report:

Guitarist "Dimebag" Darrell Abbott now lies beneath the same sort of bronze tablet that marks the graves of Elvis Presley and Stevie Ray Vaughan.

The Dalworthington Gardens resident, who helped found the heavy metal group PANTERA, was killed during a performance with his last group, DAMAGEPLAN, in Ohio on Dec. 8, 2004. He was 38.

Abbott was buried in Arlington a few days later, but except for a black stone bearing the family name, the grave was unmarked until about a month ago.

Designed and cast by Matthews Memorial Products of Pittsburgh, the tablet, 32 inches wide and 72 inches long [Photo#1, Photo#2], depicts the guitar player as most fans remember him, with beard, mustache and cap. Beneath the face is a razor blade surmounting crossed guitars, a border of flames and an anonymous verse:

"He came to rock ... And rocked like no other with the heart twice the size of Texas, our beloved brother, companion, mentor, idol, and friend ... We love you Dime ... Until we meet again."

David Jones, vice president of Matthews Memorial Products, said the company created bronze markers of the same size, which is known as a full ledger, for the graves of Presley and Vaughan.

"This is a very distinctive form of memorial. It's not commonly purchased because of the expense," Jones said.

Moore Memorial Gardens manager Gary Westerman said the bronze "basically covers the entire grave space."

Westerman declined to say how much the marker cost but said that it was less than $10,000.

The site continues to generate a steady stream of visitors and memorials; on the anniversary of his death, several dimes and guitars picks lay on the new marker.

A bouquet of white roses, an empty Crown Royal box and a green plastic shot glass of liquor rested on the nearby Abbott family marker.

"I've been here at least half a dozen times since it happened," said John Herder, 33, a Fort Worth fan who braved freezing temperatures to visit the gravesite. "He was such a decent person."