Victim of the Beast Gravestone

The strange inscription on this tombstone reads “Lilly E. Gray, Victim of the Beast 666.” But it’s unclear which is stranger—the inscription or the fact that no one seems to know what it means or why it was placed here.

It seems inherently mean-spirited, yet everything else about the grave marker seems lovingly planned and cared for. It has been more than half a century since Lilly died, and the mystery of the meaning behind the inscription endured for many years.

According to the Utah State Historical Society, Edith “Lilly” Lillian Gray died of natural causes at the age of 77. The inscription on her gravestone was the work of her second husband, Elmer Gray. Marriage records show that Elmer and Lilly were married in Elko, Nevada, on July 10, 1952. After Lilly died on November 14, 1958, Elmer blamed her death on the “Beast 666” of the government. (According to documents, Elmer Gray reported being kidnapped by five Democrat officials.)

Sources have reported that Lilly’s family did not care for Elmer. When he died in 1964 he was buried in the same cemetery, but far away from his late wife’s burial plot.