A memorial to the iconic Brontë sisters in Westminster Abbey has been amended to restore the diaereses, the two dots over the ‘e’ in their surname, The Associated Press reports.
The dots, which indicate the name is pronounced “brontay” rather than “bront,” were omitted when the stone tablet commemorating Charlotte, Emily, and Anne was erected in 1939.
The omission went unnoticed for over eight decades until Brontë historian Sharon Wright brought it to the attention of the Dean of Westminster, David Hoyle. Wright, editor of the Brontë Society Gazette, believed the sisters deserved to have their name spelled correctly on their memorial.
The abbey’s stonemason tapped in the dots and the conservator painted them, ensuring the accuracy of the sisters’ legacy.
“There’s no paper record for anyone complaining about this or mentioning this, so I just wanted to put it right, really,” said Wright.
The Brontë sisters, known for their powerful novels like “Jane Eyre,” “Wuthering Heights,” and “The Tenant of Wildfell Hall,” all died young, leaving behind a lasting literary impact. The sisters’ Irish father, Patrick, is believed to have changed the spelling of his surname from Brunty or Prunty when he attended university in England.
Rebecca Yorke, director of the Brontë Society, expressed delight with the restoration.
“As the Brontës and their work are loved and respected all over the world, it’s entirely appropriate that their name is spelled correctly on their memorial,” she said.
