On a field, sable, the letter A, gules

The heraldic inscription "On a field, sable, the letter A, gules" is the final, compressed symbol of Nathaniel Hawthorne's "The Scarlet Letter," appearing on the single tombstone that marks the graves of Hester Prynne and Arthur Dimmesdale. This device, an escutcheon bearing a red letter A on a black field, transforms the narrative's central emblem from a badge of ignominy into a permanent, ambiguous heraldic sign. It is the story's last word, a motto that encapsulates the entire legend while leaving its meaning open to perpetual interpretation.

Origin and Physical Description

The inscription is carved on a simple slab of slate in the burial-ground beside which King's Chapel was later built. The grave is dug near an old and sunken one, yet with a space between, "as if the dust of the two sleepers had no right to mingle." Despite this separation, one tombstone serves for both. Around it, other monuments are carved with armorial bearings, but this single slab bears only the engraved escutcheon with its heraldic device. The narrator, who has presented himself as the editor of the tale, notes that the curious investigator may still discern this inscription and "perplex himself with the purport." The herald's wording of the device serves as "a motto and brief description of our now concluded legend."

The Evolution of the Scarlet Letter's Meaning

The inscription draws on the entire history of the scarlet letter's shifting significance throughout the novel. When Hester Prynne first appeared on the scaffold, the letter A, "fantastically embroidered and illuminated upon her bosom," had "the effect of a spell, taking her out of the ordinary relations with humanity, and enclosing her in a sphere by herself." The letter was originally a punishment for adultery, a mark of shame. Over time, however, its meaning transformed. Many people refused to interpret the scarlet A by its original signification, saying instead that it meant "Abel," so strong was Hester Prynne with a woman's strength. The letter became the symbol of her calling as a self-ordained Sister of Mercy. The narrator himself, upon discovering the actual rag of scarlet cloth in the Custom-House, measured it precisely: each limb proved to be three inches and a quarter in length. He noted that it had been intended as an ornamental article of dress, but what rank or dignity it signified was a riddle. The meteor that appeared during Dimmesdale's vigil also showed the letter A in lines of dull red light, which the sexton interpreted as standing for "Angel," because Governor Winthrop had been made an angel that night.

The Tombstone as Final Symbol

The tombstone inscription crystallizes the letter's final, paradoxical meaning. The scarlet letter had ceased to be a stigma that attracted the world's scorn and bitterness, and became "a type of something to be sorrowed over, and looked upon with awe, yet with reverence too." The heraldic device on the shared grave makes this transformation permanent. The black field ("sable") suggests the darkness of sin, sorrow, and death, while the red letter ("gules") evokes both the original scarlet cloth and the burning shame that seared Hester's bosom and Dimmesdale's heart. Yet the very formality of heraldic language elevates the symbol, giving it the dignity of a family crest. The narrator describes the device as "sombre" and "relieved only by one ever-glowing point of light gloomier than the shadow," indicating that the letter itself, even in this final form, remains a source of both illumination and darkness.

Narrative and Thematic Significance

The inscription serves as the novel's concluding motto, echoing the narrator's earlier exhortation: "Be true! Be true! Be true! Show freely to the world, if not your worst, yet some trait whereby the worst may be inferred!" The tombstone, with its single letter, makes a permanent public statement of the truth that was finally revealed on the scaffold. It also reflects the narrator's own role as editor of the tale, who has "thrown all the light we could acquire upon the portent" and now presents this final, enigmatic device. The inscription is the last of many forms the scarlet letter takes: the embroidered cloth on Hester's bosom, the living letter that is Pearl, the meteor in the sky, and now the carved stone. Each version adds layers of meaning, and the tombstone inscription, by adopting the language of heraldry, gives the letter an official, historical permanence that transcends the individual lives of Hester and Dimmesdale. It is a fitting end to a tale that began with the narrator discovering the actual scarlet letter in the Custom-House and resolving to bring its story before the public.