The headstone for U.S. Sen. John McCain’s grave in the U.S. Naval Academy Cemetery in Annapolis was quietly placed more than a month after his burial.
The U.S. Naval Institute, a private non-profit military association, shared a photo of the grave site on its Twitter page.
The upright headstone has McCain’s last name in the center above an engraving of the Naval Aviator emblem.
His name, date of birth and death were visible on the left hand side. Cindy McCain’s name and date of birth can be seen on the right.
The photo showed the grave site was decorated with small American flags, an Arizona flag, a seasoning shaker, two potted cacti and flowers.
The headstone for Sen. John McCain’s grave @NavalAcademy Cemetery has been put in place pic.twitter.com/d5iP6By74B
— U.S. Naval Institute (@NavalInstitute) October 11, 2018
A flat foot stone placed a few feet away was covered with dozens of small mementos, including multiple challenge coins, which are given to service members to prove membership with a particular unit or operation.
The gravestone of longtime friend and fellow Admiral Church Larson can be seen to the right of McCain’s headstone. McCain chose to forego the traditional burial at Arlington National Cemetery to be buried next to Larson, who died in 2014.
McCain wrote in his memoir that he would “take my leave bound for a place near my old friend Chuck Larson, in the cemetery on the Severn (River), back where it began.”
McCain described the grave site as “a beautiful spot” that is “near where our paths first crossed.”
McCain, an American hero, died Aug. 25 at age 81 after a 13-month fight with an aggressive form of brain cancer.
His memorial events lasted five days and spanned three different states.
He lay in state at the Arizona Capitol ahead of a memorial service at North Phoenix Baptist Church. His body was then transported to Washington, D.C., where he was one of only 31 people to have the honor of lying in state at the U.S. Capitol after a ceremony honoring his life and service.
