Marble is a long-lasting, beautiful material that's commonly used for creating cemetery monuments, and a popular choice of design is angels.  However, over time marble can become grubby and the stone can lose its lustre.  Here are some tips on how to keep your loved one's marble angel memorial looking heavenly. 

What you'll need

• water
• plastic scraper
• soft, nylon scrubbing brush
• soft-bristled toothbrush
• cleaning cloths
• bucket
• marble cleaning solution (available from good DIY stores)
• pump sprayer (available from garden centres)

How to do it

An important point to remember is that you should never be too aggressive in your approach to cleaning marble statues, as this could cause damage.  Don't use very abrasive items, such as steel wool, as this can cause scratching and erosion of the stone.

1. Start by completely saturating the angel with clean, warm water.  A pump sprayer is best for this, as it means that you won't be returning a dirty brush to a bucket of clean water, thus contaminating it with dirt that will end up back on the statue.  
2. Carefully remove any algae or other plant growth from the marble with the plastic scraper.  You may find that you need to keep spraying the statue during this stage in order to keep the growth moist, thus making removal easier.  
3. Make up the marble-specific cleaning solution in a bucket, as per the manufacturer's instructions.  Apply the solution to the statue with a cloth, beginning at the top.  
4. Use a soft scrubbing brush to gradually work the solution into the stone.  Begin at the top of the statue and work your way down to the bottom. This avoids any staining that may occur on the bits you've just cleaned from the run-off of dirty solution.  
5. If the angel that you are working on is large, you should pause frequently to rinse the cleaned areas free from cleaning solution.  This is to prevent dirty water from drying out on the statue, leaving grime and cleaning solution residue behind.  
6. For hard to reach areas, such as the contours of the angel's face, use a soft-bristled toothbrush dipped in cleaning solution.  
7. Finish off by giving the whole statue and thorough rinse by spraying it with clean water, and then wipe it down with a clean cloth.

In conclusion

You can spruce up a loved one's marble angel cemetery monument by following the guidelines given above.  This job should only need doing every couple of years to help keep the statue in good condition and keep the grave site respectfully well-tended.