Here lye I, Elspeth Pye four and twenty bairns, gudeman and I. Raymond Lamont-Brown: Scottish Epitaphs. Chambers, Edinburgh, 1990
mistress for a lifetime
One of the things that can be pondered on best in a graveyard is time. A lifetime. In case of the beautiful sounding village of Kirkton of Kingoldrum, the life and faith of Marion Ogilvie comes to mind. She lived just south of the village in Balfour Castle. Or maybe she didn’t and the tower... Continue Reading →
Danish Prince or Irish Saint?
Most sources cite each other and eventually the New Statistical account of Scotland that “the origin of the name is uncertain. Tradition makes the burying-ground, which gives its name to the parish, to have been the burying-ground of Irenan, a Danish prince who fell in battle on the northern confines of the parish, where cairn Irenan still exists.”
a peaceful piece of Plockton
Plockton is very pretty which is why it is almost never peaceful. It is a number one tourist destination and as packed in summer as the beaches of the Canaries.
Funny Scottish Epitaph: Oakfield Chopper
The Lord saw good, I was looping off wood And down fell from the tree. I met with check and broke my neck, And so death lopped off me. Raymond Lamont-Brown: Scottish Epitaphs. Chambers, Edinburgh, 1990
the burial site of the Cameron chiefs
The burial site is not easy to find for those who are neither Camerons nor locals. It is hidden a few hundred yards behind Achnacarry castle. Nothing indicates where these iron gates lead to, no sign at all to what seems just an overgrown path leading gently uphill. Obviously, not many people come here.
Nether Largie South
Nether Largie South was one of the first monuments in the Kilmartin glen, ancient, holy and mysterious. A sacred place built 5500 years ago. The tomb was a mass grave for the farmers that lived and died here. About a thousand years later the tomb was used again for more burials. This time pots and... Continue Reading →
The archer’s child
Templewood, also known as Half Moon Wood, is an extraordinary graveyard. An ancient burial site, different graves all around, a truly stunning place in Kilmartin in Argyll, a valley full of history, traces of wich still clearly recognizable. People have lived here for 5000 years and you have to think back around 170 generations to... Continue Reading →
Funny Scottish Epitaphs: To Daisy at Dingwall
Farewell, thou little blooming bud Just bursting into flower. Raymond Lamont-Brown: Scottish Epitaphs. Chambers, Edinburgh, 1990
ancient gravestone
This stone marks a burial place of importance. Who the deceased was will remain unknown forever. He or she was buried about 1.500 years ago in rural Aberdeenshire. There is nothing spectacular to his place but it is remarkable in many ways. Standing stones rarely mark burial spots. Most of them have been moved to... Continue Reading →
Recent Comments