Yesterday we looked at ancient burials. Interestingly evidence of ancient burials is prolific in Scotland. One of my very favourite places to visit is Govan Old Church. Inside are a number of early medieval stones, five hogback stones and a sarcophogus.
Like many historic treasures in Scotland, these stones were lost to time and lay beneath the soil. Then in 1855, when the Sexton began digging a grave in the north east part of the kirkyard, he struck what he thought were tree roots, only to discover on closer inspection that he had come across a sarcophagus buried in the kirkyard. It is not know when the sarcophagus was buried but there is some thought that it may have been buried during the reformation to preserve it from iconoclasts. Given the ornamentation on the outside of the sarcophagus, it is felt that it was meant to have been placed within the church as a focal point. Although the sarcophagus was empty when uncovered, it is believed that it once held the remains of St Constantine and likely dates from the late 800s.
Once the sarcophagus was uncovered, excavation on the rest of the kirkyard uncovered 47 early medieval stones, including the 5 hogback stones and the sarcophagus. The hogback stones, the sarcophagus and twenty five of the best preserved stones are on display inside the church, which now functions as a museum. There are still 16 stones within the kirkyard.
These magnificent stones stem from a unique period in history when the Kingdom of Strathclyde stood where Govan now stands. The evidence in these stones show that this was a large community from at least the 9th century, likely even earlier.
The jewels of the stones uncovered are what are known as the hogback stones, seeming to resemble the back of a hog. However, they also strongly resemble an upturned Viking boat and Vikings are known to have lived in and around Strathclyde in the 9th and 10th centuries.
The sheer volume of stones uncovered shows the importance and expanse of this once thriving kingdom. The history that comes from these stones being uncovered shows that Strathclyde, or what is now Govan was one of the earliest Christian settlements and may well be as important in history as Iona or St Andrews.
The stones are beautifully displayed and there are story boards which explain the things of note for the stones.
Two to highlight are the Sun Stone and the Cuddy Stane:
The Sun stone has 4 snakes which emerge from a boss and the placement of them resembles the sun.
The Cuddy stane carvings seem to show Jesus being carried into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday
No comments:
Post a Comment