An Account of the Excavations at Cambuskenneth Abbey 1864Y Coloney B Ma
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I. AN ACCOUNT OF THE EXCAVATIONS AT CAMBUSKENNETH ABBEY 1864Y COLONEY B MA . R JAMEN I SI L . ALEXANDERE S , K.C.L.S., F.S.A. SOOT., &c. (PLATE IV.) Abbee Th f Cambuskennethyo , founde n 114 di Davi y f Scotb 7o . dI - land, stoopeninsula n do rivee th f r ao Forth littld an , e more tha milna e idirecna t line fro e towm th Stirlingf no ferrA . y require crossee b o st d to reach the remains of the venerable pile. So complete has been the destruction of the Church of St Mary of Cambuskennet disciplee th y hb Johf o s n Kno 1559n xi , tha s s sitit t ewa now founquite b o edt covered with greensward, where cows grazedA . white-washed cottage and some old elms were on the south side, and behind the n extensivwalle a m th f o s e eth orcharde s easth wa tn O . windin e e fielcentrg th th river d f n o eI appeare . a dmoun d slightly t somi n raisedo e d thoran , n bushe conjectureds s: here wa t i , , stooe dth higa broke s h wa altar n t wesr i archfo f , o t , e forminentrancth w no ge to a small enclosed cemetery in which are the tombstones of a few of the e peopldistrictth f o e . This arch, pointed, enriched with deeplt cu y mouldings, the capitals of broken shafts and trellis carving, was evidently the principal or western door of the church. The width is six feet between the jambs. Nea e arch t th quitr bu , e detached fro e churchmth , ther t standye e s the campanile or belfry tower, a remarkable object in the landscape. It is square, thirty-seven feet each face, substantially built of hewn stone ; is seventy feet in height, strengthened with Anglo-Norman pilaster but- ACCOUNT OF EXCAVATIONS AT CAMBUSKENNETH ABBEY. 15 tresses provided an , d with pointed Gothic windows, som thef eo m buil. tup A handsome blank arcad pointex si f eo d arche slended san r shafts facee sth town; above thisd projectinan , g fro e battlementsmth remaine th e ar , s of a stone figure, now decapitated. " The oldest inhabitant," a fisher- man, James Mathie, said he remembered when the head fell to the ground, and the name the figure went by was " Maggie Teuch" (tough ?). s evidentlwa t I gurgoylya waterspoutr o e e row Th f corbelso . s under the parapet seemed to have been ornamented with rude masks. On the north-west angle of the tower is an elegant octagonal turret, containin gstaia rbuildinge whicth turree f o hTh p conductt.to e th o st is capped and provided with gablettes, like those seen on the Glasgow cathedral, of the same date. The low and flat arch of the entrance is surmounte a triangula y db r projection e apeflewa th s xi . n O deUs . A canopied nich s ovei edoore th rn openin o , g whic well-preservea h d groined roo s observedi f large a roocentre th s th i f e n f I eo circula . r aperture, up which the bells were passed. The square openings for ringing the bells are at the sides of the groined roof, and the marks of the ropes are still upon them. towee Thth e f s extensivi rvieo p wto varied frod e ean mth . " Grey Stirling," with its castellated rock, the favourite residence of many of the Scottish kings; the fields of Bannockburn, Sauchieburn, and Falkirk; the Abbey Oraig, beneath which the heroic Wallace fought for the liberties of his country the battle of Stirling; the grand solemn Ochil range; the majestic Grampians, and the sinuous course of the noble Forth, afford a rich treat to the admirers of one of the richest scenes in Scottish landscape alsw n additionaoa No . l interest arises from being able to trace from the parapet of the abbey tower the foundations of the cruciform edifice beneath. The Wallace monument on the summit of the Abbey Craig, when com- pleted with its lantern or diadem top, keeper's house, and courtyard, will reflect great credit on the architect, Mr Eochead. e north-eastth o T nea d e river'an ,th r se remain bankth a e f ar ,o s building with lofty ruined walls, called the "Dovecot" or pigeon-house, and where probabl Hoapiciume th s receptioe th y wa r entertaind fo an n - ment of strangers. Afte e accessioth r e Englisth f Jameo no t h. thronesVI e tempo,th - 16 PROCEEDINGS OF THE SOCIETY, DEOEMBEB 1864. ralitie f Cambuskennetso h were bestowe Johnn do , Ear f Maro l whoy b , m barone abbee th th conferres f yo brothers wa hi n do , Alexander Erskine of Alva, and in whose family it remained till 1709, when it was purchased e Towbyth n Counci f Stirlin o lbenefie th r Cowan'f go fo t s Hospitalt I . is highly desirable, then, that means be taken by the trustees of the Hospita repaio t l d poinan r t wha t remain anciene ye t th f so t edificeo t , cut out the trees which are destroying the belfry tower, and remove the unseemly stones and bricks which block up some of the pointed windows ; to clear the foundations inside and outside, and repair the floors of the different stories.1 Chartulare th n Abbee I th orcharde f yo th particularle sar y referred to, and appear to have been bequeathed to the monastery by several of gardee monkse on th d termes ni an ; d "Paradise. e orchardTh " s still remain on two sides of the abbey, and have been long celebrated for their delicious pears, apples "d geans.an , " e OhartularTh f Cambuskennetho y , substantiall- y em boun d an d bellished with various illuminations provided an , d also wit a hgrea t seal, is in the possession of the Advocates Library, Edinburgh. It was transcribed on vellum in the year 1535, at the instance of the Abbot, Alexander Myln, from original documents which were decaying from dame th p situatio Abbeye th f no . Water appears-o depte s sitth nit t eha of four or five feet.' Due west fro e originae abbeth m th s somw ywa lno eferry s disi t -i : tance higher up the Forth. In carrying off the large bell, it was said a mysterious figure appeared at the stern of the boat, which suddenly upset, and the bell has ever since remained in the bed of the river. It could be easily dredged for during the summer months. Its recovery would be highly abbe e interestingprind th ol f chapeya o n t a n I l .appear s near the ferry, and provided with a Norman arch, whilst the other arches that now Anglo-Normae appeath e ar r twelfte th f no h century. n visitinI g latel e valuablyth e collectio f Scottiso n h antiquitiet a s Dunfermline, collected r bPatonyM , e eminenfatheth f o r t painterf so that name, I saw, among clocks from the palaces of Linlithgow, Falk- land, and Stirling, beautifully carved and inlaid cabinets from the same, This is now being executed under the intelligent direction of Mr W. Mackison, 1 C.E., F.S.-A; Scotr, 1865.^ —— - ———— ————— --•- '- - — - ——————— ACCOUNT OF EXCAVATIONS AT CAMBUSKENNETH ABBEY. 17 antique chairs, original paintings, &c. (all which should be catalogued and minutely described) e alms-bo, th ther e monasters th wa ef o x f o y Cambuskenneth, found some years ago among the ruins. It is a square box of iron with Gothic ornaments, and is well preserved. Keys were found near it. I have in my possession a singular stone, said to be from Cambuskenneth r somfo . s e Iyearwa t t Alloaa s , the t Menstria n e House, probably when possessed by the Alexanders, Barons of Menstrie. I obtained it after much negotiation from an old woman of the name of Moir, whose husband had built it into the front of his cottage at Menstrie. It is a foot square, and from the ingeniously entwined letters on its face the word " Gambuskenneth " can be made out. conjectures wa Coulsos t I Mr y f Timsburdb no y Hall, Bath (who care- fully copie stone)e dth , tha lettere imitation n entirn a th t a e f so ar e t no , brass monogram f lettern bras i o fastened t t an sbu cu , a scros o f dt s o hide f whico , e centrth h s supportei e a squar y b df woo o e d belowo t , form a further relief for the deeply square cut letters. It will be remembered that the unfortunate James III. of Scotland marrie amiabln da d beautifuan e l Danish princess, Margare f Oldeno t - burg whoy b , m wer Duke eth f Kothesayeo , afterwards James IV.d an , Princee th s Alexande Johnd an r . Afte noblesrevole e th th r f o t , Queen Margaret sickenes buriewa d diedd dan beforan , e higth e h altat a r Gambuskenneth. King James, afte fatas hi r l flight from Sauchieburn, fals hi l fro s noblmhi e grey charger Lorpresentey b dm Liiidsahi o dt f yo Byres—whiche th , alarme e noisth t eda mad pitchea y eb r dropped from e hana frighteneth f do d woman, swerved d thre an ,e kinwth g heavily —and after his cruel assassination by a pretended priest at Milton or Beaton's Mill, was also buried next his queen, and with due ceremony, t Cambuskennetha .