Showing posts with label Kevin Nosferatu. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Kevin Nosferatu. Show all posts

Tuesday, 5 August 2025

Skulferatu #138 - Doo Cave, Wemyss Caves, East Wemyss, Kirkcaldy, Fife


On a pleasant summer’s day, I took a trip to what at the time of writing was the brand new train station at Leven, and from there I went for a walk along to East Wemyss.  Before hitting the coastal path that would take me to my destination, I trudged through the towns of Methil and Buckhaven, two places that were once at the heart of Scottish industry and have suffered heavily since its demise.  Even on a sunny summer day they looked depressed and downtrodden places.  Places neglected by those in power, they had that forgotten air of towns pushed aside and ignored.

 

On reaching the coastal path I trudged along to the village of East Wemyss before taking a path down to the sea.  There I soon arrived at the Wemyss Caves; a set of caves carved out of the rock by the sea around eight thousand years ago.  Though a local legend says that they were dug out of the rock by the Pechs (Picts), who were short ginger haired men with long arms.  It was also said that they had feet so wide that when it rained they sat with them over their heads as if they were umbrellas.

 

There were originally eleven caves, though only six exist today, the others no longer being accessible due to erosion or collapse.  The caves were used as shelters by the early peoples who inhabited Fife, and they are regarded as historically significant given the number of ancient carvings that have been found on their walls.  Of the sixty known Pictish carvings in Scotland, forty-nine were found within these caves.

 

A photo showing the entrance to a cave in a rocky hill.  The top of the hill is covered in trees and bushes. Photograph by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
Entrance to Doo Cave

 

On my visit most of the caves were closed due to storm damage, so my wandering around was mainly limited to Doo Cave, also known as Dovecot Cave.  This cave acquired its name for a reason that becomes obvious once you walk inside, there being hundreds of nesting boxes carved into the rock.  And though it is dreich and damp, it still seems to be popular with pigeons given the amount that fluttered in and out as I walked around. Then, as I stood very still to take a photo in the poor light of the cave, one rather confused pigeon decided that my bald head looked like a good place to land, making me jump as I felt its sharp little feet scrape against my scalp.  I think it got the bigger fright though, given the way it shot back out of the cave entrance.

 

The inside of a cave.  The rock is grey and pink in places and green with moss in others.  At the bottom square nesting boxes are carved into the stone.  Photograph by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
Inside Doo Cave

 

Another view of the inside of the cave showing more nesting boxes,  the stone wallls and the dirt of the ground. Photograph by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
Inside Doo Cave

 

A view of lots of nesting boxes carved into the stone of Doo Cave.  Photograph by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
Nesting Boxes

 

Another view of lots of nesting boxes carved into the stone of Doo Cave.  Photograph by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
Nesting Boxes

 

A view of a recess in the cave leading into darkness.  Photograph by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
Inside the cave

 

A view looking out through the cave entrance showing a rocky beach and the sea beyond.  Photograph by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
Looking out from the cave entrance

 

For many years the entrance to Doo Cave was walled up with an opening at ground level to allow access for gathering eggs or birds, with some openings higher up to allow the pigeons to get in and out. 

 

Doo Cave was once linked to another cave, West Doo Cave, which contained seventeen Pictish carvings.  Unfortunately, this cave collapsed due to the weight of a gun emplacement that was built above it in 1914.  There are various photographs and drawings of these now lost symbols which can found in old books documenting the caves and at the Wemyss Caves 4D website - Wemyss4D

 

A picture of some shapes and symbols that were carved on the cave walls - there are some bird like carvings along with crosses and other shapes.
Carving found in West Doo cave – from ‘The Sculptured Stones of Scotland’

 

After looking around the cave, and dodging pigeons, I left the Skulferatu that had accompanied me, on a cobwebby ledge by the carved stone nesting boxes.

 

A small ceramic skull (Skulferatu 138) being held up with the entrance to Doo Cave in the background.  Photograph by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
Skulferatu #138

 

A photo showing some of the nesting boxes in the cave with a small ceramic skull (Skulferatu 138) on a ledge amongst them.  Photograph by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
Skulferatu #138 on a cobwebby ledge

 

A photo of a small ceramic skull (Skulferatu 138) sitting on a cobwebby stone ledge.  Photograph by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
Skulferatu #138 on a cobwebby ledge

 

TomTom Map showing location of Skulferatu #138
Map showing location of Skulferatu #138

 

The coordinates for the location of the Skulferatu are -

 
Latitude 56.161236
Longitude -3.058774
 
what3words: barrel.ending.solving

 

I used the following sources for information on Doo Cave –

 

Archaic Sculpturings of Cups, Circles, etc. upon Stones and Rocks in Scotland, England and other Countries
By J.Y. Simpson
1867
 
The Sculptured Stones of Scotland
John Stuart
1867
 
Examples Of Printed Folk-lore Concerning Fife With Some Notes On Clackmannan And Kinross-shires
Collected by John Ewart Simpkins
1914
 

Tuesday, 8 July 2025

Skulferatu #137 - The Curling House, Gosford Estate, Aberlady, East Lothian

 

On the coastal road from Edinburgh to North Berwick, just before Aberlady, you pass a long stone wall.  A long stone wall that hides behind it the estate and gardens of Gosford House.  I’ve cycled past here numerous times and have never paid much attention to it.  Then last year, during the couple of weeks it is open to the public, I went on a guided tour of the house. Afterwards, I went on a quick wander around the gardens and thought I really should venture back some time to explore a bit more.

 

The gardens, unlike the house, are open to the public for most of the year.  However, you have to purchase a permit to enter them.  This probably puts a lot of people off visiting, given how expensive it is at the massive cost of £1.  But, hey, being free and easy with my cash I thought nothing of forking that out for a visit and so headed off for a trek around the estate.

 

Walking along the woodland paths I spotted in the distance the rather grand pile that is Gosford House.  This was commissioned in the 1790s by the Earl of Wemyss as a place to house his art collection and impress his guests with.  It was then built on plans drawn up by the architect Robert Adam, who unfortunately died before it was completed.  Once the Earl had his fancy new abode he needed some landscaping of the rather barren grounds that surrounded it.  The architect and landscaper, James Ramsay was then employed to create a pleasure garden, and he did just that by creating ponds, grottoes and woodland walks.  So, just like the house, the gardens were built to impress those who visited, and they are still pretty impressive.  There are various rustic type buildings designed to give the gardens the look of an eighteenth century landscape painting.  These include an icehouse and a boathouse, while there is also a rather grand mausoleum with a pyramid roof.

 

A black and white photograph of a lawn stretching off down to a large sprawling mansion house with big, cloudy skies up above.  Photograph by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
Gosford House

 

A photo of a triangular shaped building with grass covered banks at either side of it.  It has a pillared and arched porch leading to a red door.  Photograph by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
The Icehouse

 

A photo of a large stone building standing on a grassy area between several trees.  The building has a pillared temple like entrance with a pyramid for a roof. Photograph by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
The Mausoleum

 

A view over a pond to a low stone building with a large, curved entrance over the water. Photograph by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
The Boathouse

 

The woodland in the estate is one of these well managed places that seems like it was always there.  It almost feels that the trees own the property especially when you come across some of the more ancient ones with their twisted, heavy and ancient branches curling down to the ground and up to the sky.

 

A photo of an ancient gnarled looking tree with branches that are digging into the ground like supports while others reach up to the sky.  Photograph by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
An ancient tree on the estate grounds

 

As I walked around the estate it was bustling with wildlife.  Numerous birds sang from the branches of the trees, insects hummed, and small creatures scurried through the undergrowth.  By one of the ponds, I watched as a goose taught her goslings to fly.  Skimming back and forwards the young ones followed her, flapping wildly.  Nearby a serene looking heron stood still, staring intently down at the water waiting to snatch a passing fish or two.

 

Further around the pond I came to a rather kinky little building with tufa rockwork walls, tufa being a soft and porous stone that was much favoured by the Romans.  The building was originally used as a summerhouse for the pleasure gardens and probably had a thatched roof when first built, but this was later replaced.  In the 1860s it acquired a function other than being a decorative and knobbly little folly, when it became the base of the Aberlady Curling Club and was converted into their Curling House.   When the pond froze over, the club would gather to play their games there and use the little house as a place to get warm, and to store their curling stones and brushes. 

 

A view over a large pond to a wooded area where a small building with a red door stands.  Photograph by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
A view across the pond to the Curling House

 

A view over reeds around a large pond to a wooded area where a small building with a red door stands. Photograph by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
A view across the pond to the Curling House

 

A view of the front of a small, jagged stone building with a red door. Photograph by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
The Curling House

 

A close view of the front of the Curling House with a red door in the centre and an arched window at either side.  On the lawn outside and on either side of the door are two clamshells, each fixed onto a rock. Photograph by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
Doorway to the Curling House

 

A view along a jagged stone wall that joins on to the Curling House. Photograph by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
Tufa rock wall

 

A view looking down a path in Gosford Estate to the Curling House. Photograph by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
A view of the Curling House

 

A photo of a clamshell fixed to a long rock jutting out of the ground.  The clamshell forms a sort of basin.  Photograph by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
Clamshell bird bath

 

Thankfully, I was there on a lovely warm day, so rather than freezing my butt off I could sit on a bench in the sunshine and watch the trees sway in a gentle summer breeze.  Looking over at the little Curling House it had an almost fairytale quality, and I half expected some character from the tales of the Brothers Grimm to come out and greet me.  Though rather than a wolf in grandma’s clothing or three hungry bears the only creature to come by was a large dragonfly, who buzzed around busily and then shot away off over the pond.

 

After catching the suns rays for more time than was really healthy, I left the Skulferatu that had accompanied me on my walk in a hollow in one of the stones of the Curling House wall.

 

A photo of a hand holding up a small ceramic skull (Skulferatu #137) with the Curling House in the background.  Photograph by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
Skulferatu #137

 

A small ceramic skull (Skulferatu 137) in a hollow in a lumpy and bumpy bit of jagged rock. Photograph by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
Skulferatu #137 in a hollow in the Curling House wall

 

A small ceramic skull (Skulferatu 137) in a hollow in a lumpy and bumpy bit of jagged rock. Photograph by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
Skulferatu #137 in a hollow in the Curling House wall

 

TomTom Map showing location of Skulferatu #137
Map showing location of Skulferatu #137

 

The coordinates for the location of the Skulferatu are -

 

Latitude 55.999447
Longitude -2.86996
 
what3words: gossiped.healthier.orchids

 

I used the following sources for information on the Curling House –

 
 
 

 

 

 

Tuesday, 10 June 2025

Skulferatu #136 - Dollan Aqua Centre, East Kilbride, South Lanarkshire


Jim and William Reid of the Jesus and Mary Chain sang a song about nine million rainy days, and so far this summer has been pretty much like that.  It was a rainy day as I arrived in their hometown of East Kilbride.  Leaving the train and walking out of the station I felt like I was walking into a cloud, a cloud of fine, misty rain that seemed to instantly soak through my inadequate clothing in minutes. It had been sort of dry when I left Edinburgh and I had hoped it might stay that way through in the west, but no such luck.  Putting on my bravest face while the view through my glasses became a distorted kaleidoscope of raindrop images, I marched up through a housing estate to a park where, on top of a grassy hill, Dollan Aqua Centre the building I’d come to see stood.

 

A photo of a park on a hill with swings, a small slide and some benches.  There are no people in the park.  Photo by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
The deserted park

 

A black and white photo of a Brutalist type concrete sculpture sitting in a low walled area in a park.  . Photo by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
Park sculptures by Jim Barclay

 

The park was deserted, much as would be expected on a day like this. Swings hung empty while park benches yearned for the huddled company of a wet backside or two.  An abstract sculpture sitting in a walled off area seemed to just add to the desolate and lonely feeling of what on any half decent day would be an area bustling with activity.

 

Wandering on up the hill I came to Dollan Aqua Centre, originally called Dollan Baths but rebranded at some point to something sounding a bit more trendy.  The building is in a modernist style and from a certain angle looked a bit like some Martian machine from War of the Worlds, though maybe a bit more friendly. 

 

A view of a curved roof, modern looking building sitting on top of a hill.  Photo by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
Dollan Aqua Centre

 

A view through an area of greenery and flowers to a building of concrete and glass that has concrete struts reaching out from it.  Photo by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
Dollan Aqua Centre

 

A black and white photo showing a car park with many cars in it.  In the background are the concrete struts and curved glass of Dollan Aqua Centre.  Photo by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
Dollan Aqua Centre car park

 

A black and white photo showing a detail from a modernist type statue of a female figure wearing what appear to be swimming goggles.  Photo by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
Detail of sculpture outside the Aqua Centre

 

The building was commissioned by the town council to celebrate East Kilbride becoming a burgh in 1963.  It was designed by Alexander Buchanan Campbell who took his inspiration from Kenzo Tange's National Gymnasium, which was built for the 1964 Tokyo Olympics.  It is mainly constructed of pre-stressed concrete, and was intended to give the impression of a giant marquee.  This was emphasised with the vaulted parabolic arched roof of the building being supported by V-shaped concrete buttresses that reach down to the ground at a thirty degree angle.  Dollan Baths opened in 1968 at a cost of £600,000, and was Scotland’s first 50 metre swimming pool.  It is named after Sir Patrick J Dollan, a former Lord Provost of Glasgow.

 

A photo framed by trees showing the Dollan Aqua Centre from a different angle.  Photo by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
Dollan Aqua Centre

 

A photo of the Aqua Centre from an angle where it looks almost like some Martian war machine from H G Wells novel War of the Worlds.  Photo by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
The Martians have landed

 

A view up one of the concrete struts of the building to the eye like windows of the Aqua Centre.  Photo by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
Struts and windows

 

A black and white photo showing the concrete strits at the back of the building running along from it.  Photo by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
Angles in concrete

 

A black and white photo showing three of the eye like windows of the Aqua Centre peering down one of the concrete struts.  Photo by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
Alien eyes

 

The building has undergone a couple of quite expensive refurbishments, one in the 1990s and another in 2008 which resulted in it being closed up until 2011.  It was then closed again in 2019 for a brief period after vandals broke in and caused serious damage.  They had broken into the reception area where there was a small, reinforced window giving an underwater view into the pool.  After trashing the reception area, they managed to smash a hole in the window causing hundreds of gallons of water from the pool to cascade through the building.  Luckily, a clean up operation by the emergency services and staff managed to stop the damage from becoming fatal to the structure.

 

A view of a concrete stairway against a brick and concrete wall.  Photo by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
Stairway

 

A view of a wall in which the lower part is brick with rectangular windows and intervals, and the top is concrete with small square windows at regular intervals.  Photo by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
Concrete and brick

 

A photo looking up at curved chutes with the sky up above.  Photo by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
Chutes

 

A photo of a tall chimney poking up out of concrete struts.  Photo by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
Chimney

 

A abstract type view looking up through concrete struts by the chimneyt of the Aqua Centre.  Photo by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
Abstract of chimney and struts

 

Another view of the futuristic looking Aqua Centre with cloudy grey skies up above it.  Photo by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
Dollan Aqua Centre

 

In 2002 the building was listed as a Category A building by Historic Scotland.  Docomomo International have also listed it as one of sixty key monuments in Scottish post-war architecture.

 

With a pool and gyms, the Aqua Centre is still well used by the local community.  Was I tempted to pop in for a swim you may ask?  Nah, it was wet enough outside for me. 

 

During my wanders around the building, I found a nice mossy spot on one of the concrete struts and there I left the Skulferatu that had accompanied me.

 

A photo of a small ceramic skull (Skulferatu 136) being held up with Dollan Aqua Centre in the background.  Photo by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
Skulferatu #136

 

A photo of a small ceramic skull (Skulferatu 136) sitting in a bed of moss on a concrete strut.  Photo by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
Skulferatu #136 on a bed of moss

 

A photo of a small ceramic skull (Skulferatu 136) sitting in a bed of moss on a concrete strut.  Photo by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
Skulferatu #136 on a bed of moss

 

TomTom Map showing location of Skulferatu #136
Map showing location of Skulferatu #136

 

The coordinates for the location of the Skulferatu are -

 

Latitude 55.762007
Longitude -4.182705
 
what3words: early.assume.mole

 

I used the following sources for information on Dollan Aqua Centre –

 

Daily Record – 24 July 2019
 
 

 

 

Tuesday, 13 May 2025

Skulferatu #135 - Dalgarnock Covenant Graveyard, Thornhill, Dumfries and Galloway

 

Down some narrow country lanes we drove.  Down some narrow country lanes that had never been designed for cars.  Bumpy and humpy, with few passing places, though thankfully we never met any oncoming traffic or even saw any other vehicles at all.  Through a farmstead and then some lanes that were almost dirt tracks we drove, stopping every so often to open gates and close gates while wondering if we were heading the right way.  Was Google maps playing tricks with us?  And then we saw it.  A small, walled tree lined graveyard surrounded by fields on three sides, and then some woodland on the other. This was Dalgarnock Covenant Graveyard, which had been recommended to me when I’d asked about atmospheric and historic graveyards near to where we were staying in Dumfries.

 

On leaving the car I made my way into the blinding afternoon sunlight and through the heavy iron gates into the graveyard.  Above me the tall trees swayed in the warm breeze.  Trees so old and tall that the branches of one had come crashing down in a recent storm to smash some of the ancient gravestones beneath it.

 

One of the first stones I came across was, however, not that ancient.  It was the Martyrs Cross which was erected in 1925 and is a memorial to fifty-seven Covenanters who died in the 17th Century, all killed for their beliefs.  Covenanters were followers of the Presbyterian Church of Scotland who rejected the idea of the King being the spiritual head of the church.  As far as they were concerned only Jesus Christ could be the head of their church. The name Covenanter comes from the fact that in 1638 many of those who opposed interference in their church by the King signed a document to this effect called the National Covenant.  The Stuart kings, Charles I and later, after the Restoration, Charles II, were not happy about their roles and their ‘divine rights’ being called into question and saw the Covenanters as rebels.  This led to many hundreds of the Covenanters being imprisoned, transported, or executed.  Platoons of Dragoons scoured the land looking for these rebels and when they found any, they often summarily executed them.

 

A tall white stone cross adorned with many names standing in a graveyard with tall trees in the background.  Photo by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
The Martyrs Cross

 

Not far from the Martyrs Cross, there is a much older stone from just over three hundred years ago that is dedicated to James Harkness. 

 

A tall red gravestone almost covered in an epitaph to the occupant of the grave below - James Harkness.  Photo by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
Gravestone of James Harkness

 

The inscription reads -

 

Here lyes the body of James
Harkness in Locherben who
died 6th Dec 1723 aged 72 years
Belo this stone his dust doth ly
who in dured 28 years
porsecution by tiranny
Did him persue with eko & cry
through many a lonsome place
at last by Clavers he was tane
Sentenced for to dy
But God who for his soul took care
did him from prison bring
Because no other cause they had
But that he could not give up
With Christ his Glorious king,
and swear alligence to that beast
the duke of york, i mean.
In spite of all there hellish rage
a naturel death he died
in full asurance of his rest
with Christ eternally

 

James Harkness was a local farmer who became a hero to the Covenanters, while being seen as a notorious rebel by the ruling powers.  At the start of the persecution of the Covenanters he, and his brother Thomas, fled to Ireland to seek refuge there.  However, they soon tired of living a life in hiding and decided they would rather return home and fight for their cause.  The brothers were soon involved in various escapades, the most notorious of these being the rescue of nine prisoners during the 'Enterkin Raid'.  They received information that a group of Covenanters who had been taken prisoner, were being escorted from Dumfries to Edinburgh by twenty-eight soldiers.  On their journey they would pass through the narrow Path of Enterkin, and it was decided that the brothers would lead an ambush there to free the prisoners.  In the attack they managed to free nine of the prisoners and killed one soldier while wounding many others.  This attack led to a huge number of troops then descending on the area and forcing many of the locals to help them in their search for those responsible.   Lots of people were seized and imprisoned, including James and many of those who had been involved.  They were all taken to Edinburgh, tried and found guilty, and while awaiting execution locked up in the Canongate jail.  Not relishing the prospect of being hanged, the prisoners hatched a plot for an escape.  Not a complicated plot, they just decided to saw through the bars of the window, jump out and run away.   One night they started, and on sawing through the first bar it fell out onto the street.  They thought the game was up as surely either the patrolling night watchmen would have heard it fall or would find it.  Luckily, the clang of it hitting the cobbles below did not bring the watchmen, and as fate would have it, a passerby who was sympathetic to the plight of those in the jail, saw it, picked it up and took it away.  The other two bars were then quickly cut through, before the floorboards to the cell above were also cut to let comrades in there out.  Altogether twenty five men managed to jump out of the window and escape into the night, including James Harkness.  He managed to make it back to Ireland, where he stayed until the persecution of the Covenanters was over.  He then returned home and died there years later as an old man.

 

Thomas, unfortunately, was not so lucky.  He was captured with two friends shortly after James had escaped.  He and his friends were taken to Edinburgh where, on their arrival, a brief trial was heard.  They were found guilty, sentenced to death and an hour later were taken out and hanged.

 

Lots of gravestones in a graveyard with tall trees at the sides and a blue sky patched with white cloud in the background.  Photo by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
Gravestones at Dalgarnock

 

A stone font covered in white lichen with a face carved into the base.  Photo by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
The Old Font from Dalgarnock Church

 

A skull and crossbones carved into a stone.  Photo by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
Skull and crossbones

 

A fallen large red gravestone with faces and ornamentation carved into it.  In the background stand lots of other gravestones in tall grass.  Photo by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
A fallen gravestone

 

A primitive carving of a face with what appears to be wings at the side of it.  Photo by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
Detail from fallen gravestone

 

An ornate gravestone topped with many indented curves.  On it are various primitive looking figures and symbols.  Photo by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
Gravestone at Dalgarnock

 

An ornate gravestone with two figures carved on each side with a face and wings carved at the top.  Photo by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
Gravestone at Dalgarnock

 

Various gravestones in a graveyard with tall trees in the background.  Photo by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
View of Dalgarnock Covenant Graveyard

 

A primitive carving of a skull and crossbones on a gravestone lying in the ground.  Photo by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
Skull and crossbones

 

A view of various gravestones.  There is a rusting and ornate iron fence around some graves on the right hand side.   Photo by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
View of Dalgarnock Covenant Graveyard

 

Though the graveyard now sits on its own, this was not always the case.  There was once a church and also the large and busy village of Dalgarnock here, but that is now all gone.  Why the village died I have no idea, but by the late 18th Century no trace of it remained with the stones of the church and houses having all been reclaimed to build walls, dykes and buildings elsewhere.

 

While walking around the graveyard I came across a rusting, ornate iron fence separating some of the gravestones from the others.  In a gap in a crumbling iron petal, I left the Skulferatu that had accompanied me on my trip to Dalgarnock.

 

A view of an ornate rusting iron fence on a wall around some gravestones.  Photo by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
Rusting, ornate iron fence

 

A hand holding a small ceramic skull (Skulferatu 135) with a view of a graveyard in the background.  Photo by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
Skulferatu #135

 

A view of a small ceramic skull (Skulferatu 135) sitting on top of what looks like an iron petal in the rusting iron fence in the graveyard.  Photo by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
Skulferatu #135 on a crumbling iron petal

 

A close-up view of a small ceramic skull (Skulferatu 135) sitting on top of what looks like an iron petal in the rusting iron fence in the graveyard.  Photo by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
Skulferatu #135 on a crumbling iron petal

 

TomTom Map showing the location of Skulferatu #135
Map showing the location of Skulferatu #135

 

The coordinates for the location of the Skulferatu are -

 
Latitude 55.224032
Longitude -3.768752
 

what3words: seatbelt.twisty.benched

 

I used the following sources for information on Dalgarnock Covenant Graveyard –

 

Inscriptions on the Tombstones and Monuments Erected in Memory of the Covenanters
James Gibson
1879
 
The Martyr Graves of Scotland
J. H. Thomson
1903