we meet at last

About 10years ago I read an interesting biography of James Graham the 1st Marquess of Montrose.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Montrose-Covenant-Edward-J-Cowan/dp/086241556X/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1350646866&sr=1-1



portrait by Willem van Honthorst

portrait by Sir Anthony Van Dyck

The cover photo was a portrait of the Marquess painted by Willem van Honthorst. I enjoyed the book so much I made a special pilgrimmage through to The Scottish National Portrait Gallery in Einburgh where the book's sleeve notes informed me the painting was. Alas when I got there an attendant told me the painting was away at another gallery on loan.




Fast forward ten years and I get to visit the gallery and yes this time they do have a painting of the Marquess of Montrose but curiously it is a different painting! This one (which I prefer) is by Sir Anthony Van Dyck



So finally I got to stare into the eyes of the man in the portrait. It didn't seem to matter that it wasn't the same portrait. Since reading that biography of him he's been a bit of a hero of mine. I like it that the house and grounds at Colzium are situated on the site of the Battle of Kilsyth- the Marquess of Montrose's "last & greatest victory".


Ishbel & Alastair with Sophie & Theo on the monument to the Battle of Kilsyth in the grounds of Colzium House








 

 I still have a small hardback edition of Buchan's biography of the man to read some day which Paul King gave me. It's meant to be good as you would expect with Buchan.

Craigendoran Pier by Night

Headed out with the camera again last night on the promise of a clear night from the BBC Weather website. Big rucksack packed - 3 season down bag, bivvy bag, thermarest and all my camera gear-and all set to lie out in the cold on some exposed moorland and record startrail photos for a couple of hours. But immediately out the front door it was apparent that there was considerable cloud cover.
Not to be deterred I devised a plan B: Craigndoran Pier by Helensburgh.


These twin piers used to serve the steamers until 1972 when the service was closed:
"The North British Railway operated the Steam Packet Company steamers from here, from 1882. The station consisted of two through platforms on the line to Helensburgh Central, two through platforms on the West Highland Railway, and a bay platform which extended onto the pier for the steamer connections. The berths consisted of two parallel piers with four berths and a building at the landward end of the piers. The pier station facilities consisted of a single platform with a small canopy. However the sea would break over the sea wall on occasion and soak those waiting.

Following the closure of the service in 1972, the pier was used by small vessels for a number of years. Now, however, the piers are now derelict. Recently the section of pier next to the land was removed leaving the now un-decked piers as forlorn islands."

[from the Ports & Harbours of the Uk website
http://www.ports.org.uk/port.asp?id=833]

When I got there there was a group of guys standing round a fire at the shore end of the southernmost pier. Their silhouettes and cheery banter formed a timeless tableau. I started to set up my tripod and gear at the shore end of the northern pier and did become a bit apprehensive when two of the guys broke off to approach me. I proferred my standard defense in these situations: "I'm just taking pictures!" but needn't have worried. They were just asking me if I wanted to use their fire because they were all about to leave! They thought I was a fisherman.

Inception: St Valentine

I have decided to keep a blog.

The discovery some years ago that St Valentine's relics (well some of them) are kept in Glasgow in The Gorbals was pretty cool I thought.

blessed st john duns scotus, the gorbals

For many people the 'Saint' has dropped off the front of Valentine's Day, but St Valentine is never forgotten in the church of Blessed St John Duns Scotus in Glasgow's Gorbals. If you go there to worship you'll see a gold casket marked "Corpus Valentini Martyris" - the body of St Valentine, Martyr. So what on earth is it doing here?

A helpful leaflet written by the Franciscan Friars who run the church explains it all. In the 19th century, the relics "with all the requisite authentications" were in the possession of a wealthy French Catholic family. As the family started to die out, one member was thoughtful enough to find a home for their unusual heirloom and contacted Fr Stephen Potron, Commissary of the Holy Land in France. At the time, Fr Potron had heard talk on the Franciscan jungle drums of a fine new Friary being built in Glasgow and persuaded Fr Victorin Cartuyvels who was Provincial Minister of the Friars Minor in Belgium to give the casket a permanent home there. In 1868 the relics were sent to the church of St Francis in Cumberland Street, their resting place, until they moved round the corner to their current home in 1999.

The relics are permanently on display in the entrance to the church and as February 14 approaches the Friars decorate the area around the casket with flowers and a statue of St Valentine. On St Valentine's Day special prayers are said for those in love and out of it - those "experiencing difficulties through separation or breakdown are also remembered".

The leaflet also explains that there is really very little connection between St Valentine and the hearts-and-flowers-athon that is the modern Valentine's Day. Geoffrey Chaucer's Parliament of Foules (Parliament of Birds) is the first recorded link between 14 February and romance when it says 'For this was Seyny (St) Valentine's Day when every foul (fowl) cometh there to choose his mate'. It was also traditional for the gentry to swap love notes around this time of year, when everything was stirring. The tradition now associated with St Valentine may even have pre-dated him.

Although the chances of St Valentine ending up here seem fairly slim, a few cities make similar claims. As well as Glasgow, there are bits of St Valentine in Dublin, Birmingham, Vienna and Roquemaure in France. The story is a little unclear but there seems to be an agreement that either one or two Saint Valentines were martyred on February 14 around 270 AD. The rather unlikely set of circumstances that got his remains to the west of Scotland led Glasgow to call itself “City of Love” in 2005 and create a whole love-themed festival. Apart from that, this unusual finding rarely hits the headlines. For the rest of the year St Valentine is left in peace just as he should be.

Source: http://www.nothingtoseehere.net/2009/02/st_valentine_glasgow.html