Kirkcaldy Civic Society

BUS TRIP TO BRECHIN

Saturday

7th July 2007


	Our bus departed from the Adam Smith Theatre around 9.30am and headed north to the City of Brechin, Angus. Our first stop was Brechin Cathedral and round tower. The tower (height 86'9") is thought to date from around 1100 and is of the type found in Ireland. These towers served as bell towers and were a place of safety for both people and the precious possessions of the Church during times of war. This is why the doorway to the tower is above ground level making it difficult for enemies to gain access. It is thought that the tower may have been built by Irish masons. We found two masons marks on the tower.
City of Brechin		The round tower


Brechin Cathedral	Cathedral window	Pictish carving

Brechin Cathedral has spectacular stained glass windows, one of which is shown above. It is attributed to Henry Dearle (1860-1932) who worked for the firm of Morris & Co.

In a corner of the Cathedral we saw a collection of Pictish stones with beautiful carvings depicting people and animals.

Our next stop was the Brechin Castle Centre (Haughmuir, Brechin, Angus, DD9 6RL) where we had lunch.

In the centre is Pictavia which opened on the 2nd August 1999. Here we saw another collection of Pictish stones, something of particular interest to the society because there are Pictish carvings not far from Kirkcaldy, at the Wemyss Caves.

We then boarded the bus for the short trip to Brechin Castle.

Pictavia

Brechin Castle

We were shown round the beautiful house by two very knowledgeable guides. Lady Dalhousie was at home and came to see our group.

One of the rooms had a strange chamber with a tiny round window. We thought it might be hiding place but we were told it was where, in the olden days, wigs would have been powdered !

Afterwards some of our group strolled through the beautiful gardens of the castle while others had decided to return to the Brechin Castle Centre before returning home to Kirkcaldy.

We arrived back at Kirkcaldy at 5.30pm. It had been a very enjoyable trip.

The garden

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