View of gravestone for Donald Maceman 1789 and Ann McKenzie 1791 in the churchyard of Comrie Old Parish Church.

Description View of gravestone for Donald Maceman 1789 and Ann McKenzie 1791 in the churchyard of Comrie Old Parish Church.

Date c. 1985

Collection Papers of Betty Willsher, historian, St Andrews, Scotland

Catalogue Number SC 1531950

Category On-line Digital Images

Copy of A 7451

Scope and Content Gravestone of Donald MacEwen and Ann McKenzie, Comrie Old Parish Church, Comrie, Perth & Kinross This gravestone, like many others in the graveyard, features a tall tympanum (top part) with scrolled borders. This contains an image of a winged soul (symbol of the spirit ascending to Heaven after death), carved with a severe face and fluted, flipper-like wings. The central part of the stone features a blank panel. Perhaps an inscription has worn away, or one was never added. The lowest panel is carved with a border inscribed: 'MEMENTO MORI' (remember you must die) along with a skull, crossed bones, and an hourglass (emblems of mortality and the brevity of life). The skull on this gravestone is naïvely carved, consisting of a flattened roundel with drilled holes for eyes, a triangular nasal cavity, and a row of four peg-like teeth. Carvings of skulls on gravestones vary widely in anatomical accuracy and style. Some masons carved very simple skulls like this example, whilst others attempted to suggest the form of the skull by indicating the jawbones, or back of the head. Some examples even show two rows of teeth, and a further smile below the jaw! This gravestone commemorates Donald MacEwen, who died in 1789, and Ann McKenzie, who died in 1791. It is inscribed: 'HERE LYES/DONALD MACEWEN IN BALLOCH/WHO DIED JANUARY 1789/AGED & 70 YEARS & ANN MCK/ENZIE HIS SPOUSE WHO DIED/JANUARY 1791 AGED 82/erected by their son/JOHN MACEWEN IN BALLOCH'. Source: RCAHMS contribution to SCRAN.

Permalink http://canmore.org.uk/collection/1531950

File Format (TIF) Tagged Image File Format bitmap