View from the harbour

Description View from the harbour

Date c. 1890

Collection Papers of Erskine Beveridge, antiquarian, Dunfermline, Fife, Scotland

Catalogue Number F 2034

Category Photographs and Off-line Digital Images

Copies SC 747795

Scope and Content The Gyles, Pittenweem, Fife Pittenweem, a picturesque fishing port on the east coast of Fife, developed round its medieval harbour. The town's prosperity in the 17th and 18th centuries, particularly through trade with the Low Countries, is reflected in the substantial dwelling houses that adjoin the harbour. This photograph of a 17th-century group, known collectively as The Gyles, was taken by Erskine Beveridge c.1890. The main block (left), characterised by its tall, vertical lines, is a three-storeyed harled building, with a large chimney-gable at the wall-head and a forestair (external stair) to the left. The steeply pitched roof is pantiled, with a broad band of slates at the eaves and crowstepped gables. The building is a fine example of Scottish domestic architecture. The plain front is enhanced by the chimney-head gable, a central gablet with a single attic window which rises from the front wall-head. The crowstepped gables, an old form of finishing the top of the gable with dressed stone that has its own Scottish style, were typically found in Fife. The distinctive curved pantiles are also traditionally associated with Fife fishing villages, although the more costly slate was often used for the first few rows of a roof, covering the vulnerable wall-head and giving added protection against rain and gales. Source: RCAHMS contribution to SCRAN.

Permalink http://canmore.org.uk/collection/314384