Kilchousland Old Parish Church, Baird Stone. General view.

Description Kilchousland Old Parish Church, Baird Stone. General view.

Date 1967

Collection Records of the Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Scotland (RCAHMS), Edinbu

Catalogue Number AG 1498

Category Photographs and Off-line Digital Images

Copies SC 801636, SC 2524684

Scope and Content Gravestone of Archibald Baird, Old Parish Church and Burial-Ground, Kilchousland, Argyll & Bute This gravestone features a crown and mantling (leafy drapery) at the top, a representation of the Crown of Righteousness which awaits the faithful in Heaven. Below this two cherubs climb trees, perhaps used here as emblems of rebirth and renewal. At the base of the stone is a skull and bones (emblems of death), and an hourglass (emblem of life's brevity). Scottish gravestones feature a wealth of imagery and symbolic devices which represent trade emblems, symbols of death and resurrection, and Biblical scenes. They offer a fascinating insight into how our ancestors saw themselves and how they wanted to be remembered, as well as providing a store of information for people interested in family or local history, and folk art. This gravestone commemorates Archibald Baird, a smith in Smerbie, who died in 1720. It stands in the burial-ground of Kilchousland Church, originally dedicated to St Columba, and now in ruins. It was built in the 12th century and extended eastwards during the 16th century. Part of a medieval stone cross was found in the burial-ground (now in Campbeltown Museum), and several fine post-Reformation gravestones also survive. Source: RCAHMS contribution to SCRAN.

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