Detail of Atholl emblems in relief and incised date, 1742, on obelisk. Digital image of PT 4256.

Description Detail of Atholl emblems in relief and incised date, 1742, on obelisk. Digital image of PT 4256.

Date 22/10/1973

Catalogue Number SC 767264

Category On-line Digital Images

Copy of PT 4256

Scope and Content Detail of obelisk, Blair Castle, Perth & Kinross This shows the base of an ashlar stone obelisk in the grounds of the castle. One face is carved with a badge and the other with the three-legged symbol or 'Trie Cassyn' of the Isle of Man (designs taken from the Duke of Atholl's coat of arms). It was made by sculptor John Cheere (d.1785) and incised with the date 1742. It was transported by boat from London to the Highlands. The 2nd Duke of Atholl paid £16 for this obelisk on 23rd June 1742, and accounts describe it as being made from Portland stone and 'carv'd in ye four fronts'. Transporting this large piece of sculpture safely required '2 dozen and ten iron braces', and instructions for setting it up on arrival suggest a 'foundation of brick or stone work about two foot in ye ground for ye obelisk to stand on'. Blair Castle, the seat of the Dukes of Atholl, was begun in 1269, extended in the 15th and 16th centuries, and remodelled to resemble a Georgian mansion by architect James Winter in the mid-1700s. The south-east wing was built in 1743-5, and rebuilt to include a clock-tower to designs by architect Archibald Elliot in 1814 after a fire. The castle was 're-baronialised' to designs by architect David Bryce in 1869-71, who also designed the ballroom (1826-7). It was modified again in 1886 (J C Walker), 1904-5 (J McIntyre Henry) and 1920-1 (Sir Robert Lorimer). Source: RCAHMS contribution to SCRAN.

Permalink http://canmore.org.uk/collection/767264

File Format (TIF) Tagged Image File Format bitmap