Field Visit
Date 4 October 2000
Event ID 612542
Category Recording
Type Field Visit
Permalink http://canmore.org.uk/event/612542
A stone sited amongst nine silver birch trees, at the end of a path of sixteen flag stones set into the grass.
The original proposal for the memorial was a curved wall with five trees in another part of Princes Street Gardens.
Following Ian Hamilton Finlay's earlier 'Sacred Grove' at the Kroller-Muller, Otterlo (19), and previous work at Little Sparta, the use of the stone in the form of a column base here is meant to suggest the role of a living column for the tree behind. Unfortunately, the original birches did not thrive, and were replaced a few months later so that the tree does not line up with the base as Finlay intended. Here, the classical tradition of architecture is returned to its roots in the tree.
Inscriptions : On front of stone (incised letters):
A MAN OF LETTERS
R.L.S.
1850 - 1894
Signatures : None
Design period : 1987-1989
Year of unveiling : 1989
Unveiling details : 14 July 1989 (unveiled by Muriel Spark)
Information from Public Monuments and Sculpture Association (PMSA Work Ref : EDIN0178)
