Irvine Old Parish Churchyard | Virtual Tour 2020

[@awaywayye]

Brilliant work! 👏

[@MarkTrigsted]

Thank you for your work... Do you know if David Dick or Dickson one of the ministers of the church in the 1600's is buried there in the church yard?

[@erikachapman6193]

Such fascinating facts and a wonderful view of the cemetery. Billy is good at telling the stories of the people buried there.

[@krisballantyne4262]

Billy really does know his stuff, thanks for watching!

[@jrdouglasesq]

Love this.. Please do more videos featuring Billy.. Great insight and story telling.

[@krisballantyne4262]

We'll have three more coming in August, John 😁 subscribe and keep an eye out for those. Thanks for watching!

[@AlbaSkies]

It really is rather good Kris!

[@krisballantyne4262]

Thank you very much kind sir! Much appreciated ❤️

[@WhiteHorseOfKilburn]

been to that graveyard to look for me ancestors can you help me plz???

[@krisballantyne4262]

Hi Angie, if you add me on Facebook (same name and profile picture) I could put you in touch with Billy who can help☺️

[@WhiteHorseOfKilburn]

@@krisballantyne4262 certainly will and thanks 👌

[@landyfan5366]

Delightful, thank you. Just one thought about the grave of Robert Montgomery for his wife. The winged skull at the top represents the spirit or soul of the deceased ascending to heaven. It was thought that the soul would leave the body and rise up to heaven when called to do so. This, they thought, may be well after death, by which time the human remains would be just bones. More normally the winged spirit is shown with flesh on it, but not uncommon to see it shown as a skull.

[@krisballantyne4262]

Thanks for your comment and for watching Landy! You're correct in saying that a winged-soul signifies the soul leaving the body at death to go to heaven. On a winged-soul carving the head is always a cherub with an angelic appearance. This isn't a cherub's head with wings but a nasty devilish skull with wings, to warn and scare the onlooker.There are plenty of winged souls in most graveyards of this time period but "winged death", like this one, is a much rarer occurrence and quite unique 😁

[@landyfan5366]

The position of the image on the gravestone (at the top heading up to heaven) and its wings distinguishes the symbol from a Deathhead and I suggest puts it in the category of winged spirit. There are plenty of similar skulls with wings symbolising such in Scottish Graveyards, particularly in The Borders and parts of Perthshire. There are some in North Northumberland too. But part of the fascination of stones of this age is the creativity of the stonemason, who sadly are completely anonymous despite their extraordinary skill.

[@landyfan5366]

If you are interested in the history of 18thC gravestones you might enjoy this group Britta, here is the link to the FB group that focuses on 18thC gravestones. facebook.com/groups/2077041982439221/