Scottish Tour Guide's Blog » Rosslyn

Connect with Traditional Stonemasonry, Connect with Traditional Scotland

catswhiskers — Tue, 13 Mar 2012 21:57:52 +0000

: Stonemason, Rosslyn Chapel, Scotland

There is a saying that England is constructed with bricks as Scotland is constructed of stone.

As most tourists will know, Scotland is liberally endowed with stone resources which have been utilised to build castles, cathedrals, churches, houses, walls and more. Aberdeen is called the ‘granite city’ because most of the buildings are built from local granite whilst, on the other hand, Glasgow is largely built of softer sandstone. All around the countryside and Highlands can be seen stone walls (field boundaries) made from local stone and which last hundreds of years.

Stonemasonry is a skill still in demand today especially for reconstruction and conservation work. The images and video shown here were taken at historic, Rosslyn Chapel which dates from the 15th century the interior of which is a stunning display of the medieval stonemasons’ skill.

It is believed that Freemasonry grew out of early associations of stonemasons. The ‘Freemasons’ were outsiders not directly involved in stonemasonry work

Tour Scottish Borders, Tour Scotland

catswhiskers — Thu, 15 Sep 2011 23:02:36 +0000

Dalhousie Castle, Bonnyrigg, Scotland

This morning, our tour styarted with first call at Dalhousie Castle which is connected with Clan Ramsay. Here we had some refreshments and explored the sumptuous building which is now a high end hotel.

Tour Edinburgh, Touring Scotland

catswhiskers — Fri, 12 Aug 2011 17:17:40 +0000

This morning we departed our Falkirk lodgings and then drove into the town to view the former home of the Group’s relative who emigrated tio Canada.

Family House, Falkirk, Scotland

Borders Tour, Scotland

catswhiskers — Fri, 29 Jul 2011 21:02:58 +0000

This morning we departed our Dunfermline lodgings at 9.00am and then drove for about 45 mins to Rosslyn Chapel, about 7 miles south of Edinburgh. This small church dates from the 15th century and took 40 years to complete. It is famous for (a) quality and intensity of the stone carvings which adorn the interior and (b) connection with Dan Brown’s Da Vinci Code. Latter has been double edged in that visitor numbers have multiplied since release of film and book swamping facilities at the Chapel whilst on the plus side the increased revenue has proved of great help in funding the on-going repair and remediation work.

Tour Scottish Borders, Tour Scotland

catswhiskers — Sun, 03 Jul 2011 22:21:29 +0000

Dirleton Castle, Dirleton, Scotland

This morning, I collected my guests from their Edinburgh lodgings and then proceeded to Direlton Castle which is situated S.E.of Edinburgh close to the coast. This is a magnificent castle originally dating from the 13th century but with many additions over the subsequent 400 years. Its military function came to an end in the 17th century following a cannon bombardment by Oliver Cromwell’s forces. In more recent times focus has been developing the extensive herbaceous garden which now ranks as the world’s longest and was resplendent in sunshine today

Tour Edinburgh, Tour Scotland

catswhiskers — Tue, 17 May 2011 20:50:01 +0000

This morning we departed our lodgings about 9.00am and then travelled into Edinburgh’s Royal Mile. We walked up from St Giles Cathedral to the famous castle where we had to wait a few minutes until we could get access at 9.30am opening time. This site affords superb panoramic views over Edinburgh the Forth Rail Bridge, Firth of Forth, Calton Hill and the cityscape generally. At the Castle we visited all the key sites including One O’clock Gun, Military Museum, St Margaret’s Chapel, Mons Meg cano,National Memorial, Crown Jewels, Stone of Destiny and Great Hall.

Edinburgh Private Tour

catswhiskers — Mon, 18 Oct 2010 20:37:21 +0000

This morning I collected guests as arranged at 9.15am from Royal Terrace Hotel and proceeded as follows:

Drove south for about 15 mins to Rosslyn Chapel at Roslin. Following the success of the Da Vinci Code book and film the Chapel has moved up to one of Scotland’s most popular visitor attractions. The Chapel dates from the 15th century and is noted for the intensity and quality of the stone carvings which took about 40 yrs to complete. It has remained under ownership of the Sinclair family since inception. The Sinclair’s are of Viking-Norman descent tracing ancestry back to St. Clair in Northern France. A fascinating site which is in the final stages of a long and expensive restoration programme. Unfortunately photographs of the interior are no longer allowed.

Tour Edinburgh, Tour Scotland

catswhiskers — Fri, 24 Sep 2010 20:51:35 +0000

This morning our group departed Argyll Hotel, Glasgow about 0915 and then travelled to Edinburgh on the east coast where we proceeded to visit the following attractions:

Rosslyn Chapel, about 7 miles of Edinburgh. This 15th century building is full of sophisticated stone carvings and took 40 years to complete. We arrived in time for the 11.00am tour guide talk which took us through the long history of the Chapel which survided the Reformation, Cromwell’s troops, abandonement and eventual re-dedication as an Anglican church in the 19th century. From inception the Chapel has remained under ownership by the Sinclair family. Unfortunately, photographs of the interior are not permitted.

Tour of Edinburgh

catswhiskers — Sat, 18 Sep 2010 22:00:25 +0000

This morning, our tour group elected for a free morning in Edinburgh in order to undertake shopping and private exploring. We met again at 1.15pm and proceeded as follows:

To Rosslyn Chapel about 20 mins from the City. This dates from the 15th century and has become famous, principally due to mention in Dan Brown’s Da Vinci Code but also because of the high quality medieval stone carvings which cover the interior of the Chapel which is still a living church (Episcopalian). We arrived at the Chapel in time for a talk by an expert local guide, albeit one with a thick local accent which presented a challenge to the non-Scots ear.

Rosslyn Chapel

Private Tour of Edinburgh

catswhiskers — Wed, 08 Sep 2010 22:04:58 +0000

Edinburgh

This morning, our tour group assembled at Edinburgh Grassmarket and then embarked on the following motor coach and walking tour:

To park at foot of Salisbury Crags which afforded elevated view of Edinburgh City in background basking in a modicum of sunshine. Our coach driver, George, was in good spirits as his football team had a ‘win’ previous night.

Scotland the Brave

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