Tulliallan Old Kirk

Overview

Tulliallan Old Kirk. The kirkyard has probably survived so well because it became a time capsule. The ruined Tulliallan Old Parish Church it surrounds was built in 1675, but replaced by a new church on a different site in 1832. Today the shell of the old church surrounds a beautifully tended memorial garden.

In more recent times, the kirkyard has been lovingly restored by members of the Kincardine Local History Group. Fallen, buried or sunken stones were cleaned and restored to position, while stones from the 1800s whose brick bases had crumbled away were re-bedded in concrete.

The result is an amazing gallery of Scottish gravestones, dating from the late 1600s to the early 1800s. Traditional symbols of mortality such as crossed bones and hourglasses are everywhere, and as Kincardine has traditionally been a port, nautical symbols of ships and anchors are especially well represented. But you will find all sorts here, including stones in memory of masons, tailors, gardeners and one carrying a wonderful image of a woodsman felling a tree.

One unusual feature is the use of long, low gravestones in parts of the kirkyard. In at least one case it is obvious from the rear face of the stone that whoever put it here reused an earlier upright gravestone, simply turning it on its side and carving a new inscription on one face.

The key to the gate is available from the Cafe at the corner of Kirk Street.

http://www.undiscoveredscotland.co.uk/kincardine/tulliallankirkyard/inde...

Kincardine Green Map
updated 03/2012 by Action for Change Scotland