A site of great antiquity having
been already established by 1157. Dedicated to St Devenick the church
underwent repairs in the 1620's by the order of Bishop Forbes. The
present church which dominates the graveyard was built in 1822. The
grounds are adjacent to the South Deeside road and suffer a
little from the consequent traffic noise. The grounds however are kept
in excellent condition and there are many gravestones worth viewing. Many tablet
stones are to be seen, but as usual these are more difficult to decipher
than their vertical counterparts.
I visited the graveyard in early Spring and it was very peaceful away
from the road, and
though I was there for a number of hours I saw no other visitor. The only
sound was my own feet and the faint ringing of wind chimes from the
garden of Kirkton House. A strange sound to hear in a NE graveyard
but not unpleasant at a distance.
The graveyard has been extended twice, the first being to the east of
the original graveyard, with a further extension to the south-east. The
newest graveyard has bench seating facing south - a nice thoughtful
touch.
Parking can be found adjacent to the northern wall of the churchyard
or alternatively past the church on the corner. Well worth a visit and recommended.
If you require a specific gravestone photo from the above send me your relevant details and
I'll e-mail you what I have. Contact me
here
Special Note: If you can solve the puzzle of
the mirror image 'N's used in the middle gravestone photo shown below I
would like to hear from you! Was the mason partly illiterate? Did an
apprentice have a template upside down? Or is there a more deliberate
reason? Contact me here
if you can satisfy my curiosity!
Update on the above - I now have the solution!
The answer was fashion! Yes the name that describes all kinds of daft
things such as flair trousers and dark green bathroom suites. For a
while during the Victorian era it was fashionable to mirror image the
letter 'N'. I've seen the same on just two other stones in the NE so it does
not seem to have become too popular locally. But then that's fashion for
you!
Click on photos below to enlarge
