Documents

Where documents include maps, the use of this data is subject to terms and conditions (https://portal.historicenvironment.scot/termsandconditions).

The legal document available for download below constitutes the formal designation of the monument under the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Areas Act 1979. The additional details provided on this page are provided for information purposes only and do not form part of the designation. Historic Environment Scotland accepts no liability for any loss or damages arising from reliance on any inaccuracies within this additional information.

• Type

  Legal Documents

  Title

  SM90169_Legal Doc

  Download(https://portal.historicenvironment.scot/document/600014699)

Summary

Description

The monument comprises the remains of Inchmahome Priory, founded c. 1238 by Walter Comyn, Earl of Menteith for a small community of Augustinian Canons. Following the Reformation, the Priory was secularised and, in 1604 and 1606, the estates granted to the Erskine family as a Lordship for the 2nd Earl of Mar. The island was acquired by the Marquis of Montrose towards the end of the 17th century and the Priory placed in state care in 1926.

The upstanding remains consist of the church, cloister, chapter house, most of the E range and fragments of the S and W ranges. Much of the church is still standing. The processional doorway at the centre of the ornate W front leads into the nave where an arcade of four arches opened into a N aisle. A bell tower is slotted into the W bay. The E wall of the choir shows a fine arched window with five lancets which once lit the high altar.

The cloister buildings in their present form appear to be considerably later than the main body of the church, possibly dating to the 15th century. These presumably replaced an earlier group of buildings, some foundations of which have been discovered around the walls of the refectory. The surviving cloister walls of the E and W ranges are unusual in that these were once wholly or partly absorbed within the body of the ranges instead of being built as lean-to pentices.

The E range is the most complete, incorporating the canons' dormitory along much of the upper floor with the night stair at the N end and the remains of the day stair at the SE corner of the cloister. The ground floor was occupied by the calefactory and reredorter. The chapter house, still roofed, incorporates lofty gables which date from its transformation into a mausoleum for the post-Reformation Earls of Mentieth.

It now contains a number of effigies and gravestones, including a double effigy of Walter Stewart (d.c. 1295) and of his Countess, Mary. Little remains of the S range, which once housed the Refectory, and the W range is similarly poorly represented. The ground floor of the latter possibly contained the cellarer's stores while the upper may have housed the Prior's Lodging.

The area to be scheduled corresponds to the island of Inchmahome, bounded by the shoreline at normal winter water levels, as marked in red on the accompanying map extract.

Statement of National Importance

The monument is of national importance as the remains of the Augustinian Priory of Inchmahome, founded by Walter Comyn, Earl of Menteith in the 13th century, which became part of a secular Lordship following the Reformation. The site has the potential to add to our knowledge and understanding of ecclesiastical architecture and the way of life of the Augustinian Canons. It also has the potential to add to our knowledge of the history of the Earldom and lands of Menteith.

References

Bibliography

About Scheduled Monuments

Historic Environment Scotland is responsible for designating sites and places at the national level. These designations are Scheduled monuments, Listed buildings, Inventory of gardens and designed landscapes and Inventory of historic battlefields.

We make recommendations to the Scottish Government about historic marine protected areas, and the Scottish Ministers decide whether to designate.

Scheduling is the process that identifies, designates and provides statutory protection for monuments and archaeological sites of national importance as set out in the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Areas Act 1979.

We schedule sites and monuments that are found to be of national importance using the selection guidance published in Designation Policy and Selection Guidance (2019)

Scheduled monument records provide an indication of the national importance of the scheduled monument which has been identified by the description and map. The description and map (see ‘legal documents’ above) showing the scheduled area is the designation of the monument under the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Areas Act 1979. The statement of national importance and additional information provided are supplementary and provided for general information purposes only. Historic Environment Scotland accepts no liability for any loss or damages arising from reliance on any inaccuracies within the statement of national importance or additional information. These records are not definitive historical or archaeological accounts or a complete description of the monument(s).

The format of scheduled monument records has changed over time. Earlier records will usually be brief. Some information will not have been recorded and the map will not be to current standards. Even if what is described and what is mapped has changed, the monument is still scheduled.

Scheduled monument consent is required to carry out certain work, including repairs, to scheduled monuments. Applications for scheduled monument consent are made to us. We are happy to discuss your proposals with you before you apply and we do not charge for advice or consent. More information about consent and how to apply for it can be found on our website at www.historicenvironment.scot.

Find out more about scheduling and our other designations at www.historicenvironment.scot/advice-and-support. You can contact us on 0131 668 8914 or at designations@hes.scot.