Hidden Gems
Described by Binnie in The Churches and Graveyards of Roxburghshire as having a ‘museum like quality’, the church is home to a number of rare artefacts of historical and cultural significance. Two, the Norman Font and the Tympanum above the porch door, are relics of the Pre-Reformation Church.
Norman Font
The font, which is large enough for total immersion of infants, has had a chequered life. Lost at the Reformation, it was discovered in 1850 in Linton Smiddy, where it appears to have been used to hold water for cooling irons. It then became a flower pot on the Laird’s front lawn at Clifton Park, before being repaired and restored to the Church.
Tympanum
Above the porch entrance is the famous “Somervile Stone”, a carved tympanum of weathered sandstone, depicting a knight on horseback thrusting a lance at what may be two bear or wolf-like creatures. The stone is Norman and it is unique in Scotland.
Stained Glass
The small Nunc Dimittis window, the work of Mr Douglas Strachan, facing the south end of the communion table, was unveiled in 1914 to the memory of Christina Balmanno Fleming, wife of the late Dr Thomas Leishman. Douglas Strachan is considered the most significant Scottish designer of stained glass windows in the 20th century.
Embedded in the upper section of the window are several fragments of ancient glass found in Holyrood Palace during excavations made in 1910-1911. This glass is thought to date from the late thirteenth or early fourteenth century, and through it the light must often have fallen on Mary Queen of Scots, and many another Scottish sovereign, as they knelt in prayer in the Chapel Royal.
Bells
The old bell, which still calls the people of Linton to prayer, was presented to the church by the Pringles of Clifton when the barony passed into their hands towards the close of the seventeenth century. The bell, one of the finest toned in the area, bears the inscription, F. LINTOUN. KIRK. JOHN. MEIKLE, ME. FECIT. EDINBURGH. 1697.
An even older bell is the early 17th century “Deid Bell”. Upon its rim is embossed MR ROBERT KER. LINTOUN, minister from 1619-58. Before the Reformation, every parish had its dead bell, whose knell served as a proclamation to the parishioners that one of their members had passed away. It was retrieved from a scrap-iron sale in Kelso for 2d, and is now preserved in the Church.
Described by Binnie in The Churches and Graveyards of Roxburghshire as having a ‘museum like quality’, the church is home to a number of rare artefacts of historical and cultural significance. Two, the Norman Font and the Tympanum above the porch door, are relics of the Pre-Reformation Church.
Norman Font
The font, which is large enough for total immersion of infants, has had a chequered life. Lost at the Reformation, it was discovered in 1850 in Linton Smiddy, where it appears to have been used to hold water for cooling irons. It then became a flower pot on the Laird’s front lawn at Clifton Park, before being repaired and restored to the Church.
Tympanum
Above the porch entrance is the famous “Somervile Stone”, a carved tympanum of weathered sandstone, depicting a knight on horseback thrusting a lance at what may be two bear or wolf-like creatures. The stone is Norman and it is unique in Scotland.
Stained Glass
The small Nunc Dimittis window, the work of Mr Douglas Strachan, facing the south end of the communion table, was unveiled in 1914 to the memory of Christina Balmanno Fleming, wife of the late Dr Thomas Leishman. Douglas Strachan is considered the most significant Scottish designer of stained glass windows in the 20th century.
Embedded in the upper section of the window are several fragments of ancient glass found in Holyrood Palace during excavations made in 1910-1911. This glass is thought to date from the late thirteenth or early fourteenth century, and through it the light must often have fallen on Mary Queen of Scots, and many another Scottish sovereign, as they knelt in prayer in the Chapel Royal.
Bells
The old bell, which still calls the people of Linton to prayer, was presented to the church by the Pringles of Clifton when the barony passed into their hands towards the close of the seventeenth century. The bell, one of the finest toned in the area, bears the inscription, F. LINTOUN. KIRK. JOHN. MEIKLE, ME. FECIT. EDINBURGH. 1697.
An even older bell is the early 17th century “Deid Bell”. Upon its rim is embossed MR ROBERT KER. LINTOUN, minister from 1619-58. Before the Reformation, every parish had its dead bell, whose knell served as a proclamation to the parishioners that one of their members had passed away. It was retrieved from a scrap-iron sale in Kelso for 2d, and is now preserved in the Church.
Collecting Box
The long-handled collecting box is a faithful replica of one used in 1736.
The Douglas Sundial
Outside, on the southwest corner of the church is an old sundial. Round its base are carven the words, My days are like a shadow that declineth, and the short inscription, Mr W. D. 1699, initials almost certainly indicating Walter Douglas, minister of Linton (1698-1727).
Graveyard
‘Visiting the final resting place of a father-in-law I never had the privilege of knowing.’ Entry in Visitor Book, 21.5.2001, from USA
Surrounding the church, the graveyard is said to contain the earliest known possessors of the lands of Linton, the earlier Somervilles and the Graden Kers. Several of the worn stones are of interest for their carvings as well as for the information they give about the people of the neighbourhood over the centuries.
War Memorial
At Linton Downs, stands the War Memorial. It takes the form of a Celtic Cross on which are inscribed the names of the fallen in the 1914-18 War. There is a beautiful tablet inside the Church containing the names of 18 men of the parish who fell in that War, and also a lovely plaque in memory of the 7 men of Linton who gave their lives in the 1939-45 War.
The long-handled collecting box is a faithful replica of one used in 1736.
The Douglas Sundial
Outside, on the southwest corner of the church is an old sundial. Round its base are carven the words, My days are like a shadow that declineth, and the short inscription, Mr W. D. 1699, initials almost certainly indicating Walter Douglas, minister of Linton (1698-1727).
Graveyard
‘Visiting the final resting place of a father-in-law I never had the privilege of knowing.’ Entry in Visitor Book, 21.5.2001, from USA
Surrounding the church, the graveyard is said to contain the earliest known possessors of the lands of Linton, the earlier Somervilles and the Graden Kers. Several of the worn stones are of interest for their carvings as well as for the information they give about the people of the neighbourhood over the centuries.
War Memorial
At Linton Downs, stands the War Memorial. It takes the form of a Celtic Cross on which are inscribed the names of the fallen in the 1914-18 War. There is a beautiful tablet inside the Church containing the names of 18 men of the parish who fell in that War, and also a lovely plaque in memory of the 7 men of Linton who gave their lives in the 1939-45 War.