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Published: February 13th 2011
rosslyn, castle, abbey 001
Rosslyn Chapel under conservationI went underground Wednesday to see what people lived like in the 17th century. Now before y'all start jumping to conclusions, let me just clarify. No, they did not live underground. Yeah, I was disappointed too. They lived in narrow closings with really tall buildings to fit the overcrowding population. Eventually, the city built over the ground floor of the closes and they were forgotten for years until they were uncovered again in the 20th century and one was eventually made into a tourist attraction called the Mary King's close (she lived in the close). Although the closes were open to the skies way back when, the really tall buildings prevented the majority of sunlight from reaching the ground floor, so the dim lighting inside the current underground close is a pretty accurate representation of what the lighting would have been like in the 1600s. Fortunately for us though, we didn't have to endure the dirtiness of those times. The unsanitation was reiterated throughout the tour. People would throw their urine and feces out the window and onto the street, which amongst other icky substances (such as blood and guts from butchered and skinned animals) would flow into the loch (now
drained) and contaminate their water supply. Ever wonder why Scots like whisky so much? It was cleaner. They drank it to avoid the polluted water which, by the way, did not help their whole dehydration situation during the Black Plague. The tour guide, who was in character as a 17th century maid, took us through different parts of the close and told us the stories of the close's members. These included a murder story which resulted from a dowry dispute, victims of the Black Plague, wood craftsmen, and claims of ghost hauntings.
Friday, I went to Rosslyn Chapel. Sound familiar? Ever read the Da Vinci Code?
I took the bus into the nearby countryside. The chapel is continuously under conservation efforts so the exterior is, well, nothing to brag about at the moment but the interior is really pretty with really detailed carvings. Even the inside though is not as beautiful as it supposedly used to be, affected by all the years and weathering and well-intentioned but harmful attempts to reverse these effects. Even before Dan Brown, the chapel was a place of mystery. It is true that the Holy Gail is allegedly buried beneath. This rumor probably stems
from (or at least was maintained by) the fact that the family who founded the chapel are buried beneath it and the descendents do not want their graves to be dug up and so will not allow anyone to excavate. There are also other rumors of other things buried beneath the chapel, from religious treasures like the holy rood and the cross of crucifixion to Elvis's body. But aside from what's down under, the interior of the chapel in itself holds a lot of mystery. There are engravings that people cannot understand. For example, there are engravings of North American corn and other plants, but the chapel was built 50 years before Columbus discovered the Americas. There is also a patterned code represented in engraved boxes. Musical scientists think it is a musical piece. Many believe that if it is played at the right time and the right day and in the right place, all the mysteries of Rosslyn Chapel will be revealed. One man believes to have cracked the code and has had an orchestra play the music inside Rosslyn, but it must not have been at the right time, right place etc. because we're still wondering how the
hell that corn ended up on that wall. There is also the story of the master and the apprentice. Which isn't so much a mystery as a murder story (unless you count the not 100% certainty that it's true as mystery). Who doesn't love a murder story? A master engraver was given a column in the chapel to carve, but he believed he needed more skills and experience before taking on such a task, so he went to Italy to learn more about engraving. While he was away, the apprentice somehow was able to gain permission (or maybe he deceived and snuck?) to carve the column himself. His work was pretty impressive, but when the master came back after four years, he was enraged to find his column taken. He was even more enraged to find out it was his apprentice, who should not even have had that kind of skill yet. He killed the apprentice on the spot. Their heads are both engraved inside the chapel with the master's head forever looking at the apprentice's column as his punishment. This was also in The Da Vinci Code: It is believed that if you stand in a certain spot at
the center of the chapel, you will be in the center of the Rose Line, and thus feel a powerful energy. Some visitors have reported feeling this sort of energy. I forgot to try it. I guess that just goes to show how much I don't believe in that kind of thing. The tour guide said you would have to be open-minded to feeling it if you wanted to try it and well, that ruled me out. Religious energies may not be my thing, but I could, however, give you a psychological explanation of why that sort of "open-mindedness" would lead to that kind of feeling. I know, I know, I'm jaded. After the guided tour, I went down to the oldest part of the building, the crypt, where a cd-player played the music that is supposedly the code. There were also grave slabs of members of the Knights of Templar. After the chapel, I went to see the castle ruins and walked around the glen a bit before heading back.
I know that was a lot on Rosslyn Chapel alone but I guess my third-grade mystery obsession has never completely gone away. Unfortunately, I couldn't take pictures of
the interior of Rosslyn Chapel or Mary King's Close. Those would have been pretty cool pictures too 😞
Yesterday, I went to Bamburgh Castle and Melrose Abbey with the ISC. Bamburgh Castle is in Northern England, so I can already add another country to my list. It was really beautiful and on the shores of the ocean. We went on a self-guided tour through the different rooms to learn about its history and even read about some ghost sightings. Apparently "Most Haunted" did an episode in the castle. Also, I found it interesting that people live in the castle. They pay 2,000 pounds a month, which is actually not bad considering they're living in a waterfront castle! Afterwards, I walked around town and saw its parish. I also learned about the story of Grace Darling who was the daughter of a lighthouse-keeper and helped her father save 13 lives from a shipwreck. The town has a museum on her story and after seeing her gravestone outside the parish,I went into the gift shop to ask the woman there why the hell the father never became popular after doing the exact same thing (except I was nicer about it). She
told me that it was the spirit of the age. It was because Grace was a woman and there were rarely any stories about heroines (no stories or no attention paid to them? hmmmm). Queen Victoria had just ascended the throne around that time and there was a new rising notion of women's capability to do anything and here was this story that proved it. I'm not gonna lie, I was sincerely pissed off that the father didn't get the credit he deserved and that the whole thing was a big deal because she was a woman and not because she was just kick-ass. Good thing I wasn't around back then. I went to a traditional tea shop next and had a chocolate brownie with milk. After a quick visit to the beach, I went back on the bus and travelled another hour and a half to Melrose Abbey which is really just Abbey Ruins, though they were still pretty. Melrose is famous as being the alleged place where Robert the Bruce's heart is buried (surprise, surprise, the Rosslyn Chapel is another rumored place but Robert the Bruce actually instructed his heart to be buried at Melrose). We spent about
an hour there before heading back.
Well, I think this entry is long enough. I'm really excited for this upcoming weekend because I'm going on a 3-day trip with some friends to the Isle of Skye, the Highlands including Glen Coe, and Loch Ness!
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Rachel
non-member comment
Don't get eaten by a monster!
Maybe if the father had gotten the attention as well, it would have taken away from the girl's heroism, suggesting that women are only brave and strong when following a male role model. On the other hand, it's not like she actually did it alone. Bring me back some sea glass please! I swam and collected some shells on the beach last week in Florida. I thought I saw sea glass, but it turned out to be baby Man of War jelly fish - not a good substitution. A week back in the desert and I am already missing the ocean. Off to swim at the pool - poor substitute for the ocean, but easier for swimming laps. Skype soon please.