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Churchyard, Kirkcaldy Old Parish Church, Kirk Wynd, Kirkcaldy

A Category B Listed Building in Kirkcaldy, Fife

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Coordinates

Latitude: 56.1128 / 56°6'45"N

Longitude: -3.1585 / 3°9'30"W

OS Eastings: 328056

OS Northings: 691717

OS Grid: NT280917

Mapcode National: GBR 29.LY33

Mapcode Global: WH6RV.GM67

Plus Code: 9C8R4R7R+4J

Entry Name: Churchyard, Kirkcaldy Old Parish Church, Kirk Wynd, Kirkcaldy

Listing Name: Kirk Wynd, Kirkcaldy Parish Church, Churchyard with Boundary Walls, Gatepiers, Gates and Steps

Listing Date: 21 January 1971

Category: B

Source: Historic Scotland

Source ID: 381074

Historic Scotland Designation Reference: LB36319

Building Class: Cultural

ID on this website: 200381074

Location: Kirkcaldy

County: Fife

Town: Kirkcaldy

Electoral Ward: Kirkcaldy Central

Traditional County: Fife

Tagged with: Churchyard

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Description

Earliest headstones belong to 17th century (illegible, see Notes), with good 18th and 19th century memorials. Situated to N, S and W of church. Predominance of obelisks to SE corner, other memorials include:

S wall - dwarf wall enclosures to mural monuments with pilastered tablets and heraldic pediments commemorating Robert Whyt 1796 and James Townsend Oswald of Dunnikier 1816. Also, stone with shaped pediment to Robert Whytt of Pourane 1667 and his wife Janet Tennant 1670. Cast-iron plaques dated 1823 recording ownership of lairs.

To the E - shaped stone with masons symbols to Anne Alison died 1819 and George Oliphant died 1845; reverse with skull, bones and hour glass to Robert Oliphant, died 1771.

N wall - polished ashlar monument with urn finial and flanking pinnacles to Robert Philp 1828. Monumental edifice to Patrick Swan 1889 with elaborately carved sarcophagus under pedimented keystoned arch, Greek key frieze and seal of Kirkcaldy on tympanum. Pedimented monument to Alexander Malcolm, Shipowner. Ogee monument with gothic detail and floreate capitals to John Anderson, Linen Manufacturer, died 1866.

BOUNDARY WALLS, GATEPIERS, GATES AND STEPS: random rubble boundary walls with saddleback and semicircular coping. Gatepiers to NW (Kirk Wynd) stop-chamfered rusticated ashlar with chamfered plinths and cavetto cornices giving way to raised bases of former finials (possibly cast-iron lamps) and decorative cast-iron gates. Gatepiers to E of ashlar with pyramidal coping. Flight of stone steps to SW with ashlar arch dated '1732' and initialled 'MAA' to left and 'MDM' to right, leading from Kirk Wynd to churchyard.

Statement of Interest

In 1704 Robert Monteath wrote the "Theater of Mortality" in which he translated to rhyming English a number of 17th century Latin verses from headstones since lost or re-used.

External Links

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