The carvings are on a rock face on the opposite bank of the Clyde from Bothwell castle. Not an easy place to visit and definitely a no-no in wet or damp weather. Coming from Hamilton you take the Blantyre Ferme road and cut off to the right into the football pitches car park. Access to the carvings [which are directly below the ruins of the priory] if I remember right there is a gate type thing or timber bridge there - at the end of the car park in front of the trees that you can use as a landmark, the only way to get down to the place is by finding a wee rivulet [after going into the trees about 25 ft. veer to the right] that falls into the river and crossing it, there is a hint of a path from there that takes you along the rock face to the carvings. Spring before the undergrowth comes back to life is probably the best time for anyone who hasn't been before.
The carvings can be a touch difficult to find first time, and wet is bad new, probably not o much dangerous, as mucky at the rivulet. I've been a few times over the years, and actually lost the path on one trip this year! Most embarassing.
The map linked below shows the spot, centre of the area pictured. The path into the trees is to the north east corner of the playing field shown. The timber bridge is NOT the route though, you have to head off into the woods along a path that lies just to its left as I recall (oops, memory's fading already ). The obvious path across the rivulet is also not the one to follow - it just takes you to the priory ruins that lie ABOVE the carvings. You have to have to keep heading down the hill a bit futher, and then you come to another obvious crossing point (this is where it get a bit trickier), then just follow the path.
(Copy the link, I'll probably remove it later as there is some evidence now of visiting vandals. Last time I was there, there was a group of them digging and tearing up the river bank to heave out big stones and throw them into the river. As the Captain and I know, there are historical remains there, just under the water, that could be damaged).
A moment's inattention, a misplaced foot, and his life appears to be over. One can still hope though, and although it's only a little, the last report was that he may be responding to stimulus.
I mention this because I was happily hanging off the trees, one handed, while trying to get far enough back to get decent shots of the carvings last time I was there. A steep slope, rather than a drop, but maybe always better to think twice and act once.
Didn't mean to put you off, there isn't any particular hazard. Having been recently, I think the path's better than it was when I first visited about 10 years ago. I seem to recall having to inch along and edge with a drop, that seem to be gone now
The only 'hassle' is at the rivulet, where there's a small drop to negotiate (3-4 ft), and climb back up when heading home. I don't recollect if there's a 'long way round', I didn't bother looking.
If you need a hand, the Captain or I are happy to take a run out at an mutually acceptable time, and there's always the WWII gun emplacement across the road, to make the trip more interesting.
The only 'hassle' is at the rivulet, where there's a small drop to negotiate (3-4 ft), and climb back up when heading home. I don't recollect if there's a 'long way round', I didn't bother looking.
Always tricky Dicky ( ) when descending thats where a stick comes in handy. There is a long way round but its not a route I'd recommend descending, it is alright to come back out though by going down to the river bank and and heading along the sandbanks then carefully negotiate your way up over a million rocks [bit like a scree field you'd find up the mountains] - I suspect these 'rocks' are actually dumped remnants of the priory - the old 'lets all roll a boulder doon the hill game' the stone from the priory walls went somewhere, whether its this I can't be sure.
As always, while hunting for something else, I found that there was an entry for the carvings in RCAHMS (it may be a great resources, but it's also miserable git when it comes to giving up its info, especially if it's a little bit obscure).
With reasonable provenance, they put the actual date of the work down to c.1956, although they do little to identify the artist, other than refer to a 'local man'.
I still find it a bit odd that the guys that were taking the pics in the 50s, who I know were local, and amateur historians tied in with the local library, weren't aware of more of the details when they were making their record. Likewise the later stories waffling on about them dating to the 1700s, but that could just be innocent ignorance by those to whom the find is new, so probably less significant, if at all.
"Hi there saw your comment on the carvings at blantyre priory..I have a very reliable source as the person who did the carvings was my mothers cousin his name is Tommy Hawkins they were carved in the early 1950's.
Two sources for the carver's name, assuming Marie is the cousin to Roz (or Roz's husband), suggest the info is reliable (unless Roz is also an online alias of course).
Won't be going on that page, but sadly, he's also said to have later succumbed to the bottle.
Yes, they were pretty good in their time, but now that we know their date of birth and age, they're clearly not going to stand the test of time, unfortunately.
Probably the only positive aspect is that the majority of the weathering has taken place, and now that the sharp edges and detail have gone, the decay of the remaining, lesser features, will be less accelerated.
Little can be done to preserve them, the loneliness of the location, combined with its lack of remoteness means that any attempt to cover or shield them would be quickly trashed. Since they're not 'significant', no-one official would be interested either.
Maybe RCAHMS should be sent an email pointing them out?
If ivy happened to grow over that part of the sandstone it would preserve the carvings but a positive is in a sense is the part isolation and another being that the rock face is pretty well sheltered from prevailing winds and driving rain, that helps to preserve etched soft stone like sandstone.
Oh dear, I get to go into grumpy moaning mode (dance)
Ivy eats into the rock surface with its roots, which hold it on, so it either breaks it down as it attached, or pulls some away whenever it is removed. Many old period houses are ruined by it, and it is often left on, as the damage caused by removing it can lead to the loss of the building due to restoration/safety costs.
I reckon the face could be classed is unsheltered just when it needs the protection most, as the trees that shelter in in the nice summer weather are bare during the worst weather seasons of the year, and the leafless branches do little to help. There will also be the effect of all the water running down the rock face from the land above, which may be equally destructive since the carvings are at the bottom - the water will have picked up the most of any nasty chemical around as it seeps down.
The only good thing there seems to be now is the lack of frost in recent years as out climate has changed. This is one of the real killers in soft stone such as that of the carvings. As with Glasgow tenements, the water repeatedly freezes and expands when frost strikes, then melts, with the microcracks allowing more water to enter. During winter, this could give an almost daily hammering to the surface thanks to the daily freeze/melt cycle, repeated year on year to disastrous effect.
In remote locations, it's been posible to put simple perspex or similar covers over such finds, but that would last all of 5 minutes in Blantyre, unfortunately. If you walked into the woods to the left (as you approach the carving's path) there was a burnt out Lexus GS300 to be found a few yards away (and 2 others) with others in the surrounding woods.
having visited these carvings when i was a young child. i can confirm that it was tommy hawkins..who was bud's wee brother that carved them,
the reason i know as my mother was 7 when he was a very close friend of the family and thats when he started carving them...my mum is now 54......so the carvings are roughly 47-55 yrs old.
every day tommy went down there with his chisel and a wee widden hammer .....but he never told anyone what he was doing....my mum is sure he done a livingstone carving the reason why ppl arnt sure/unaware of it is because he didnt want publicity or fame later on he denied the carvings because of this....but he did do a little one of susan irvine from northway who was his close friend and my grandmother,
sadly the drink took its toll on auld tommy, who was a talented carver
ps....the other carvings are scattered about down there....ones that no-one has took pictures of... u just need to have a good rumage
pps theres one near bothwell castle
any questions dont hesitate take drop me a wee line
Thanks for the additional notes - the ToDo has been added to catch this and update our page.
Nice to be able to to tie down the date of the carvings, which must have been started around 1955 at earliest.
I suppose the bad news is that it makes them young, so they are ageing, weathering, and disappearing even faster than I suggested - that rock must be really soft, and they will be lost as they are completely open to the elements.
I've never been down there in winter or spring, when there would be a chance of finding the other carvings, as the undergrowth is thick - and getting thicker - whenever I've dropped in over the years, so it might take more than a "good rummage" to find them. Petrol-powered brush cutter maybe
Can you drop any more clues about carving near Bothwell Castle?
Again, the undergrowth is doing a good job of hiding the obvious down there too, and I presume you are aware of the River Clyde height markers carved into the stonework of the river bank below the castle. Even knowing where that was proved almost no help when we dropped in for a look a few years back, but I wonder if the carving you have in mind is anywhere that flood marker?
(nb I deleted your email from the open body of your post, to avoid it being lifted by bots or spammers. As you have included it in your profile, it appears automatically behind a link at the bottom of your post.)
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). The obvious path across the rivulet is also not the one to follow - it just takes you to the priory ruins that lie ABOVE the carvings. You have to have to keep heading down the hill a bit futher, and then you come to another obvious crossing point (this is where it get a bit trickier), then just follow the path.
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