Gypsy Wedding Place

The restored and protected heart

The Gypsy Wedding Place lies near the junction of the A815 and B839 Hell's Glen road from Lochgoilhead.

The place was marked by a set of white quartz stones which were set into the surface of the road in the shape of a heart, marking a traditional spot where weddings were carried out. Local information suggests that many years ago, c. 1928, the road was resurfaced by the local council, covering the heart, and that strong objections from the Gypsy community led to the heart being uncovered.

During the 1970s, the council widened and realigned the road, resulting in the section of road which contained the heart being bypassed, and the section of old road containing the heart became isolated within an adjacent field.

Gypsies, Tinkers, or Travellers have all but disappeared from the roads of Scotland. Even their former organised sites have been abandoned in many cases, as the pressures of modern life and communities encroach on their customs through changes in legislation, and action by a very few militant Traveller groups (generally in England it must be said).

Site visits

A visit during April 2007 found the the heart in its original condition as described in a field near the road junction, having been covered with two pallets which provided some protection from the grazing cattle, which could trample and damage the remains. The site is therefore being cared for, although it is not known if it is ever used for its original purpose.

Returning to the site during July 2008 showed that a heavy metal chain had been hung around the area of the heart, and was supported on three substantial metal stanchions bolted to the ground. Quartz crystals were observed on the top of each stanchion, and will have been placed to ward off evil

A further visit carried out a few weeks later, in August, found that the chain link fence had failed, and was lying on the ground.

A drive past in October 2008 found that the chain had been removed and a rabbit wire fence, reinforced with fencing wire had been substituted.

Preservation Plans 2008

In March 2008, the Dunoon Observer carried a significant article regarding an item discussed at a recent meeting of Argyll & Bute Council. This referred to a project intended to preserve the location and provide proper access, with an estimated budget of �34,500 for the works involved.^[1] The article gives the local name for the site as the Tinkers' Heart, and notes the date of the original road works as April 1928, at which time Lady George Campbell (a grand daughter of James Wadman Alexander, and who married the fourth son of the eighth Duke of Argyll in 1879) was pressing for the site to be protected.

It may be significant that much of the discussion centred on the naming of the site. Referred to as the Gypsies' Heart in the council report (as researched by council officers), councillors considered that the name should be Tinkers' Heart, as they considered the term Tinker, rather than Gypsy, to be in colloquial use in Scotland. The term is not a derogatory, and one account of its origin is from the sound associated with the travellers as the pots, pans and cutlery they carried, and traditionally mended, made a tinkling sound as they moved, leading first to the name of Tinkler, which became simplified to Tinker over time.

Local restoration

Restored site July 2008

Following publication of the council funded plan to upgrade the site, which also appeared in the Argyllshire Standard, it seems that locals were concerned with regard to the amount of money the local council was planning to spend on the preservation project and decided to upgrade the site at their own expense.

Following the successful completion of the local upgrade to the site, the original council plan for restoration was not pursued.

Damage

Damaged site September 2008

A visit in September 2008 found that the chain lying on the ground, allowing cattle access to the heart area.

A subsequent news report revealed that there had been some error in the installation which had led to the failure of the enclosure, and that this had been rectified to prevent any recurrence, and the site restored.