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Fowlis Wester, St Bean's
Church
Fowlis Wester, about 6km east
of Crieff takes it's name from the Gaelic folais meaning 'small stream'.
The village is tiny now, maybe 30 houses, but it has a long history. Ancient
burial mounds and standing stones are spread across this part of Strathearn.
In more recent times the main road from Perth passed through Fowlis Wester
and around 1800 this was a thriving community with shops and tradesmen. Now
the village lies in a hollow north of the present main road from which it
cannot be seen.
| The restored 13thC Church
of St Bean (d.720) lies in Fowlis Wester. He was grandson of the King of
Leinster, Ireland, and preached among the Picts in this area. There has been
a church on this site since those times. The Picts had been converted to
Christianity almost two centuries earier. The present restored church was
originally built by the ancient Celtic Earl of Strathearn. |
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One interesting feature,
common in churches of this age, is a leper's squint - a special window
from where the afflicted could watch the proceedings without coming into
contact with the rest of the congregation. |
Outside the church, on the
village green, is a 3M high replica of a Pictish slab-cross. The original
and one other smaller slab-cross are housed inside the church. They probably
date from the 8th or 9th century. |
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The larger shows two horsemen
and animals on one side and on the other, a man leading a cow with a bell
followed by other 6 men. The precise meaning and symbolism lost in time.
The smaller cross is in better
condition and show two ancient priests seated on ornate chairs with others
standing below. (Left) |
| Above the cross is a depiction
of Jonah and the whale (right). The crosses themselves are exquisite 'classic'
Celtic patterns.
The Church also contains
a piece of McBean tartan which astronaut Alan McBean took to the moon and
back.
Other places to visit...
Macrosty Park, Crieff
Muthill Church
Earthquake House, Comrie
Innerpeffray Library |
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