Tayvallich Visit Day 2
An Action Packed Day!!!!
Our second day in Argyll centred on a series of workshops based at Tayvallich primary School. We joined pupils from the school to participate in a study of Dun Mhuirich Fort, do medieval cookery outdoors, create tomb slabs and learn three traditional Scottish Dances!!!!
Dun Mhuirich
Pupils from Tayvallich had been involved in an archeological dig at this site as part of their heritage project.
It was really interesting to see ho the natural landscape had lent itself to being the site of a small fort, with a cliff to three sides and natural contours allowing outer and inner walls to be constructed, this was a small but readily defended position. The location was stunningly beautiful and provided good views of the surrounding countryside. The ruins of the inner dry stone buildings are still evident and give some indication into how people must have lived there. We spent some time exploring the layout of the site and learning about how a new 'dig' may help to reveal further evidence of life in the past. Dun Mhuirich was most probably an Iron Age fort. Although small it would have been a seat of local power yet is now lying in ruins, overgrown by nature. Clay Tomb Slabs
We studied the carved stone grave/tomb slabs at Kilmartin Museum on our first day. This workshop allowed us to create our own personalised smaller versions in clay.
There are 80 sculpted stone grave slabs gathered from around the Kilmartin reggion at Kilmartin Church. The earliest of the slabs dates to the 13th century, and the latest to 1712. Many of the slabs carry similar carvings, including claymores and swords, often linked to interlaced foliage designs. Other symbols include animals and crosses, plus objects from daily life such as a comb and a set of shears. The latter symbol suggests that the deceased may have been a woman; the shears being a common symbol for domestic activity. A popular yet unproven theory suggests that the Kilmartin carvings are linked in some way to the Knights Templar. This theory appears to be based on the style of swords carved on many of the slabs. The swords are much more likely to simply represent the social status of the deceased. We used the information we had gathered to add detail to our tomb slabs. It was great fun working with the tutors and pupils from Tayvallich. Our finished works of art were carefully stored in boxes and transferred to the bus for the journey home. Once dry we will paint them in class to act as a lasting memory of our time here in Argyll. Traditional Scottish Dancing
The boys weren't initially keen on the thought of having to partner with a girl and dance to music but in the end.... they had no choice.
In a 45 minute session we learned three dances including: 'The Gay Gordons' and 'Strip the Willow'. The dances were broken down and we were taken through the dances, step by step, without music, repeating the steps until we had mastered them. Once we had worked through the dance and walked it through several times the music started and the laughter began. We never realised this type of dancing could be so tiring and such great fun. By the end of the session we were all looking forward to the evening's Ceilidh. |
Outdoor Medieval Cooking
An open pit fire, complete with tripod and a hanging pot at the rear of the school was the setting for another activity, thoroughly enjoyed by all. We learned about readily available food, food groups and nutrition in medieval times and were introduced to many of the foods eaten at the time...
Cabbage, carrot, barley, oats, onion, peas, lamb, fish, herbs and fruit. We all got the opportunity to look at, touch, smell and identify a range of foods available to people living during this period of history before we were able to prepare and cook them. Under careful supervision we were allowed to use knives to peel and chop the vegetables and fruit before mixing the ingredients together to make a fruit salad spliced with honey and cinnamon, oatcakes to bake by the fire and a potage stew to be cooked in the pot over the fire. Everything that was cooked would have had to have been grown, harvested, caught or picked from the wild. The heat from the fire and smell of cooking was great. We then got the opportunity to taste the food. We all had our favourite parts of the meal but everything tasted great outdoors!!! |