More interesting anecdotes, including those from
Manoir. It being Christmas, however, can I plead the forbearance of our kind moderators in respect of the following, gross example of thread-drift...?
Anyone stumbling upon this thread who is unfamiliar with the unremarkable village of Scone (pronounced, roughly speaking,
"skoon") on the Perth-to-Coupar Angus road may not be aware that it owes its name to a nearby ancient royal palace of the Scottish kings, which was home to the so-called Stone of Scone - a kind of royal artefact that is (or was?) supposed to have been seized by an English king in the 13th century. The stone has become an icon for the Scots, including nationalists who seek independence.
Coincidentally to this thread, there is current discussion on the authenticity of the stone that is currently housed at Edinburgh Castle.
The Daily Telegraph (an English newspaper) publishes two readers' letters today, together with a photo of the mysterious object on display. So now you can see that
Manoir's interests are not confined to aviation!
Letters: England will not allow Scottish nationalists to hijack the EU debate - Telegraph
Can this really be the Coronation Stone?
SIR – Ian Hamilton, noted for taking the Stone of Scone from Westminster Abbey in 1950, queries whether it should be allowed south for the next coronation.
But the question remains whether it is the real coronation stone of Scotland. Its story suggests that the English soldiers who seized it in 1296 were given a drain cover. A piece of sandstone with a metal ring in it is an unlikely object for the function of crowning a king. Mr Hamilton is talking up his exploit but knows the stone has nothing to do with coronations, except those since Edward I captured it.
A beautifully carved stone that used to be in a church in Perthshire is a much more likely candidate.
Andrew H N Gray
Edinburgh
SIR – Last year, 1.2 million people queued at Edinburgh Castle to view the Stone of Scone. What they didn’t know is that it is probably less than 90 years old.
Ian Hamilton and his fellow nationalists removed the stone from Westminster Abbey on Christmas Day 1950. The following March, after a tip-off, the authorities found what they believed was the stone at the Abbey of Arbroath, and it was returned to Westminster.
Robert Gray, a stonemason and Scottish nationalist, was custodian of the stone during the intervening period. When he and Ian Hamilton drove to Arbroath Abbey with the stone, it is likely that they were delivering a replica he had sculpted decades before (he made more than one). Mr Gray’s son and daughter have confirmed this, and that the real stone rests at an unknown location in Scotland.
John McGurk
...
Merry Christmas everyone!