The Bunnet Stane (or bonnet stone) is a rock formation near the hamlet of Gateside in Fife, at the foot of West Lomond.[1] It sits upon one of the calciferous sandstone outcrops of the Old Red Sandstone suie that exist around the base of the Lomond Hills.[2][3] The Bunnet Stane itself consists of an elevated table of rock, about ten feet by twenty feet across, which sits upon a thin column of rock like a giant mushroom. There are several romantic explanations for the stone's shape, but it was formed entirely by the natural weathering of the exposed outcrop.[4][5]
There is a small man-made cave carved into the outcrop beneath the Bunnet Stane called Maiden's Bower. Originally termed Maiden-bore, the term was also applied to the rock formation as a whole, including the Bunnet Stane atop.[6][7] The story goes that many years ago a young maiden fell in love with the son of a rival family. The stone was their meeting spot but one day, as she approached, she saw her father's men ambush and kill the young man. After that she refused to return home and spent the remainder of her life in the cave, becoming known locally as a saint. More realistic theories suggest that the cave may have been built by a landlord as a bothy or by surveyors in the 19th century. A further explanation was provided by a contributor to the Scots Magazine, a few years ago. This person was an elderly lady who, as a child, spent holiday time at the nearby farm of Wester Nether Urquhart. In her letter, she described an old man (possibly an ex-soldier) who was given permission by the farmer to make himself a small bothy which he occupied while employed as a shepherd. An examination of the interior shows the remains of an iron fire grate and ventilation chimney. The walls bear grooves, notches and small platforms which are likely to have served the purpose of partitioning off, say, a sleeping area or storage. One largeish notch in the southern wall may have supported one end of a sleeping platform.
Locationedit
The Bunnet Stane is not marked on the 1:50 000 OS map. Its coordinates are: Landranger 58 GR 189 071. A path leads to the Bunnet Stane from an unmarked car park at GR 185 082 on the same map. Both the Bunnet Stane and the car park are marked on the 1:25 000 OS Explorer map (No.370 - Glenrothes North, Falkland & Lomond Hills).
Referencesedit
^"Scottish word of the week: Bunnet". www.scotsman.com.
^"Walk of the week: West Lomond and the Bunnet Stane". www.scotsman.com.
^McKirdy, Alan; Crofts, Roger; Gordon, John E. (2 November 2007). Land of Mountain and Flood: The Geology and Landforms of Scotland. Birlinn. ISBN9781841583570 – via Google Books.
^"Welcome to Fife : Lomond Hills Walk series 1 - The Bunnet Stane". Welcome to Fife - highlight.
^Fairnie, Robert (21 April 2019). "12 reasons a trip to Fife is worth the overcrowded train journey". edinburghlive.
^"Fife Place-name Data :: Maiden Bore Cave". fife-placenames.glasgow.ac.uk.
^MacInnes, Kellan (22 July 2013). Caleb's List: Climbing the Scottish Mountains Visible from Arthur's Seat. Luath Press Limited. ISBN9781909912069 – via Google Books.
The Bunnet Stane information board
External linksedit
Media related to Bunnet Stane at Wikimedia Commons
Dictionaries of the Scots Language:: SND :: bonnet n
bunnet, stane, this, article, includes, list, general, references, lacks, sufficient, corresponding, inline, citations, please, help, improve, this, article, introducing, more, precise, citations, february, 2013, learn, when, remove, this, template, message, b. This article includes a list of general references but it lacks sufficient corresponding inline citations Please help to improve this article by introducing more precise citations February 2013 Learn how and when to remove this template message The Bunnet Stane or bonnet stone is a rock formation near the hamlet of Gateside in Fife at the foot of West Lomond 1 It sits upon one of the calciferous sandstone outcrops of the Old Red Sandstone suie that exist around the base of the Lomond Hills 2 3 The Bunnet Stane itself consists of an elevated table of rock about ten feet by twenty feet across which sits upon a thin column of rock like a giant mushroom There are several romantic explanations for the stone s shape but it was formed entirely by the natural weathering of the exposed outcrop 4 5 The Bunnet Stane Contents 1 Maiden s Bower 2 Location 3 References 4 External linksMaiden s Bower editThere is a small man made cave carved into the outcrop beneath the Bunnet Stane called Maiden s Bower Originally termed Maiden bore the term was also applied to the rock formation as a whole including the Bunnet Stane atop 6 7 The story goes that many years ago a young maiden fell in love with the son of a rival family The stone was their meeting spot but one day as she approached she saw her father s men ambush and kill the young man After that she refused to return home and spent the remainder of her life in the cave becoming known locally as a saint More realistic theories suggest that the cave may have been built by a landlord as a bothy or by surveyors in the 19th century A further explanation was provided by a contributor to the Scots Magazine a few years ago This person was an elderly lady who as a child spent holiday time at the nearby farm of Wester Nether Urquhart In her letter she described an old man possibly an ex soldier who was given permission by the farmer to make himself a small bothy which he occupied while employed as a shepherd An examination of the interior shows the remains of an iron fire grate and ventilation chimney The walls bear grooves notches and small platforms which are likely to have served the purpose of partitioning off say a sleeping area or storage One largeish notch in the southern wall may have supported one end of a sleeping platform Location editThe Bunnet Stane is not marked on the 1 50 000 OS map Its coordinates are Landranger 58 GR 189 071 A path leads to the Bunnet Stane from an unmarked car park at GR 185 082 on the same map Both the Bunnet Stane and the car park are marked on the 1 25 000 OS Explorer map No 370 Glenrothes North Falkland amp Lomond Hills References edit Scottish word of the week Bunnet www scotsman com Walk of the week West Lomond and the Bunnet Stane www scotsman com McKirdy Alan Crofts Roger Gordon John E 2 November 2007 Land of Mountain and Flood The Geology and Landforms of Scotland Birlinn ISBN 9781841583570 via Google Books Welcome to Fife Lomond Hills Walk series 1 The Bunnet Stane Welcome to Fife highlight Fairnie Robert 21 April 2019 12 reasons a trip to Fife is worth the overcrowded train journey edinburghlive Fife Place name Data Maiden Bore Cave fife placenames glasgow ac uk MacInnes Kellan 22 July 2013 Caleb s List Climbing the Scottish Mountains Visible from Arthur s Seat Luath Press Limited ISBN 9781909912069 via Google Books The Bunnet Stane information boardExternal links edit nbsp Media related to Bunnet Stane at Wikimedia Commons Etymology of bunnet including picture of the Bunnet Stane Dictionaries of the Scots Language SND bonnet n56 14 57 N 3 18 33 W 56 24919 N 3 30903 W 56 24919 3 30903 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Bunnet Stane amp oldid 1081579218, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
