Per varios casus, per tot discrimina rerum This passage from The Aeneid Book 1, Line 204, is supposedly carved in the Black Stock of Dunnottar. Translated from Latin it means Through various hazards and events, we move. After a terrible storm, Aeneas and the remnants of his crew wash up on the shores of Carthage. Bloodied, battered, bruised and hungry, Aeneas sailors seem ready to give up the quest for the promised New Troy. Aeneas exhorts his men, lising the various misadventures they have already endured and survived, and then he holds out the promise of a new homeland in a shining city on the hill. Above all, Aeneas insists that the Trojans manifest destiny is to rebuild their lives on the shores of Italy. What could be a more fitting inscription to adorn the “Black Stock”, a highly valued heirloom of the Keith Marishal family. It was said to have been made of oaken planks taken from the long-ship which brought to Scotland the members of the Chatti tribe who, according to legend, are our European progenitors. The table was taken out of Dunnottar Castle after the surrender in May 1652. It was conveyed to Edinburgh along with cartloads of furnishings which were made available for Cromwell’s personal use. In February 1764, George 10th Earl Marischal (forfeit) bought it back at a public auction after his pardon in 1759. Two years later he transferred to to (Sir) Alexander Keith of Ravelston (and Dunnottar). The trail goes cold however in the 1890s when it was recorded being in the entrance to Ravelston House, the home of Alexander Keith. Ravelston House remained in the hands of his descendants until the 1930s and is now a school. It was possibly still there in the 1930s, or even as a late as 1961, but it cannot be confirmed. It is not listed in any of the collections catalogued by the National Museum of Scotland. In Medieval times most dining tables were set on temporary trestles that were dismantled between meals. A permanent, or dormant table was a sign of prestige, limited to the greatest nobles. The table is a tangible link with the Chatti legend of the origin of the Keiths. We know that legend was written by Hector Boyce 1465–1536), who created such origin legends for other noble families such as the Hays of Errol. Whether it was based on earlier oral tradition is unknown, but the Black Stock if it could be found might shed light on the matter.
Posted on: Sat, 16 Aug 2014 04:32:33 +0000
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