C O N T E X T 1 3 6 : S E P T E M B E R 2 0 1 4 33 largely removed in the second world war to facilitate military traffic, were jealously guarded by the population. In one instance railings were being re-sited to delineate the former front garden of a town house, now a convenience store, projecting into the road. The famous Bishop’s Palace, rebuilt in the 16th century by a local warmonger, only to fall into ruin on his demise, was a brooding but stunning presence adjacent to the magnificent cathedral. It was clearly a great attraction for the hordes of tourists emerging from a cruise ship docking nearby. A detailed description of the intricate history of the cathedral recorded the finding in 1917 of the bones of St Magnus hidden in a pillar. Following repair they were reinstated. The relocated 16th and 17th century relocated grave slabs around the internal walls provided a sculptural feast of memorials to merchants and seafarers. Stromness was something of a contrast in terms of activity. The subject of a recently completed five-year townscape heritage initiative programme, it had a much more reticent quality, its quiet streets clearly hiding much of interest behind the newly spruced-up facades. A nice touch was the obvious involvement of local children in designing a newly rebuilt walltop with an incised quill to indicate the home of the writer George Mackay Brown. Instructing future citizens in the importance of their local history may yet prove more important in the long term than the many repointing schemes and new lias flagstones (for cartwheels of a previous era) and central stone setts (to grip horses’ hooves). Other townscape heritage initiative spin-offs had included training schemes for craftspeople (lime and stone repair), town guides, and repainting street and shop signs to encourage more entry to the wynds. The rear plots contained much of interest, houses huddled together to keep out the wind, with narrow slots on corners hollowed out for access and areas for drying lobster pots. Only one aspect marred this excellent achievement: a former commercial hotel remained empty because the terms of a European Regional Development Fund grant insisted on office accommodation and not residential use, but the building lent itself to use as studio flats. Neolithic Orkney figured prominently, with the majestic ring of standing stones at Brodgar and the corbelled Maeshowe burial chamber, whose entry corridor was geared to the winter solstice, forming the basis of a world heritage site.We visited the famous Skara Brae neolithic village, revealed during a sandstorm, and the 17th century Skaill House, home of its finder. In sharp contrast to the neolithic was Melsetter, a superb, small arts-and-crafts country house. Remodelled by WR Lethaby, its chapel is a feast of architectural delight both in terms of construction and stained glass. The conversion of a typical Orkney longhouse (two-unit house and byre) to a holiday letting provided scope for a discussion on re-use of redundant buildings. Perhaps the most enchanting location of the whole tour was the remote and formerly almost totally deserted crofting village of Rackwick at the north end of the Island of Hoy. This most tangible example of an almost forgotten way of life, as evidenced by numerous desertions in and around John O’ Groats on mainland Scotland, was set against a backdrop of mountains Stromness, the subject of a recently completed fiveyear townscape heritage initiative programme (Photo: Liz Blood)
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