Highland Objects Podcasts

Three Festive Feasts from The Highland Historian, The Highlanders Museum, and Castlehill Heritage Centre.Highland Christmas traditions, a memory of the Christmas Truce in WW1 and a Christmas shipwreck!Festive Fare :o) Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The spooky story of Janet Nien Gibbie Gow and the Witch Pricker courtesy of Tain Museum Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Carved in the 8th century, this magnificent rock is named after the coastal village of Ulbster, south of Wick, where it was unearthed in 1770 in the graveyard at St. Martin's Chapel. A few decades after its discovery, the stone was moved to the top of an artificial mound in front of Thurso Castle. There it was during the 19th century that the stone was defaced, with an inscription in Gothic script being carved into its side.The Ulbster Stone is said to bear more symbols on it than any other Pictish monument. Symbols such as the crescent and V-rod, a double-disc, a paired crescent, a step, and a wide variety of animals. Among them a fish, a hippocamp (mythical Sea horse with a fish-tail), a lion, a serpent and the so called Pictish Beast.The most notable symbols however are the two great Latin crosses that dominate both of its two sides, each adorned with lavish, elaborate patterns.As with all Pictish carvings, the true meaning behind the Ulbster stone and its many symbols are unlikely to ever be decisively confirmed. But the great amount of unique symbols provides a wealth of insight into Pictish culture and opens the door to many valuable interpretations.Location: North Coast Visitor Centre, High St, Thurso KW14 8AJ Our GDPR privacy policy was updated on August 8, 2022. Visit acast.com/privacy for more information.

An object from Portmahomack it is a composite blue glass stud inlaid with silver wire and red enamel and was made in the Pictish monastic smiths' hall of the Pictish monastery at Portmahomack. The size of this blue glass stud belies its importance to Pictish archaeology; it is only about the size of a 5-pence piece, but was crafted by a craftsman working in the smiths' hall of the Pictish monastery at Portmahomack, Tarbatness in the 8th century. The stud is so like those on the famous treasure, the Derrynaflan paten, that it has been suggested that the same craftsman was at work at Portmahomack. The stud is made of dark blue glass and was inlaid with fine, geometric silver wire, creating cells that were in turn inlaid with red glass or enamel, now decayed to a yellow colour. The stud was broken and this may explain why it was disposed of in a heap of smith's waste. It was intended to be set into a metal collar fastened to a large complex object, perhaps a chalice, paten or reliquary. The smith who made it was engaged in making some of Europe's finest metalwork masterpieces, so fine and intricate they are often likened to the ‘work of angels'. This object, and many others from the Pictish monastery at Portmahomack, are on display at the award-winning Tarbat Discovery Centre, Portmahomack.Location: Tarbat Discovery Centre, Tarbatness Road, Portmahomack, Tain, IV20 1YA See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

The Gairloch Salmon Stone is a great example not only of Pictish carvings showing wildlife but also of the trials and tribulations of many Pictish stones which have had a chequered past between the time of their carving and their current safe homes in museums. It is also a rare example of a west coast Pictish stone and it makes us ask the question – how many more Pictish stones are hidden in the West Highlands, waiting to be found and rescued?This object was runner up in the March 2022 vote Location: Gairloch Museum, Gairloch, Ross-shire, IV21 2BH See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

On its discovery on the original site of the Hilton Stone, NMS lobbied/instructed that the base should be transported to Edinburgh to be exhibited alongside the larger section of the Stone already on display.The people of Hilton took exception to this strategy and formed the Historic Hilton Trust who lobbied for the stone to remain in its home village.After a protracted dispute agreement was reached that the Stone could remain in Hilton Village.This reversed the policy that important artefacts automatically go to Edinburgh. The outcome is a change in policy by HES and NMS that important heritage artefacts can stay in their original location to be enjoyed by locals and visitors alike.Location: The Seaboard Centre, East Street, Balintore, IV20 1UA See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

A bright, intricate Celtic-design bowl created by a Celtic artist at the home of artist and educator George Bain's house in Drumnadrochit in the 1940s. Location: Groam House Museum, High St, Rosemarkie, Fortrose IV10 8UF See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

The Gunna Breac was a treasured possession of the MacDonalds of Dalchnosie originally dating to the late 17th/early 18th centuries. It was brought to the Battle of Culloden (1746) by Alexander MacDonald who fought with the Atholl Brigade. A fabulous piece of Jacobite history for all Outlander fans!Location: Museum of the Isles Armdale Castle Armadale Sleat, Isle of Skye IV45 8RS See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

This 18th Century model of the Hector, which is heralded as ‘Canada's Mayflower' may seem innocuous, however the story that it depicts is one of suffering and destitution, yet hope and new beginnings. It holds within it the origins of the people of Nova Scotia, who left Lochbroom in 1773 in search of a new world and new life. Location: Ullapool Museum, 7 & 8 W Argyle St, Ullapool IV26 2TY See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

In 1903 an excavation at Hillhead Broch, a rather morbid discovery was made: a fragment of a human's skull. This portion of bone – a fragment of the ‘parietal' section of the skull – was notable for the presence of three drilled holes, which were set out in a roughly triangular shape. It is thought that the skull had been modified ‘post-mortem'. Why? Location: National Museum of Scotland, Chambers St, Edinburgh EH1 1JF See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

This enigmatic object forms part of Strathnaver Museum's fishing display and has been an important part of the collection for decades. A fishing float made form the skin of dog. Gruesome and fascinating in equal part. Location: Strathnaver Museum, Clachan, Bettyhill KW14 7SS See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

A small hoard of silver coins found near the site of the Battle of Carbisdale and how they connect Tain to Marilyn Monroe Location: Tain Through Time, Tain & District Museum, Tower St, Tain IV19 1DZ See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Compiled in 1814 by John Brown this genealogical tree charts the various branches of Clan Donald from Somerled, to the Lords of the Isles and onwards. It is beautifully illustrated and features famous names such as Robert the Bruce and MacIain, the 12th Chief of Glencoe who was murdered during the infamous Massacre of 1692Location: Glencoe, Ballachulish PH49 4HS See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

This whalebone figurine dates from circa 2900 – 2400 BC and was originally discovered at Skara Brae in Orkney 1850s. It was found in a stone bed compartment. It was illustrated by the antiquarian George Petrie in the 1860s, but until recently it was thought that his drawing was all that survived of this fascinating object until its rediscovery in 2016Location: Stromness Museum, Stromness KW16 3DH See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

The Noss Head Light was designed and supervised by Alan Stevenson, uncle of Robert Louis Stevenson, it was completed in 1849 by Robert Arnot of Inverness. The Fresnel lens, which is approximately 6ft in diameter, rotates by clockwork machinery around a mercury vapour lamp.Object Location: Wick Heritage Museum, Wick KW1 5EY See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

This Jacobite relic was found in a shop in London in 1924. At first glance it looks like smears of oil paint on a wooden panel, but is in fact an anamorphic painting. When paired with a reflecting cylinder a hidden portrait of the Prince is revealed. The Jacobites used objects like this to hide their secret support for the Stuart dynasty and secretly toast ‘the King over the water'.Object Location: West Highland Museum, Fort William, PH33 6AJ See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

To wish everyone a very Merry Christmas we have four festive objects  A Victorian Christmas Pamphlet from Nairn MuseumQueen Mary's Christmas gift to the troops in 1914 from Groam House MuseumA Christmas Advent Calendar from The Museum of ChildhoodAn RAF Christmas Menu from 1943 brought to you from Castletown Museum Merry Christmas - Nollaig chridheil agus bliadhna mhath ur! See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Awarded to Sgt Alexander Edwards of the 6th Seaforth Highlanders. A native of Lossiemouth, son of a local fisherman, for conspicuous bravery in action at the Battle of Passchendaele on the 31st of July 1917. His story of courage, bravery, and ultimately loss, is told through this VC. Location: The Highlander's Museum, Fort George, Ardersier, Inverness, IV2 7TD See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

‘Lorg Baile Bhlàir is looking into the early settlement of Inverlael and Balblair. During phase one of the project when Ullapool Museum conducted archaeological surveys, they uncovered a prize find. An Illicit Whisky Still. The Highlands are littered with abandoned Illicit Whiskey Stills, to dodge the customs men and still produce the legendary Uisge Beatha that kept the Highlanders going through the long winter nights See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

The Drummond tartan silk satin dress was made in the 1840s. It is a two-part dress comprising of a bodice and skirt made of red/blue/green and white silk satin with cream tulle trim around the neck and sleeves.The dress is one of two dresses made in 1842 for the occasion of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert's visit to Drummond Castle, Perthshire. Location Highland Folk Museum Aultlarie Croft, Kingussie Rd, Newtonmore PH20 1AY See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

This costume is one of a number donated to Castletown Heritage Society by a descendant of the costume's owner. Her son emigrated to the USA in the late 1800s but regularly sent home clothes for his mother. As she was a widow, and at the time there was a strict convention about wearing mourning clothes, all the garments are sombre but beautifully made and no doubt of the latest American fashion. Location: Castletown Heritage Society Harbour Rd, Castletown, Thurso KW14 8TG See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

This beautiful silk brocade dress is thought to have been designed and made by James Lehman in Spitalfields, London in about 1710. Although the dress would have originally been a Mantua, it has been much altered over the years. The colours of the silk however, are still as vibrant as they would have been when the fabric was woven.Location Dornoch Historylinks The Meadows, Dornoch IV25 3SF See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

A gansey is a warm and largely waterproof jumper that was used by fishermen. Knitting a gansey requires great skill. Each had a very distinctive and intricate pattern It is alleged that the patterns either represented a family group or a local community. The theory was that if a fisherman were washed overboard, the gansey pattern would identify his family or community. Around fifty different patterns have been identified. Location Wick Heritage Museum Wick KW1 5EY See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

This beautiful dress dates to the 1740s and was made with silk from Spitalfields. It supposedly belonged to an upper-class Jacobite supporter. The dress was passed down through the generations of a local family and seems to have been altered at some point with more modern materials. Location Glencoe Museum Ballachulish PH49 4HS See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Between the 1870s & 1950s, men from the shores of Loch Broom, found a working life in the wealthy world of big yacht racing. Owners from some of Britain's richest families employed men from this area because of their excellent seamanship skills. Each man was issued a jumper with the name of the yacht on it which almost became a sort of CV as a record of the yachts that the men had served on.Location Ullapool Museum IV26 2TY See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Made in 1868-9 in Madras for Barbara Morrison, the wife of a soldier stationed in India. Barbara had been born in Inverness in about 1828, had married a British officer and went to India aboard the Himalaya.Location: West Highland Museum, Cameron Square, Fort William PH33 6AJ See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

This pattern was developed in the middle of the 19th century and was apparently unique to Gairloch. Unlike many Scottish estates, the lairds of Gairloch supported work schemes for inhabitants during the 1840s potato famine. Knitting was encouraged to provide an income for the women, using wool from local fleeces, home spun and dyed with local plants.Location Gairloch Museum IV21 2BH See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Dr John Alexander's Specimen Slide Set is in the custodianship of The Wick Heritage Museum. His life long commitment to improving the health of the community is demonstrated by the fact he built up and used these various specimens that contributed to his knowledge of diseases.Location: The Wick Heritage Museum, 20 Bank Row, Wick KW1 5EYuted to his knowledge of diseases. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

With echoes of modern-day entrepreneurship, the SS Mabel came to the “romantic shores of the queen of Highland lochs”, Loch Maree in 1883. As well as providing leisure cruises on the loch, she also became a vital link for the Gairloch area, connecting coaches at each end of the loch for visitors arriving by rail at Achnasheen.Location Gairloch Museum, Achtercairn House, Gairloch IV21 2BH See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

125 different signatures on a tablecloth, captured the names revealing a fascinating mix of countries of origin of the personnel who maintained a key ariel for RAF Castletown, a WWII fighter airfield at the northern tip of the Scottish mainlandLocation: Castletown Heritage Centre Harbour Rd, Castletown, Thurso KW14 8TG See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Orcadian Dr John Rae was the most successful of all Victorian Arctic explorers, undertaking four expeditions. He is known to have taken fiddles on his expeditions. While on his travels music would have entertained everyone during the long Arctic nights.Location: Stromness Museum KW16 3DH See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Three lovely marble statuettes of Buddha. They are most beautiful works of art and a valuable contribution to Nairn Museum made by Captain Henry Augustus Rose of Ruallan in 1918.Held at Nairn Museum, Nairn IV12 4EE See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

The Strange Plate is an engraved copper printing plate It was made by Sir Robert Strange in 1746 on the instruction of Prince Charles Edward Stuart, and was intended to produce bank notes during the Jacobite Rising to fund the Jacobite cause.Object Location West Highland Museum Fort William PH33 6AJ See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

The Ballachulish Figure is an almost life-size humanoid wooden figure, found in 1880 during peat cutting in advance of building work at Ballachulish Moss, Lochaber. Location: Glencoe Folk Museum, Ballachulish PH49 4HS See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Magnificent wooded river gorge where, on 27 July 1689, the first shots in the Battle of Killiecrankie were fired in what was one of the goriest battles in Jacobite history. Soldier's Leap is the spot where a Redcoat soldier leapt 18ft across the raging River Garry, fleeing the Jacobites. As told by the Highland Historian See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

This Pictish cross-slab is fabulous – for its craftsmanship, its symbols and its Christian messaging. There are so many stories to share and questions to ask about its quarrying, design and context. Even its shape is unusual – it's wider at the top than the bottom, giving the viewer the optical illusion that it is actually perfectly rectangular.Location: Groam House Museum IV10 8UF See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.