by Mary Braithwaite Synopsis Boat graffiti on the outside of Kilchattan church may originate in events of the thirteenth century when Scots and Norwegian kings were vying for overlordship of the Isles. Associations have been made with King Alexander II’s expedition in 1249 and to a lesser extent with that of King Haakon IV in 1263, but these were not the only events. The carvings include two boats with animal-head prows, boats around an elaborate cross, a series of mini longboats, and a windvane. The location of the graffiti and crosses indicate devotional associations. The talk will explore these unique carvings and possible explanations for their existence. Image caption: Longboats and crosses on Luing’s old parish church About the speaker Mary Braithwaite studied Archaeology and Geography then Archaeology and Anthropology many moons ago; her doctoral thesis was on the symbolism of decorative art. She lives on Luing, is active in Luing History Group (LHG) which has undertaken archaeological surveys of the island, and is a Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland. She is author of ‘Ancient Luing: an illustrated guide to the history of Luing’, published in 2021 by LHG, and is planning to research the Kilchattan graffiti in greater depth. How to participate This talk will begin at 7.30 pm (GMT) and last up to one hour, followed by questions. As the audience for each talk will be limited to 100, please register in plenty of time by e-mailing us (click either on the ‘Register for Events’ button above, or click here click here ). You will then be sent a code to allow you to join the talk. Participation in these lectures is free to members of the Society and to students. Non-members (other than students) are politely requested to pay a lecture fee of £5. To do this using PayPal just click the button below to add the lecture to your basket, and then proceed to the PayPal checkout. If you do not have a PayPal account you can still use PayPal to pay using a credit card. For alternative methods, please contact us directly. [wp_cart_button name="Non-member donation - Lecture 24" price="5.00"] [always_show_wp_shopping_cart]