-- History --
Eynhallow
was in all probability the site of one of the earliest monastic
settlements in Orkney and may only have been preceded by Christ
Church on the Brough of Birsay. Although it was established after
Earl Thorfinn's period of rule at the height of the Norse dominance,
it almost certainly and Celtic antecedants.
The
more recent history of the ruined church is of interest because
it was only rediscovered by the islands owner David Balfour in
1851. The owner cleared the island when a virulent disease, possibly
typhoid, killed several of the crofters living in the small interconnected
settlement of houses. When the tennants had gone the houses were
set alight as a safety precuation and it was only when the thatched
roofs and timber partitions had burned away that it was seen that
the stone walls formed parts of the old monastic buildings - church,
cloisters, refectory and dormitories. It is probable that the
domestic occupation occured at the time of the reformation.
The
church itself is thought to be early 12th century and is almost
certainly part of the Orkney monastery to which Abbot Lawrence
was appointed in 1117 according to the records of Melrose.
The
ruined bothy by the south shore is in fact the old schoolhouse
and 'The Lodge', a summer residence clad with corrugated iron
sheet, was built by the then owner in the late 1800's. Nowadays
it is mainly used as a research centre by Aberdeen University
students for the study of fulmars.
Eynhallow
is an island rich in tradition and history and in the past was
known as an enchanted isle. It has, for intance, been known to
vanish as ones boat approaches it. The only way to avoid this
navigational disaster is for the helmsman to keep his eyes fixed
on the island while clasping an iron object !! |
