Building record MAB34573 - ST RULE'S PARISH CHURCH, MONIFIETH

Former parish church and graveyard, no longer in ecclesiastical use, built in 1812-13 on the site of its predecessor.

Former parish church and graveyard, no longer in ecclesiastical use, built in 1812-13 on the site of its predecessor. It is also known as St Regulus' Church. Five Pictish symbol stones (three Class II and two Class III), coins and pottery have also been found within the graveyard and church. The church was dedicated to St Regulus and was given to Arbroath Abbey (NO64SW0018) by Gilchrist, Earl of Angus, in circa 1207. Maud, Countess of Angus, circa 1242, confirmed a grant of certain lands south of the church, which the Keledei (or Culdees) has held in the lifetime of her father. This pre-Reformation church was a rectangular building with a transept on the north and a tower at the west. It was taken down in 1812 to make way for the present church, at which time some of the sculptured stones were found. The present church was built by mason Alexander Thomson (of Dundee) to a design by Samuel Bell, architect. There were later alterations to the porch and vestry to the east, and new seating put in by Charles Edward and Thomas Robertson, 1873. Clock faces were added to the tower in 1914 by George Rattray, Dundee. It is shown on the 1st edition OS map as a rectangular-plan church with a projection on the west end, within an irregular graveyard, with two rectangular buildings within the graveyard to the north of the church. On the 2nd edition OS map, one of the rectangular buildings have been removed and there is an extension to the east end elevation. Current maps show the second rectangular building has been removed. The church is Gothic in style and constructed from coursed rubble with long and short dressed quoins, skew gables and a slate roof with two square, louvred, ogival ventilators. There is a gabled and projecting central three-stage tower to the west elevation. There is a two-leaf door with a timber trefoil and quatrefoil fanlight within a hoodmoulded pointed arch, blind paired lancets with Y-tracery and hoodmoulds to the south, north and west at the second stage. The third stage is stepped back, and is possibly added later, and features the clock faces from 1914. Flanking the tower are symmetrical pointed-arch paired lights with hoodmoulds and timber geometric tracery. The south elevation is four-bay, and has pointed-arch Y-tracery windows with geometric timber tracery and a cill course. It also features a convex wallhead cornice. The east elevation incorporated the burial aisle of the Durhams of Pitkerro (circa 1626) into the gable, and has a later two-storey flat-roofed extension. The windows are similar to those on the west elevation. Inside is a semi-octagonal gallery with timber clad cast-iron Doric columns. Other internal features include a marble World War I war memorial, a Dempster family memorial on the south wall, a roll of honour tryptic in the vestibule, a bell made by Jacob Ser (1565). There are also six stained glass windows, including two large memorial windows by Morris and Co, and World War II memorial windows at the north by John M. Aiken (1948). The graveyard has 18th and 19th century tombstones, a large columned and pedimented memorial to the Kerr family (1867) and a five-bay, columned memorial to Erskine family on the north wall. The enclosing wall is constructed from coursed rubble with rounded coping, and has square ashlar gatepiers with chamfered caps. The coins and piece of pottery were found on 15th September 1854. Six of the coins are now in the NMS. The symbol stones: No. 1 is an upright Class II cross-slab of Old Red Sandstone, measuring 0.72 m x 0.36 m x 0.15 m. (2ft 4in x 1ft 2in x 6in) It bears a cross decorated with key patterns on the front face. The back is decorated with the comb and two double-disc symbols, one with Z-rod. At the broken bottom edge is part of another symbol, possibly part of a mirror. No. 2 another upright Class II cross-slab of Old Red Sandstone, it measures 0.45 m x 0.3 m x 0.08 m (1ft 6in x 1ft x 3in). The front has a decorated cross with interlace and key patterns. The back has three panels, the top containing two bird-headed monsters facing each other over a four footed creature and a deer's head, below this are to the left a cloaked figure with possible circular brooch, and to the right the crescent with V-rod symbol. No. 3 is a Class II cross-slab of Old Red Sandstone which measures 0.45 m x 0.58 m x 0.08 m (1ft 6in x 1ft 11in x 3in). The front has the defaced remains of a decorated cross shaft, on either side the vestiges of birds and beasts. That on the left is better preserved, showing a beast with four legs, below that a long-necked bird seizing the back of a man's neck with its beak. The back shows the lower portion of a man on horseback, the bottom right corner of the crescent symbol, an incised dog, fish monster, hound chasing a stag and a pair of biting heads. It was found in the foundations of the old church, and was rebuilt in the wall of the current church. No. 4 is the shaft of a free-standing Class III cross of Old Red Sandstone, 1.16 m x 0.3 m x 0.17 m (3ft 10in x 1ft x 7in). The front has the bottom portion of a crucifixion scene, below that two ecclesiastics, below that two men holding horns in their right hands and at the bottom, a seated figure playing the harp, probably King David. The back has interlace work and a creature biting its own back at the base, the right side has interlace and a doubled up beast with its tail between its legs and the left has interlace and a reptilian creature. This depictions of the beasts is similar to pre-Norman sculpture in eastern England and the Isle of Man. No. 5: this fragment has no provenance and is not mentioned with the four others. It is part of a Class III cross-shaft which measures 0.5 m x 0.21 m x 0.09 m (1ft 8in x 8in x 4in). One face, possibly the front, bears two small figures standing between an incomplete larger one, broken at the waist. The other face, probably the back, has a series of scored lines and pock-marks, suggesting former decoration, and one side has the remains of possible interlacing. A fragment of cross-slab found at the bottom of the graveyard in 1928 and donated to the NMS shows part of a crucifixion scene. A 17th century armorial from the former Durham Memorial Aisle has been added to the north wall of the garage of Grange Lodge (NO43SE0017).

Period Notes
Early Medieval Class II and Class III stones were found within the graveyard and old church. The earliest church was given to Arbroath Abbey in circa 1207, and was demolished in 1812 to make way for the current church, built in 1812-13. There are 18th and 19th century tombstones in the graveyard and a bell within the church from 1565. There were later alterations to the church, including new seating in 1873 and clock faces added to the tower in 1914. There are World War I and II memorials within the church. The church and graveyard were listed on 15/12/1989.

A/82656/CS, A/82656/CS (Photograph). SAB29099.

A/82657/CS, A/82657/CS (Photograph). SAB29102.

AN/3198/PO, AN/3198/PO (Photograph). SAB29109.

AN/3199/PO, AN/3199/PO (Photograph). SAB29105.

AN/3200/PO, AN/3200/PO (Photograph). SAB29106.

AN/3317/PO, AN/3317/PO (Photograph). SAB29107.

B/28853/PO, B/28853/PO (Photograph). SAB29100.

B/28854/PO, B/28854/PO (Photograph). SAB29103.

B/28855/PO, B/28855/PO (Photograph). SAB29101.

B/28856/PO, B/28856/PO (Photograph). SAB29111.

B/28857/PO, B/28857/PO (Photograph). SAB29112.

B/28858/PO, B/28858/PO (Photograph). SAB29114.

B/28859/PO, B/28859/PO (Photograph). SAB29113.

B/61424, B/61424 (Photograph). SAB29110.

D/08591, D/08591 (Photograph). SAB29108.

D/88409/S, D/88409/S (Photograph). SAB29104.

MS/329, MS/329 (Photograph). SAB25782.

EASSON, D, 1957, MEDIEVAL RELIGIOUS HOUSES: SCOTLAND, 191 (Bibliographic reference). SAB440.

WILSON, E M, 1966, ASPECTS OF ANTIQUITY. ABERTAY HISTORICAL SOCIETY PUBLICATION NO. 11, pp. 27-31 (Bibliographic reference). SAB3467.

TRENCH-JELLICOE, R, 1999, A MISSING FIGURE ON SLAB FRAGMENT NO 2 FROM MONIFIETH, ANGUS. IN PSAS 129 (1999) 597-647, PSAS 129, 597-647 (Bibliographic reference). SAB1990.

PICTISH ARTS SOCIETY, 2006, NEWSLETTER 40, p.5 (Bibliographic reference). SAB1467.

FRASER, I, 2008, THE PICTISH SYMBOL STONES OF SCOTLAND, 58-59 (Bibliographic reference). SAB2523.

MILNE, B, 2011, A HISTORY OF MONIFIETH PARISH CHURCH (Bibliographic reference). SAB7610.

ROCKET HERITAGE AND ARCHAEOLOGY, 2023, ST RULES GALLERY, MONIFIETH: WRITTEN SCHEME OF INVESTIGATION, WSI (Bibliographic reference). SAB3211.

Record last edited

Apr 1 2025 3:41PM