Publication Info
Publication Details
Introduction
The ancient Kirkyard of Echt (whose MIs are published by ANESFHS as AA130) lies half a mile south of the present-day village. The original kirk was replaced in 1804 by the new kirk at the crossroads, but burials initially continued in the old kirkyard. However, by the early 20th century, there was a need for a new burial ground, and the area to the southeast of the new kirk was laid out with about 260 new lairs, along with the War memorial to parishioners killed in the First World War and the grandiose memorial to the first Viscount and Viscountess Cowdray. Burials continue at the present time in the areas on either side of the main avenues leading to the War Memorial, on the east and south of the Kirk. But the original new kirkyard area is now largely full. We are used to the notion that inscriptions from the 19th century and earlier have deteriorated, but surprisingly even some of the 20th century inscriptions at Echt are becoming harder to read. In place of the incised inscriptions which were standard in earlier times, many of the inscriptions at Echt are formed of applied metal lettering, and this has not proved as durable or as legible as was no doubt hoped, and some of the smaller monuments have suffered damage. It was therefore felt desirable to record the inscriptions in the older part of the burial ground while most of them could still be made out, and this booklet is the result. In recording the inscriptions, the opportunity was taken to make trial use of new technology, in the form of digital photography, to try and speed the process. The jury is still out on whether this actually saves time, because whatever the means employed to record the inscriptions, there is still the same need to map, check, and index, and more person-hours have probably been expended by the editor in co-ordinating the various stages, on-site and off-site, in correcting errors, and in formatting the corrected text, than were spent by the photographers and remote transcribers. But whatever the means employed, we trust that this booklet is to the same standards of accuracy as have been established over many years by the traditional ANESFHS graveyard teams. Gavin Bell June 2007
Comments
Echt New Kirkyard, naming 561 individuals between 1868 and 2006
