On three other Scottish seals we find representations of a single angel with the thurible, but without any figure of the Infant Saviour or the B. Virgin. An Arbroath seal, now in the museum of the Society of Antiquaries, has a full length figure of a bishop, and "on each side is a figure of an angel with the "thurible," L. i. No. 981, p. 174. The seal of the chapter of Dunkeld represents an angel waving the thurible over an elegantly formed reliquary, L. i. No. 1017, p. 181. And its counter-seal has the figure of St. Columba seated, and above it "a demifigure of an angel waving the thurible," No. 1018.

The third emblem in the Rutherglen seal is a ship or galley, known heraldically as a lymphad. The lymphad is an ancient ship with one mast, not infrequent in the heraldry of Scotland. It is the feudal ensign of the Lordship of Lorn. The galley forms the armorial bearing of a number of places at which shipping was one of the leading interests. He may mention (a) The arms of Crail, "a galley with rowers," L. ii. No. 1204, p. 214; (b) the small common seal of Crail, "a galley with sails furled," No. 1206; (c) the common seal of Inverkeithing, "a galley on the water," No. 1224, p. 217; (d) the seal of Kirkwall, "a three-masted galley on the water, sails furled," No. 1238, p. 219; (e) two seals of Queensferry, "a full length figure of St. "Margaret, and in the lower part a small ship," No. 1251, p. 222: and "a figure "of St. Margaret standing in a boat," No. 1252; (f) the seal of North Berwick, "a galley, the sails furled, rowed by four men," L. i. No. 1176, p. 213; (g) the seal of Rothesay, "a castle and below it a ship," L. i., No. 1179; (h) the common seal of Renfrew, "a galley on the water with sails furled," L. i. No. 1178, p. 213.

The explanation of the three emblems on the Rutherglen seal would seem to be as follows:-Firstly, The B. Virgin is represented because the ancient church of the burgh was dedicated to her. This church was granted by William the Lyon to the Abbey of Paisley, and Bishop Joceline (1175-1199) confirmed the grant. Secondly, In her arms is the Infant Saviour, whom the two angels are worshipping by offering and burning incense in thuribles, as the wise men did when "entering into the house, they found the child with "Mary His mother, and falling down they adored Him: and opening their "treasures they offered Him gifts; gold, frankincense, and myrrh." (St. Matthew

ii. 11). Thirdly, The ship or galley was also represented because from an early date Rutherglen was the chief trading town and shipping port in the lower part of the Clyde.

We have seen that the earliest seal was a double one-seal and counterseal. The seal had only the galley, with the legend, Sigillum Communitatis de Rugleninse; and that the counter-seal had the Virgin and Child, with the angels, but without the galley. Its legend was an inscription which Mr. Laing was unable successfully to read, but which has been ably supplied by Mr. Dickson, of the General Register House. It is a leonine verse, and runs thus, Signant ista tria rata navis nauta Maria,”—i.e., These three fixed things form the seal, the ship, the sailor, Mary.

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From this legend it can be gathered that the seal and counter-seal were looked on as one seal-" Signant ista tria, navis," etc, because the galley was not on the counter-seal. Also, it seems clear that somewhat later than A.D. 1493 the seal was no longer used as a pendant seal, but that the seal and counterseal were re-made in the form now before us, by adding all the emblems in one seal, by omitting the legend, Signant ista tria, etc., and by changing the other legend into Sigillum Burghi de Rutherglen.

This seal got into private hands many years ago. The burgh before 1790 used a new seal for their documents. When the new burgh hall was built in 1861-62, this caricature of the ancient seal was carved on the walls. It represents the Divine Infant in the arms of His mother, not seated but standing, with a small galley on the water, and on each side a figure, meant for a bishop, holding a thistle. A woodcut of this shield is given in David. Ure's History of Rutherglen, and in the Ordnance Gazetteer of Scotland, vol. iii. p. 293.

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D. Ure, in his History of Rutherglen, remarks that "To the charters of the corporations are suspended seals, containing impressions of the town coat of "arms. It consists of the Virgin and Babe, attended by two priests holding up thistles in their hands. On the reverse is a ship with two mariners on "board." On p. 79 he gives a drawing of the obverse and reverse of what he calls the old seal, adding, "on the old seal, which is long ago lost, the human "figures were ill executed. In the modern seal, the ship is placed on the "background: it is greatly diminished in its size, and deprived of its mariners."

Of the modern seal, as he terms it, a drawing is given as a frontispiece to his History.

From the fact that in his drawing of the old seal he represents the two figures holding thistles, and in his description of it describes the figures as "two priests holding up thistles in their hands," we are led to conjecture that the origin of the thistles may have been the misreading of the two angels with thuribles.

The only instance we have met with in Scotch seals of a representation of the thistle, is the seal of Archbishop Alexander Stuart, who was killed at Flodden in 1513. In that seal on the dexter is a figure of St. Andrew, and on the sinister side the B. Virgin holding the Infant Jesus. Between them is a shield with the arms of Scotland, and above it a cross fleury and a large St. Andrew's cross. At each side is a thistle, L. ii. No. 1010, p. 170. The thistle was a national emblem of Scotland from the time of James III. of it may have been used to shew that Archbishop Stuart was the son (though natural son) of James IV. The thistle was rather a badge or cognizance than a charge.

In the seal spoken

No adequate motive can be assigned in explanation of the action of the authorities of Rutherglen in carving upon their town hall this shield, in which two figures with thistles are substituted for the angels with censers.

Changes in the charging of seals are not unknown in Scottish seals. A case in point is the old seal of the Collegiate Church of the B. Trinity, or Hospital, near Edinburgh, founded by the queen of James II., in 1462, in honour of the B. Trinity, the Virgin Mary, etc. This seal is described in L. ii. No. 1138, p. 199, and an engraving is given in plate xi. fig. 3. Within a gothic niche is the usual representation of the Trinity. Owing to the prejudice against any representation of the Holy Trinity, the seal was ordered to be changed in the year 1574. The change consisted in placing in the centre of the seal a representation of the church, and above it the words, "Scta Trinitas unus Deus." A drawing of the seal so changed is given in L. ii. No. 1139, p. 199. In this case the change was made deliberately, officially, and as a matter of taste. The change in the Rutherglen seal was not made officially, and may have been caused by the imperfect knowledge of heraldry, or by the blundering of some clerk.

It would not be derogatory to the dignity of the municipality of Rutherglen, but rather to their credit, if they could see their way to replace the shield on the town hall by the ancient shield of the burgh.

Very much to the point is an instance in our own neighbourhood, in which a mistake made has been rectified by going back to the old form. The case is furnished in the arms of Maxwell of Pollok. Modern heralds had made the supporters of the shield two monkeys; whereas upon the seal, A.D. 1400, they are undoubtedly lions, L. i. No. 574, p. 98. "With great propriety the 'present baronet has dismissed the monkeys and resumed the noble animals "adopted by his ancestors," Laing i. p. 16.

In like manner with great propriety the Municipality might dismiss the figures holding thistles and resume the angels with the thuribles.

In three ways a change could be made :-Firstly, By cutting out the stone with the objectionable shield, and replacing it by one with the correct arms of the burgh: or by smoothing the surface of the shield and putting upon it a copper shield with the arms in the heraldic colours. Secondly, Another scheme would be by cutting away the two figures with the thistles, and leaving the Divine Child in His mother's arms, and the galley. This would only be an imperfect arrangement, because it would not represent either the seal or the counter seal of old times. But it would remove the objectionable figures with thistles. Thirdly, If nothing better could be done, it would be well to cut away all the work carved and leave a simple and bare shield. If we cannot have on the shield all we could wish for, it would be a great point gained to have nothing on the walls of the town hall of Rutherglen faulty in design and distressing to the eyes of those who understand heraldry, and who know what the cognizance of the venerable burgh has been for some four hundred years.

Four years ago the officials of the royal burgh of Rutherglen applied to the Lyon Office, Edinburgh, for a grant of arms. This was granted on 4th April, 1889. These arms consist of a shield with the galley only-two angels as supporters-over the shield a knight's helmet with the visor open, and the mantle-above is the B. Virgin with the Divine Child—and in base the motto "Ex fumo fama."

TRANSACTIONS OF THE GLASGOW ARCHEOLOGICAL SOCIETY.

No. XVI.

NOTES ON THE OLD WESTERN TOWERS OF GLASGOW CATHEDRAL:

BY

THE MOST REVEREND ARCHBISHOP EYRE, D.D., LL.D.

[Read at a Meeting of the Society, held on 20th April, 1893.]

THE object of a monograph on the old Western Towers is to put into permanent record information about two portions of our old Cathedral that have disappeared for half a century. The importance of doing this now will be evident when we bear in mind that many persons are now alive who were

The source of information I have availed myself of are:

1. Essay on the Cathedral, by M'Lellan, 1833.

2. Plans, etc, by J. Collie, Architect, 1835.

3. Glasghu Facies. (Edited by Dr. Gordon, 1871).

4. Plans and Elevations of the Proposed Restorations, by the Local Committee, 1836, Hedderwick.

5. Ecclesiastical Antiquities of Scotland, by R. Billings, 1845-52.

6. Relics of Ancient Architecture in Glasgow, by Fairbairn, 1849.

7. History of Glasgow Cathedral, by Jas. Pagan, 1856.

8. The Ancient Church of Scotland, by M. Wallcot, 1874.

9. Old Glasgow, by A. Macgeorge, 1888.

Engravings, prints, and pictures of the west end of the Cathedral with the two towers may be seen in the following list, given in the order of their relative value :

1. Collie-(a) West Elevation, pl. xvii.; (b) Towers from south-east, pl. ii. ; (c) Towers from south, pl. iv.; (d) Ground Plan of Towers, pl. iii.

2. Billings-North Tower only, Vol. iii., pl. ii.

3. David Roberts-Grouping of the two western and the central tower; the top windows of the north-west tower; also the set-offs of buttresses of south-west tower.

4. Reg. Epis. Glasg.-Hearne's Engraving in 1783-from south-west.

5. Macgeorge-Hearne's Engraving, p. 112; Views of Towers looking north-west, by Leitch (Frontispiece).

6. Walcott-Ground Plan, p. 178.

7. Plans and Elevations--From west, pl. iii; Ground Plan, pl. v.

8. Glasghu Facies-From south-west, p. 73; from south-east, p. 243; from west, p. 276; from south-west, p. 722; Ground Plan, p. 251.