Haddington » Christ Symbol
The capital atop of this pillar is to be found at the main west entrance of St Mary’s Collegiate Church. Beautifully carved it has a little damage. It is probably the best example of medieval Christian symbolism that the Rosslyn Templars have yet come across and is therefore worth spending a some time in discussing it and its’ meaning.
This we shall do on this page and also on the following one which provides a closer view of the central ’shield’.
We can see the the capital is almost entirely foliage representing ‘all of creation’. It related to the Green Man in that that symbol also represents all of God’s creation. The quality of this carving is particularly fine. The capital is on a pillar in the centre of the archway. As the good folk of Haddington came to worship in their church they enter either side of this pillar and could not have failed to notice it and know the meaning of its’ symbolism.
In the medieval period few people were literate and the church turned to the use of ‘visual aids’ to educate the laity in, at least, the rudimentary elements of the Christian faith. Angels with scrolls with a few well chosen words thereon projected the general message ‘this is where you will hear the word of God’ whilst for those few who could read the words would drive home a particular Christian message. Stained glass windows preformed this function superbly well as stories could be told in sequence and in full colour!
Scotland however, was a poor country and stained glass was very expensive. Even Rosslyn Chapel which William Sinclair of Rosslyn spent enormous sums did not have stained glass - it was beyond the reach of most individuals except perhaps the king. Only cathedrals and large burgh churches like St Mary’s which could gather money from a large population could afford such a luxury.
To go to the closer image of the Christ Symbol stone click here or navigate using the sidebar or bottom links.
