Sae faur as we ken, the fashion in Scotland for biggin monuments ower individual deid fowk stertit in the 12t century an haed tae dae wi Norman Frainch influence. For a lang time it wis jist kings, nobles an kirkmen that cuid pey for sic monuments, but in the 16t century, wi the oncome o the Reformation, the throuch or heidstane that we ken nooadays stertit tae kythe as lairds, merchants an burgesses biggit monuments tae thairsels an bi the 18ct century onybody that haed a bittie siller socht tae dae the like. A wheen academic cheils atween the late 17t an 19t centuries gaed aboot recordin mony o thir monuments but thair intress wis maistly in landit fowk or inscriptions that wis kenspeckle for some reason, sae it wisna til the 20t century that we ettled at the hail kintra an aw clesses o fowk.

Atween the 1940’s an 1980’s sindry faimly history organisations gaed aboot braid Scotland makkin a record o the inscriptions in aw oor burrial grunds. Mony texts haed worn awa or the stanes haed cowpit or been taen awa but the muckle speir kent as the Monumental Inscriptions of Scotland haes noo recordit awthing left ower.

Until the 18ct century the stane pit ower a grave wis kent as a throuchstane, but efter the Inglis fashion we stertit cawin them heidstanes forby. Heidstanes cuid be dear an it wisna awbody that cuid pey for ane sae mony fowk got yirdit wi nane an affen the only record we micht hae that a burrial haed taen place is the mortclaith accompt. Whaur thir accompts haes been tint we hae nae record o deith or burrial ava. But haein said that Scotland is weel serred for registers o whit haes won ower an a body shuid find a dooble o Monumental Inscriptions for his or her pairt o the kintra in thair leebrar hameaboot. Thir volumes leets ilka burrial grund alang wi a cairte o the layoot an the information gien on the heidstane –names, dates an the lave – wi an index bi faimly name. It’s aye warth takkin a swatch o thir buiks as ye micht jist find a forebear or twa in amang them.