Glasgow part 2

On Tuesday we got the subway - a simple ring of stations that cover the north and south of the city - and headed for the Cathedral. Built in the 12th century,  it is Scotland's finest example of a medieval cathedral and survived the Reformation. It is the oldest building in Glasgow. It was dedicated to St Mungo, the patron saint of Glasgow.

Wandering around the cathedral and indeed elsewhere in Glasgow you are confronted by four things which can be summed up by this poem...

Here is the bird that never flew
Here is the tree that never grew
Here is the bell that never rang
Here is the fish that never swam

The verse refers to the following:

• The Bird: Mungo restored life to a robin that had been killed by some of his classmates. 
• The Tree: Mungo had been left in charge of a fire in Saint Serf's monastery. He fell asleep and the fire went out. Taking a hazel branch, he restarted the fire.
• The Bell: the bell is thought to have been brought by Mungo from Rome. It was said to have been used in services and to mourn the dead. 
• The Fish: refers to the story about Queen Languoreth of Strathclyde who was suspected of infidelity by her husband. King Riderch demanded to see her ring, which he claimed she had given to her lover. In reality the King had thrown it into the River Clyde. Faced with execution she appealed for help to Mungo, who ordered a messenger to catch a fish in the river. On opening the fish, the ring was miraculously found inside, which allowed the Queen to clear her name. 

Once you know all of the above, you see those four symbols everywhere in Glasgow. I even bought a fridge magnet to remind me of it once home.

Meanwhile back to the cathedral... here are some pictures to give you an idea of the size and style.

Of course, more scaffolding!

This interesting needlework inside the cathedral caught my eye. Read it as spelled and you can almost hear the Scottish accent.

Next to the cathedral is the Necropolis. It is a Victorian graveyard officially opened in 1833 and is the burial ground for around 50,000 Glasgow graves with 3,500 monuments. Rich industrial entrepreneurs of Glasgow wanted to proclaim their wealth even in death and the graves compete to be the biggest. They can be seen from far off and are amazing the closer you get.

This one is clearly for a Scottish actor, the inscription is below