350 



FIELD MEETINGS. 



15th June, 1912. 



Parish of Eskdalemuir. 



The first field meeting- of the Session was arranged in 

 conjunction with the Eskdale and Liddesdale Archseolog-ical 

 Society, to visit the outstanding- antiquities of the Parish of 

 Eskdalemuir. The Dumfries contingent of thirty-six mem- 

 bers motored by Paddockholm Bridge and Bailiehill in two 

 tourist and several private cars, this being the first occasion 

 the Society adopted this means of conveyance, and met the 

 Langholm contingent at the Girdlestanes and Loupin' Stanes 

 on the Farm of Cote. Mr R. Hyslop of Sunderland there pro- 

 pounded the conclusions arrived at by Mr G. R. Goldbrough, 

 science lecturer in Durham University, by following the 

 methods of Sir Norman Lockyer in his calculations on Stone- 

 henge. The subject is fully dealt with by Messrs J. and R. 

 Hyslop in their Langholm as it was, 1912 (pp. 17-54). 

 According to Sir Norman Lockyer's principles, Mr Gold- 

 brough arrived at the conclusion that the Girdlestanes circle 

 \\'as constructed in 1290 or 13 10 B.C. An avenue of stones 

 which connects the Girdlestanes and Loupin' Stanes was re- 

 garded as the original stone monument in that part of the 

 country, and was probably older than the Girdlestanes by 

 1300 years and preceded the Loupin' Stanes by 600 years. 

 The date assigned to it was 2600 B.C., making it one of the 

 oldest historical monuments either in the British Isles or any 

 part of Europe. The Rev. J. L. Dinwiddie of Ruthwell voiced 

 the thanks of the visitors to Mr Hyslop for his admirably lucid 

 disquisition. 



The visitors then proceeded to Raeburnfoot Roman 

 Camp, where Mr Thomas Beattie of Davington outlined the 

 Earthworks. Driving next to Castle O'er, the members had 

 the opportunity of visiting the large oval camp on the top of 



