Friday 20 June 2014

View from inside Maeshowe, 1900.







Photo and letter taken from the Magnus Spence collection.
Orkney Archive Reference: D32/2/2

 Magnus Spence was born around 1853 in Birsay, the son of Magnus Spence, a schoolmaster and his wife Ann. He also became a schoolmaster and spent his teaching career in Stenness and latterly Deerness schools. In addition to his being a much acclaimed educationalist, he was a gifted amateur geologist, botanist, meteorologist, zoologist and antiquarian. He published many papers reflecting these wide interests but remains best known in Orkney for his 'Flora Orcadensis', published by David Spence, Kirkwall, 1914. He died in 1919.

The letter is from A.L. Lewis, Highbury Hill, London.

For more information on the 'Barnstone' which is supposed to be the subject of the snap, see here.








1 comment:

  1. Hello, my Orkney friends! I've been MIA for a few weeks, for which I don't even have a good excuse. But I have enjoyed each post since the last time I visited. Thank you for keeping us informed about the goings-on in your far-off Archives.

    Sue.

    ReplyDelete

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