Light in the darkness

Lossiemouth’s town motto is per noctum lux, meaning darkness through light, and it can be seen inscribed on its seal beside the image of a holy man bearing a brightly glowing lantern. This is St Gerardine, a Celtic saint who is said to have arrived in the area circa AD934. Observing the danger caused by the rocks offshore, he lit flaming torches along the coast, warning sailors to stay clear. According to legend, he lived in a cave on the eastern side of what is now Lossiemouth. It became a place of pilgrimage throughout the 16th century, with a Gothic doorway and window, but was destroyed in the quarrying that took place for sandstone. Despite this, his influence remains. The school and church are both named after him and Halliman skerries, the small and treacherous rocky islands that Gerardine so diligently warned about, come from ‘holy man’. The practical need of a light did not pass with the saint, and appeals were made for a lighthouse following two major disasters. The first occurred on Christmas Day 1806. On a calm and mild morning, three boats were piloted out of Stotfield, a small fishing community that would eventually become part of Lossiemouth town. The boats reached their fishing grounds only a mile or so from shore and commenced the day’s work. However, as the day progressed, the wind gathered pace and the boats, each containing seven men, were pulled out to sea. In the violent storm that followed, all were lost, numbering the entire population of able-bodied men from the village. A second tragedy followed in November 1826, when 16 boats were lost in a storm. Following this, and knowing the danger presented by the skerries, which would vanish from view at high tide, the local community campaigned tirelessly for a lighthouse to be built. Eventually, Covesea Lighthouse was approved and a 40ft (12m) high beacon also built on the skerries, warning ships away and lighting safe passage through the darkness.