Scottish Sasine (Title) Dated 1610 with Two Seals- Lot 103, Auction 7/1/2019
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Scottish Sasine (Title) Dated 1610 with Two Seals- Lot 103, Auction 7/1/2019

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Scotland, 1610 CE. This is a hand-written, single-page, vellum document from 28 June, 1610. Text covers nearly the entirety of one side of the page. There are several small notes written on the other side, and one written on the folded over cover. This front inscription titles the document and says: “Charter of the [unreadable] land of Barcaple by the Bishop of Galloway to Andrew Arnot.” The title has been signed by the Bishop and other clerics and then given the Monastic seal of Whithorn Priory (see Laing – Ancient Scottish Seals 1866, Item 1187) and the seal of the Bishop of Galloway (also see Laing, Item 1094). The Bishop of Galloway in 1610 was Gavin Hamilton, who was part of the Church of Scotland during fairly turbulent times as the transition to a post-Reformation world took place. For example, 1610 was the year when the Church agreed to the restoration of the ecclesiastical power of bishops. The Church was an enormous land owner, and as the Bishop of Galloway, Hamilton and his colleagues would have managed large areas of the countryside. Land ownership at this time was restricted to a few small groups of people, and Andrew Arnot was undoubtedly related to David Arnot, who had been the Bishop of Galloway from 1509 to 1526. The presence of the large, intact seals, and the ease of legibility on this old document, make it a very nice historical find, especially for those interested in Scottish history or genealogy. Size of vellum (not counting seals): 20″ W x 22.5″ H (50.8 cm x 57.2 cm).

Condition: This piece is expectedly fragile, but can be clearly read and has two wax seals that are readable (although missing some fragments from their edges). There are fold marks and clear signs of wear/age, with fading to ink. Seals are still attached to the document by intact strips of vellum.

Provenance: Ex-private Bastiaan collection, acquired at Artemis Gallery in 2004

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