Granny Kempock Stone

About

The megalithic Kempock Stone, popularly known as Granny Kempock (perhaps because of its resemblance to an old woman), stands on a cliff behind Kempock Street, the main shopping street in Gourock, Scotland. The stone, or menhir, is grey mica schist and of indeterminate origin, but it has been suggested that it is an old altar to the pagan god Baal, or a memorial to an ancient battle. Supposedly there is a superstition that for sailors going on a long voyage or a couple about to be married, walking seven times around the stone would ensure good fortune.

A flight of steps winds up to the stone from Kempock Street below. There is also an association with witchcraft. In 1662 Marie Lamont and a group of other local women were burned to death in the local area after it was alleged that she and her coven had danced around the stone on the sabbath, with the intention of cursing and sinking shipping that passed through the Clyde by casting the long-stone into the sea.

A decorative iron archway sits above the passageway leading up to the stone. A number of markings exist on the stone. Some of these appear to be 17th- to 19th-century graffiti and most are obviously initials.

Alongside some of these...