Marriage stone

They were sometimes added to a building which was constructed specifically as the new family home for the married couple, especially when the dowry was large, or were carved into a pre-existing lintel over the main entrance or over a fireplace.

[1] The stones also clearly indicated the ownership of the building to onlookers at the time as well as serving as a record for posterity of both marital bliss and often also of social advancement.

The stones were placed where they would be easily and frequently seen by visitors, usually on the lintel above the front door of a house, above a fireplace or in a prominent position facing the entrance or in the gardens, such as above a doorway in wall.

In some cases the adornment was religious in nature, such as at 'The Hill' farm mansion house (see photograph) or an artistic design simply placed there as an ornamentation.

[5] A two-ton Scottish granite Marriage stone was created for the wedding of Prince Charles and Camilla Parker-Bowles, 9 April 2005.

[13] On the crest of a hill near the village of Doagh in County Antrim, Northern Ireland, sits a Bronze Age standing stone or 'holestone'.