The Pend, Whithorn

About The Pend, Whithorn

Once the gatehouse to the monastery, the Pend is the arched building which leads to the sacred precincts of the Priory and was once gated, separating the secular world outside from the spiritual world within. Pilgrims would have gathered in the wide street outside; on feast days, the town would have been crowded with people looking for special indulgences which would have helped them avoid the worst pains of the afterlife. The arch is surmounted by the Royal Arms of Scotland, and is dated to around 1500, the time of James IV, Whithorn’s most faithful Royal pilgrim. It is one of only a handful of sculpted coats of arms of this quality in Scotland and it served to indicate the close relationship between Whithorn’s Priory and the King of Scots. The decorated caps on the pillars are those of the Bishop of Whithorn – George Vaus – of this date. The gatehouse was once much higher – an imposing tower designed to let visiting pilgrims know of the Prior’s wealth and status – and had flanking wings with offices carrying out Priory business. The barrel vault collapsed at some point and was replaced with a wooden floor.