Whithorn, Isle of Whithorn & Ninian’s Cave

About Whithorn, Isle of Whithorn & Ninian’s Cave

It was erected to Latinus and his daughter and would have stood by an early Christian church and cemetery. There are traces of the Christian ‘chi-rho’ symbol above the lettering.
The year 431 is the traditional date ascribed to the death and burial here of St Ninian, a bishop who built a ‘shining white church’, known as Candida Casa. But was it built here? Was the great church somewhere else nearby? Several possible locations have been suggested. The favourite is Kirkmadrine, across the bay, in the nearby Rhins of Galloway.
Whithorn certainly developed into one of the most important religious sites in the land. It held St Ninian’s relics and many thousands of pilgrims came here to seek his healing powers. By 1000AD, Whithorn was a thriving commercial settlement and part of an extensive sea-trading network.
At the Isle of Whithorn, lie the ruins of the 14th century St Ninian’s chapel just above the beach landing where pilgrims arrived by sea and where St Ninian is reputed to have landed.
Three miles (5 km) south-west of Whithorn, St Ninian’s Cave is a natural cleft in the sea cliffs. Rock falls may have made it smaller than it would have been when mediaeval pilgrims visited.

These stones are now displayed in the Whithorn Priory Museum. The Visitor Centre Exhibition uses a mixture of objects, interpretation panels, models and figures to bring the complex history of occupation here to life, and is well worth a visit. There is also a replica of an early roundhouse.

Directions: Whithorn is on the A714 from Newton Stewart. Start in the centre of town (George St) at the Visitor Centre.
St Ninian’s Cave is located three miles (5 km) south-west of Whithorn. A car park is located to the left side of the minor road just before Kidsdale Farm, with a sign for St Ninian’s Cave. Walk through the wooded glen, then follow the burnside path to the pebbles of Port Castle Bay. Turn right at the sign for St Ninian’s Cave. The cave’s entrance sits by the seashore along to the right.