Timsgarry ( gd, Tuimisgearraidh) is a village on the Isle of Lewis, in the Outer Hebrides, Scotland. Timsgarry is home to the Baile na Cille Church and the Uig Museum, noted for its giant

Chessmen A chess piece, or chessman, is a game piece that is placed on a chessboard to play the game of chess. It can be either white or black, and it can be one of six types: king, queen, rook, bishop, knight, or pawn. Chess sets generally come with s ...

, discovered in the sands in 1831.

Geography

Timsgarry lies on the western side of the Isle of Lewis on Uig Bay, southwest of Stornoway on the B8011 road, to the north of

Ardroil Ardroil ( gd, Eadar Dhà Fhadhail) is a village on the Isle of Lewis in the Outer Hebrides, Scotland. Ardroil is within the parish of Uig. Geography Ardroil is more accurately the name of a fertile machair district by the expanse of Uig Bay bet ...

. The Erista River flows in the sea at Timsgarry. The coastline here is known as Uig Sands (Tràigh Uuige).

History

Fragments of

Iron Age The Iron Age is the final epoch of the three-age division of the prehistory and protohistory of humanity. It was preceded by the Stone Age ( Paleolithic, Mesolithic, Neolithic) and the Bronze Age ( Chalcolithic). The concept has been mostl ...

pottery were recovered from Dun Borranish, just to the south of the main settlement, in 1991.

Landmarks

Timsgarry is home to the Baile na Cille Church, and is situated within the parish of Uig. Timsgarry used to have its own chapel, named ''Capail Mor'', further to the west of the present church, which was built in 1724 near to the site of an earlier church, known as ''Capail Beag''. The former manse is still present, with the churchyard. The ruins of an even earlier church, ''Teampall Chrìosd'' (St Christopher's), is located to the west of Timsgarry. There is a legend that this burial ground was once a bare rock and a man called Eidheann brought the soil from a nearby hill, Cnoc Eidheann to build the knoll it resides on. Under the mound is said to be a pagan temple or dun. At one time the burial ground was supposed to be for the exclusive use of Clan Macaulay. It is now a scheduled monument. The Uig Museum is located at Timsgarry, within the community centre, and displays local archaeology, such as replicas of the Uig Chessmen, discovered in the sands in 1831. These were identified as 12th century Viking chess pieces which were made from walrus ivory and whale teeth. Uig Lodge Golf Course, to the southwest of the village overlooking Uig Sands Bay, was originally established in 1930 and recently restored. It is currently run by the Uig Lodge and used exclusively by hotel guests.

References

External links

Canmore - Lewis, Timsgarry site recordCanmore - Timsgarry site record
{{Lewis and Harris Villages in the Isle of Lewis