Walk wth Neil Port at Mount Stewart Gardens (Part 4)

 This is the fourth in this series (7) over the next few weeks in which a group of staff and volunteers from the National Trust Property of Mount Stewart was privileged to take a walk round the gardens with Neil Porteous, our Head Gardener.  This time we have reached the private burial grounds at Tir na nOg meaning "The Land of the Ever Young" which are not open to the public.

This is the head stone of Robin, the 8^th Marquess of Londonderry, the only son of Charles and Edith.  He married Romaine. Below is Lady Edith's grave and the image following that is Charles, 7th Marquess of Londonderry.

This is Lady Londonderry’s  sarcophagus and is perhaps the more personal of the two, depicting her beloved books, her pets and her garden amongst her honours and arms. Eastward, next to Lady Londonderry lies her beloved youngest daughter, Lady Mairi, who died in 2009.

The sarcophagus belongs to Lord Londonderry, who died in 1949. Lord Londonderry’s tomb is the more weathered of the pair and the tall sides depict on the foot of the sarcophagus the badge of the Royal Air Force, Lord Londonderry served as Under Minister for Air in Ramsey McDonald’s Labour government. 

There are two alcoves decorated with tesserae of light blue. Three of the four alcoves house statues designed by the artist and family friend Edmund Brock. St. Patrick and St. Bridget are housed at the western end and St. Columcille stands alone on the eastern side.  No one knows whether it was broken or never made in the first place.

The fifth in this series will be published next Monday.

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