2012-01-06 (Day 6) St Michael's Church, Linlithgow

This is St Michael's church in Linlithgow (not Marks and Spencer, you fool!)

The church is right next to Linlithgow Palace, famous home of Mary, Queen Of Scots. Just as with the palace, the church has an interesting history (http://www.undiscoveredscotland.co.uk/linlithgow/stmichaels/index.html).

However, today it is most famous for its remarkable crown. The original stone crown on the building was proving too heavy for the brickwork that supported it, and was removed in 1821. The new structure was built in 1964 by Geoffrey Clark of lightweight anodised aluminium. Its jagged point are intended to symbolise Christ's crown of thorns.

Today, the jagged crown is a potent symbol of famed Scots "thorniness", at this place so significant in Scotland's history. It marks Linlithgow out as a town to be reckoned with - yet I can only imagine the outcry and uproar that such a dramatic alteration to the skyline would have caused when it was first proposed.