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Duthie Park
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Duthie Park

Historic Photographs
David Oswald
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Duthie Park
Historic Photographs
2476
Duthie Park
A photograph from an Adelphi Series postcard showing a southern portion of Duthie Park.

The image looks east across the park's old Lower Lake towards Arthurseat House.

This lake was expanded, and made more rectangular, in the 1920s. This was undertaken to provide improved facilities for the sailing of model yachts and for skating and curling in winter. From the time of the park's creation, this earlier lake contained two spray fountains at either end. The more easterly of these is shown here.

Arthurseat House dates from before the creation of the park, when the land was owned by Arthur Dingwall Fordyce. The house remained, primarily as a museum, until it was demolished in 1934.

For a detailed account of the park, its history and creation, see the article 'Miss Duthie's Gift: History and Description of the Park' in the Aberdeen Journal of 26th September 1883 (published the day before the park's official opening) and the park's entry in Historic Environment Scotland's Inventory of Gardens and Designed Landscapes - reference number GDL00166.

Also shown in this picture is the park's main rockery, described in the Aberdeen Journal article as follows:

"A most picturesque rockery has been built upon the brow of the rising ground to the west of Arthurseat House, and immediately above the pond we have just been describing. It is very extensive, being upwards of 100 feet in length and 66 feet broad at the widest part, and is composed of different kinds of peculiar stones, broken into all manner of fantastic fragments, which are set-up on end in groups and cone-like eminences. A footway winds through it from end to end; and as the spaces between the stones are occupied by Alpine plants and flowers of various kinds, the whole as viewed from the low ground in front presents a most charming appearance."
Duthie Park
Parks
R08_13
Aberdeen Local Studies
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