Treasure Hunt Contract

 

Fast Castle, Berwickshire, Scotland

So intrigued am I by the story of John Napier's treasure hunt that I've visited the site, the ruins of Scotland's Fast Castle, three times. I have been there twice by land and once by sea. 

Fast Castle, Berwickshire, Scotland

In July of 1594, mathematician John Napier entered into a contract with Sir Robert Logan to search for treasure at Logan's fortress of Fast Castle. There were longstanding rumors of treasure there, what it was (or is), we do not know. Perhaps they didn't either. Some possibilities are Templar treasure, a king's ransom*, plunder of wreckers**, and smugglers' hoards.

Fast Castle, Berwickshire, Scotland

Fast Castle, Berwickshire, Scotland

The castle is very nearly a complete ruin now, with only one significant portion of wall left standing, although if you look closely, and especially so on the north side, you can see more elements of the structure. As you approach the site, a long walk over farmland and hills, you initially see a promontory that looks to small to have held a castle. But as you move onto the promontory and continue walking, you see that it stretches on, tier after tier, and it becomes clear what a well-protected fortress this would have been.

Fast Castle, Berwickshire, Scotland

But my reason for writing today isn't to share about the site, it is to share about the contract itself. I spend a lot of time in archives, and this document, written in John Napier's own hand, is a manuscript I've wanted to access. Over the course of my studies and travels, John Napier has become the mathematician I am most interested in, and I seek to find every artifact related to him that I can.

I know from my readings that the contract was still in existence, despite the fact that its conditions specified that it was to have been destroyed. For years I've researched the whereabouts of this, reportedly, still-existing document. In one search, I read that it had been sold to a Napier collector and had later ended up in the collection of Trinity College, Cambridge, but this proved to be false. I imagined that it might be held in the National Library of Scotland or in the National Records of Scotland, but it is in neither of those collections. Searching for this manuscript has become a treasure hunt of its own for me.

So . . . I'd read in Napier biographies that the Napier-Logan Treasure Contract had not been destroyed, despite the terms of the contract, but I wasn't sure how that claim was being made. 

One biography ('memoir') was written by his descendant Mark Napier in the 1830s, and correspondence between Mark and the 9th Lord Napier about this project is held in the special collections of the National Library of Scotland. While reading that, I found a list that Mark had made of the items he was using from the family charter chest. Item 8.1 was "Contract betwixt Napier, the inventor of Logs and Logan of Restalrig." AHA! Now I had proof that the contract was still extant in 1832.

1830s Napier Correspondence, National Library of Scotland (shelf mark: MS 1663)

1830s Napier Correspondence, National Library of Scotland (shelf mark: MS. 1663, folio 22v)

I was so surprised and exited by reading this completely unexpected line that I just about fell out of my chair in the reading room. It was all I could do to remain quiet and not leap up and shout for joy!

Special Collections Reading Room, National Library of Scotland

I still didn't know where the actual manuscript was, but I did know for sure that it truly did continue to exist well beyond the 1594 date of its writing. Mark Napier accessed it in the family charter chest. But what happened after that? Did it get returned? Was it sold at some point, as one website would have me believe?

While reading another Napier biography, The Life and Works of John Napier by Rice, González-Velasco, and Corrigan, I noticed in their "Further Reading" section a book titled Gold at Wolf's Crag? An Inquiry into treasure at Fast Castle by Fred Douglas. This book, published in 1971, is no longer in print, but I was able to find it through a used bookseller.

Gold at Wolf's Crag? by Fred Douglas

By complete happenstance, I read through the acknowledgements one night, and there I saw, "Edinburgh Public Libraries for 'The Contract of Magic,' 1594." JACKPOT!

Acknowledgements, Gold at Wolf's Crag? by Fred Douglas

My next trip to Scotland saw me visiting Edinburgh's Central Library.

Central Library, Edinburgh

Central Library, Edinburgh

Central Library, Edinburgh

I contacted the library in advance asking if the document was still there and if I could access it. What I learned was that the item they held was a facsimile, a photozincograph, contained in Facsimiles of National Manuscripts of Scotland, Part III, published in 1871, a volume created at the command of Queen Victoria, who had a particular fondness for Scotland and wanted its historical documents preserved and promoted.

National Manuscripts of Scotland, Part III, Edinburgh's Central Library (shelf mark: F X DA 755)

Frontispiece, National Manuscripts of Scotland, Part III, CLE (shelf mark: F X DA 755) 

"Photozincographed by Command of Her Majesty Queen Victoria"

Napier-Logan Contract (LXXV) and Gowrie Conspiracy Document (LXXVI)

Napier-Logan Treasure Contact, Edinburgh Central Library (shelf mark: F X DA 755)

Contract Signatures of Robert Logan of Restalrig and John Napier, Fear of Merchiston

So this is as close as I've gotten to the original manuscript. This contract is written in John Napier's own hand. I write all this to share my excitement of being on "treasure hunts" of my own and also what it sometimes takes to move inch-by-inch toward what one is looking for in these researches. And, I have to say, that reading in Edinburgh's Central Library (and the National Library of Scotland as well) was an absolute joy!

Near the beginning of the volume is a list of "Places of Deposit of the Manuscripts." In it, I see that the treasure hunt contract (item 75) is, or at least was in 1871, in the Charter Room of Lord Napier at Thirlstane Castle. I have no reason to believe it is anywhere but still in the Napier Family Charter Chest. Though I would love to consult the original document, I don't think my want rises to the level of "need," especially given what I've been able to access already, so I'm not planning to contact Lord Napier. But who knows what may come about someday. Stranger things have happened over the course of my travels and researches.

National Manuscripts of Scotland, Part III, Edinburgh Central Library (shelf mark: F X DA 755)

National Manuscripts of Scotland, Part III, Edinburgh Central Library (shelf mark F X DA 755)

NOTES:

*In 1429, Fast Castle was the site of the robbery of 2000 merks, a part of a royal ransom payment on the way to the English king, Henry VI, for the ransom of James I of Scotland.

**The name Fast Castle derived from the earlier name Fause Castle (False Castle), so named because the inhabitants hung lights to make it look like there was a safe harbor there and then plundered the ships that broke up on the rocks below the castle.

A Grave Matter

Greyfriars Kirk, Edinburgh, Scotland

This post honors Colin Maclaurin who died 280 years ago today (June 14, 1746) at the age of only 48. I first visited his grave - or tried to - ten years ago, but I only found a memorial tablet. It was only on my most recent trip to the UK that I actually saw his grave. In the post for that first visit, which can be found at this link, I shared quite a bit about his life. In this post I'll be focusing on his tombstone and on the comfort found in the words on his memorial.

Colin Maclaurin Memorial Tablet, Greyfriars Kirkyard

My first visit was rushed. I had about a month's worth of math-history related things to do and only five days in which to do them, so I hurried into Greyfriars Kirkyard as evening fell and temperatures were dropping - not knowing when closing time was, and unsure if I might get locked in overnight. I finally found the memorial tablet, which is the top right plaque on the south-western exterior of the church. 

Greyfriars Kirk, Edinburgh, Scotland

What I didn't notice, as I stood tip-toe to read the plaque, is that Maclaurin's I was standing, unseeing, right next to Maclaurin's actual burial site. I had probably stepped around it to get a better view of the memorial. Directly below his memorial tablet in the picture above, you can see a table stone, which is his gravestone. Below is a closer view.

Colin Maclaurin's Grave, Greyfriars Kirkyard

I feel a little silly at my oversight as I reflect on that first visit, but to be fair, I was rushed and more than a little scared. My focus was up high, not down low, and, even if I had been looking down, the inscription is incredibly faded. It is also quite minimal, having only the initials C. M. and his year of birth and death given in Roman Numerals.

Colin Maclaurin's Tombstone, Greyfriars Kirkyard

Colin Maclaurin's Tombstone, Greyfriars Kirkyard

Now that we've taken a look at his tombstone, I want to go back to his memorial, but only after sharing a few pictures of the kirkyard, which is often said to be the most haunted graveyard in the world.

Detail of Funerary Art, Greyfriars Kirlyard, Edinburgh

Detail of Funerary Art, Greyfriars Kirlyard, Edinburgh

Detail of Funerary Art, Greyfriars Kirlyard, Edinburgh

Detail of Funerary Art, Greyfriars Kirlyard, Edinburgh

Detail of Funerary Art, Greyfriars Kirlyard, Edinburgh

Detail of Funerary Art, Greyfriars Kirlyard, Edinburgh

Detail of Funerary Art, Greyfriars Kirlyard, Edinburgh

I share the pictures above in order to highlight the words on his memorial.

Colin Maclaurin Memorial Tablet, Greyfriars, Edinburgh

The words of this memorial not only honor Maclaurin but are also intended to bring comfort to those visiting here. I'll give these words first in the Latin and then in English:

***

Infra situs est Colin Maclaurin Mathes olim in Acad. Edin. Prof. Electus ipso Newtono suadente. h.l.p.f. Non ut nomini paterno consulat. Nam tali auxilio nil eget. Sed ut in hoc infelici campo. Ubi Luctus regnant et Pavor. Mortalibus prorsus non absit Solatium. Hujus enim scripta evolve. Mentemque tantarum rerum capacem. Corpori caduco superstitem crede.

***

Here lies Colin Maclaurin, once Professor of Mathematics at the University of Edinburgh, chosen for that post at the urging of Newton himself.

This memorial was erected not to preserve a fame that needs no preservation, but that in this sorrowful place, where grief and fear hold sway, visitors might find some comfort.

Read his works. Reflect upon a mind capable of such achievements, and believe that it survives the frail body that once contained it. Then consolation will not be far away.

Gone Too Soon

 

Hôpital Cochin - Paris, France

Though I have posted at length about Évariste Galois in the past, I cannot let today go by without putting up a remembrance of him. Today is the anniversary of his death in 1832. Among his last words as he died in Hôpital Cochin of wounds from a duel the day before were to his brother Alfred: "Don’t cry, I need all my courage to die at twenty."

Rue de la Glacière - 13th Arrondissement, Paris

Galois was shot in the abdomen the previous day and was left in the field by his opponent and seconds. It was a later passerby who brought him to the hospital (Hôpital Cochin). The duel was in the field of Glacier Pond in Gentilly, now in the 13th Arrondissement in Paris. This field was near swamps that froze in the winter - a resource that was used for ice. But, of course, everything has changed since 1832; even the river that used to run near there is now underground. The closest I could get to where the duel may have been was the Rue de la Glacière.

Cimetière de Montparnasse - Paris, France

Certain he was going to die, Galois stayed up writing frantically, using his last hours to say what he needed to say. There is a myth that Galois spent the night writing out all the math that was in his head - math that we would not otherwise have. This is "romantic," but it is false. He had 4 published papers that I know of - one on continued fractions, two on the theory of equations, and one on number theory. He had also written and submitted to the French Academy of Sciences, a "memoir" titled The Conditions for the Resolvability of Equations by Radicals. The importance of his work (which is impossible to overstate) was not recognized until about a decade after his death - also the Academy was more than a little negligent about reviewing his work - but that does not mean we did not have his work. (Of course, we wish we had more!)

As Galois wrote on that last night of his life, he penned three things - a letter to "all republicans," wishing not to be reproached for dying otherwise than for his country" - a letter to two republican friends, apologizing for not telling them of the duel, and asking them to remember him "since fate did not give me a long enough life for my country to remember me" - and a letter to his best friend organizing and outlining his mathematical work. He also spent time organizing his mathematical papers; on one of these he wrote the poignant words, "Je n'ai pas le temps" - "I have no time."

Évariste Galois at age 15, drawn by a classmate (Public Domain, Wikipedia)

Despite having posted before, I am posting again for a few reasons. One is his statement in his letter to his friends - his concern about not having lived long enough to be remembered - I certainly want to make sure he is remembered. Another reason is to share a quote about him that I've come across since the time of my previous post - a quote by Felix Klein: "In France, about 1830, a new star of unimaginable brightness appeared in the heavens of pure mathematics." I think that quote reflects his impact well and is worth sharing. And finally, after all these years, a question has occurred to me that I hadn't considered before, and maybe one of my readers knows the answer.

MY QUESTION:

Galois was buried in a common grave in Montparnasse Cemetery, a grave whose exact location is no longer known. Yet his funeral had been attended by 2000 or more people. His brother still lived, as did his mother (I think). His father had been a mayor and is buried in Bourg-la-Reine Communal Cemetery, a suburb of Paris; would there not have been space next to him to bury his son? Given all this, why would Évariste Galois have been buried in a common grave? If anyone can enlighten me, I would appreciate it.

If you're interested in a longer post, more pictures, and more details, click here to see my previous post.

For now let's raise a toast to the genius who before age 20 changed the very landscape of mathematics. Let's raise a toast, but unlike Galois, let's try not to get arrested. (IYKYK)

Einstein's Blackboard

 

Einstein's Blackboard, History of Science Museum, Oxford

Ninety-five years ago today - May 16, 1931 - Einstein gave a lecture on cosmology. It was the second of three lectures he gave at Rhodes House, and some quick-thinking dons "rescued" the blackboard and dontated it to Oxford's History of Science Museum. (Actually, they saved two boards, but one of them ended up accidentally erased by a cleaner at the museum.) 

This blackboard is now one of the most popular exhibits at the History of Science Museum. Ironically, Einstein felt annoyance at these blackboards being preserved; he even protested against it happening. He didn't like the idea of a "personality cult" nor the negative feelings it might create in other eminent scholars. Additionally, what he presented that day was something he considered a work in progress. But people do flock to see this, and I have to admit to a sense of reverence myself when I visited. 

Oxford's History of Science Museum (far right)

Oxford's History of Science Museum is near the Old Bodleian Library and just west of the Sheldonian Theatre. The building itself is interesting for its own history. It is the world's oldest surviving purpose-built public museum building - originally built to house the "curiosities" of Elias Ashmole (1683). Ashmole's collection outgrew the building, which was then used to serve the Oxford English Dictionary project. It became a science museum in 1924. And there are many amazing items to be found here. I've included just a small sampling in the next few pictures.

Astrolabe of Queen Elizabeth I, gifted to her by Sir Robert Dudley in the first year of her reign

16th-century marble copy of John Dee's "Holy Table"

Telescopes (part of a 2022 Alice in Wonderland display)

Portable Sundial

Models of Mathematical Shapes

I could post dozens more pictures, and they could be more varied. I tend to be attracted to mathematical items and items from the Tudor Era. But despite the wide variety, many visitors come specifically to see Einstein's blackboard. The blackboard is in the lowest level of the museum, and even walking through this historic building in order to get there is an experience of beauty and interest. In the next few pictures I'm looking back up just before entering the room where the blackboard is exhibited.

Once you get to the bottom of the stairs (and are done staring upward) walk midway through the basement room and look left. You will see Einstein's blackboard posted very visibly on the wall.

Einstein's Blackboard, History of Science Museum, Oxford

Below is the view as you exit. Across Broad Street from the museum is Blackwell's Books (highly recommended!) and Bodleian's Weston Library (also highly recommended!). At the bottom of this post is a short video about how to get to the blackboard - if interested.