My Favourite Place: Amy Jeffs, art historian and author
Where is it?
The Isle of May in the Firth of Forth, accessible by ferry from Anstruther, and a haven for puffins, gannets and guillemots, seals and legend-hunters.
Why do you go there?
In late summer 2019, I won my first book contract and set out for sites to do with Britain’s medieval origin myths. The story of St Teneu, which I develop in my latest book, concerns the daughter of the King of Lothian.
Having been raped by a knight dressed as a woman, she becomes pregnant. The pregnancy ends with a disgraced Teneu in labour, cast adrift by her wrathful father in the waters around the Isle of May.
A shoal of fish bears her to a beach on the estuary, where she delivers her child. Shepherds find her and her baby, whom she names Kentigern, or affectionately, Mungo, and take her to Culross, the home of St Serf.
Medieval sources say Serf was the son of the King of Canaan and a Princess of Arabia and had been Pope before travelling west to convert the Scots. It is said he used his staff to slay a dragon at Dunning.
What’s your favourite memory?
Visiting the Isle of May delivered more than I could have hoped for, even if all the puffins had flown (though, I did inspect a dead one). The ferry broke down during the crossing and we found ourselves drifting in perfect consonance with the legend.
As we turned circles under cliffs white with gannet droppings, I was thrilled, but also relieved that the crew revived the engine before we had to test the helpfulness of today’s fish.
How did you discover it?
I found the story of Teneu, with the Isle of May, in the Aberdeen Breviary and a British Library manuscript, both late medieval. As I’m sure many readers will know, Mungo and Teneu are the patron saints of Glasgow, and Mungo is the cathedral’s dedicatory saint.
Who do you take?
In 2019, I took Professor Julian Luxford from the University of St Andrews. The ferry was full, so he went in a speedboat, with a jar of Branston pickle I had entrusted to him. He’s Australian and found the pickle bewildering, but not the speedboat.
What do you take?
I sat a sensible-ish distance from the edge of the island’s cliffs and ate a portion of the cheddar, pickle and trail mix that I’d been taking with me to various Scottish sites.
How often do you go?
I have only been once. I want to go again with our two children, the first of whom was conceived within weeks of my first and only visit. Hopefully they will enjoy the tale of Teneu, Mungo and Serf, when we do return.
Sum it up in a few words.
Puffin-land. Fresh. Frightening. Legendary. Fruitful.
What other travel spot is on your wish list?
The Caledonian Forests, where Mungo is said to have conversed with a wild and elderly Merlin, alias Lailoken.
Saints: A New Legendary of Heroes, Humans and Magic by Amy Jeffs (riverrun, £30), is published on September 12
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