Welcome to the Waymerks website.

Walk on the Southern Upland Way this season and you might be lucky enough to find a waymerk.

Maybe you have already come across one of the kists (chests) in which they are hidden. If you are mystified, explore this site and you will discover a great deal. You WONT, however, see pictures of all the thirteen kists. They have been made by artists from the Borders and Dumfries & Galloway, the kists are hidden in secret locations, high on hills or deep in groves along the Southern Upland Way. The edge of this page shows a collage made from fragments of their photographs. You can only see the kists themselves by climbing the hills and searching for them!

This is not too difficult. They may be cunningly hidden but almost all of them are very near to the path. If there is a particular kist which is further from it, then there will be a clue on the path to show you.

This year we have made it easy for you to find them...Watch out for the word ULTREIA (On with your quest!) it tells you that you are getting warm.

The merks* themselves are small tokens of lead or copper. They have been designed by John Behm, who conceived the Waymerks Project, and created by him and his team of volunteers. John Behm has always been fascinated with the forms of the landscape of the Southern Uplands, the ancient marks of man¹s hand upon the land, the palimpsest recording the successive efforts of individuals  ('I am potent, I can provide') and communities to shape the landscape into something more suited to the needs of a given moment; and their by-product of accidental beauty. With this go all the old stories of movement, migration, settlement, and struggle to survive. With the Waymerks event, it is John's hope to engage people in acts of discovery: of the landscape, the people, the stories, and the art being placed, in celebration, along the Southern Upland Way.

The Waymerks Project also functions as an examination of material culture: the life of the artefact, the vagaries of fortune, and the attrition of the material record over time. This focuses on currency and circulation, the erotic life of things ('they'll go with anyone').

The themes are living, making and livelihood. Each merk bears one common, 'heads' design showing a collage of earthworks and building symbolic of man's changes to the landscape. The reverse faces show one of 13 designs, each drawn from the history, archaeology, natural history, or industry of the landscape through which the stages of the Way pass - celebrating the Southern Uplands, and promoting the continuity of life and viable livelihood here. 

Some of the designs are drawn from ancient jewellery, others refer to the turbulent history of the area. If you happen to climb the right hill you could discover the kist that contains the merks which show a wild boar....

*A merk was familiar coin in Medieval Scotland.

merk la 16^th- e 17^th
1…thirteen and a third pence of English currency, continuing at that valuation as a money of account even after the official abolition of the Scots currency in 1707, now only arch. in legal use.
2 the name of a coin of the value of 1..

Thanks to the Merks strikers...

Rachael Long, Rich Webb, Alasdair McLean, Kenneth McQueenie, Daniel Sargent, Jeremy Walker, Fi Martynoga, Liz Arkieson, Tulta Behm, Angus Behm, Ram Martynoga, Ben Martynoga, Tim Davis, Kjartan Behm, Melissa Scott, Kester and Ruven De La Haye, and also 'Rabi'

TAKE CARE!

Wild creatures might make homes in some of the kists. Look before you put your hand into a box!

Some of the waymerks are made of LEAD. Don't let children put them in their mouths.

REMEMBER

There is no need to dig. Just keep your eyes open. The kists or a clue to their whereabouts, are very close to the SUW footpath. Please close the lids of kists and follow the Countryside Code.

Thank you.

Navigation notes
You will see the ‘tails’ designs in the left navigation frame, clicking on these will take you to the kistmaker's pages, clicking on the merk image in the kistmakers page will take you to the inspiration for the merk design. To return from the artifact or 'inspiration' picture, click on the 'back' button on your browser, or the navigation frame image. There is also an interactive map, left clicking any section of the route will take you to the relevant maker's page.

FOR MORE INFORMATION…

about the Southern Upland Way footpath, visit Tourist Information Offices in the Scottish Borders and Dumfries & Galloway, where you will also find Waymerks leaflets.

This sculpture project has been organised by artists from the Scottish Borders Sculptors’ Collective with the support of the Southern Upland Partnership Arts Committee. It originally ran from Easter to October 2002 and has been extended into 2003 &2004. More sculpture events are planned for future seasons.

SPONSORED BY…

Scottish Arts Council through the Awards for All scheme, Scottish Natural Heritage, The National Museums of Scotland, Scottish Borders Council, Dumfries & Galloway Council, South Lanarkshire Council, Forest Enterprise, Southern Upland Partnership, and a consortium of four wind-power providers: Renewable Energy Systems, National Windpower, The Natural Power Company, and Scottish Power.

To find out more information about each design, look at the background notes and images which have been developed in association with the staff of the Archaeology Department of the National Museums of Scotland.