A Timeless Place

While Glasgow celebrates a major milestone, the city's unique sense of identity is still thriving after 850 years

- by ALLY HEATHER

THIS will be fun: taking a wee cycle round trying to read Glasgow's story through the layers of history left behind to mark Scotland's biggest city turning 850 years old.

I started my cycle on a sunny morning from Queen Street Station, the light brightening the stone of the City Chambers and shining the black of the taxis ranked outside. A perfect day to explore.

From there, it’s a short, smooth cycle to Medieval Glasgow – the sloping road of High Street.

Early High Street was flanked by homes and working gardens belonging to religious figures. Provand’s Lordship, Glasgow oldest house, still stands, now renovated to its 1471 ochre-washed glory. Nearby, from the 1470s, a friary dedicated to St Francis of Assisi operated.

Halfway up the modern street is a gable-end mural of A roughly bearded man with a big red nose. He's smiling as he holds a robin gently on the perch of his finger. This is a modern rendering of St Mungo, the patron saint and proclaimed religious founder of Glasgow.

At the top of the hill is the resting place of this Glaswegian saint: the magnificent cathedral. This building and its environment is one of the great survivals. Most of the stonework dates back to the 1200s, and it is the only cathedral on the mainland to have survived the Protestant Reformation largely unscathed. In its lower lair is a tomb containing the remains of St Mungo, laid to rest 1,400 years ago.

The cathedral is operated by Historic Environment Scotland, but remains a working kirk, so is free to enter. Half a million people visit every year.