Cuninghame Smith family crest, Pitscandly.

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This piece of masonry stands alone on the grounds of Pitscandly House, just outside Forfar. The family crest belongs to the Cuninghame Smiths, whose ancestral home is Caprington Castle in Kilmarnock. How and when it ended up here from the other side of Scotland remains a mystery. A metal spike protrudes from the top, suggesting a ball or something similar rested on it. Caprington Castle was owned by descendants of William Wallace around 1385, then passed to Adam Cuninghame Smith in 1400. A right-hand crest holding a plumb rule and motto "Ad Amussin" (With precision) is hidden behind moss, linked to the Cuninghames. Next to it, a ship in distress crest with "At Spes Infracta" (Yet my hope remains unbroken) is obscured by the overgrowth - associated with the Dick family of Prestonfield who married into the clan earlier down the line. A third motto, "Via Tuta Virtutis" (The safe way of virtue), also appears.