Widows and Bairns Sculpture St Abbs

In St Abbs, in a curve of the road at the top of the hill, these mothers' and children's eyes are cast North as they look out to sea in disbelief. Filled with trepidation, these 15cm bronze figures manage to convey the fear and anxiety you could only begin to imagine if faced with such horrific news. They are part of a quadriptych of sculptures by artist Jill Watson, known as Widows and Bairns.

The women and children here looked out on 14th October 1881 as their husbands, brothers and fathers were cast overboard and crushed in the surf against the Hurkar Rocks. Three St Abbs families are represented here: the wives and children of Charles Purves and brothers James and William Thorburn, all lost at sea. So struck by the tragedy, Queen Victoria was one of the first to donate to the memorial fund for the families.

Jill Watson carried out months of research when working on her sculpture series and collaborated with the Eyemouth Museum Trust and members of the communities affected, making each sculpture a permanent record of the communities' lived experience.

Each figure is based on a real person and their unique trajectory of loss, making the story that the sculpture is telling even more poignant. Members of the community were invited to bring photos and share oral histories of their families.

The sculptures show the strength and tenacity of these fisherwomen, many of whose children were threatened with orphanages. The community stuck together and, through their fearless approach to adversity, pulled together and took the children to their hearts.

Standing helpless on the land, these women would have watched as the boats were buffeted in the bay below.

Their clasped faces and eyes, shielded from the storm, tell a story of anguish and disbelief.

A tragic scene unfolding in what would have changed the shape of a tiny community for years to come.

Men were also lost from Eyemouth where there were 129 deaths, Burnmouth where 24 men lost their lives. 17 men died from Newhaven with a further loss of 11 men from Cove, 7 men from Fisherrow in Musselburgh and 3 men on the Coldingham Shore from St Abbs.

This sculpture, perched here, high up, looking down on the cliffs below, is genuinely a moving reminder, 145 years on, of the difficult journey these small villages endured for many years after their loss.

You can find the other sculptures by Jill Watson at Cove, Eyemouth and Burnmouth.