Sam Bruce and John Wright
While months of preparation go into the annual Braemar Royal Highland Gathering much of the effort goes unseen, however some is a little more obvious. None more so than in the case of the lavishly decorated Patrons' Pavilion, often referred to as the Royal Box.
Behind the elaborate decoration for almost five decades has been Society member Sam Bruce who, last year, decided it was time to take a back seat.
Having lovingly hand tied many thousands of yards of Heather and Rowan Berry ropes and hoisted tonnes of Spruce branches onto the roof of the pavilion, Sam has decided to pass on the role.
A native of Ballater, Sam served his time as a joiner there before being called up for National Service. Returning from the Army he had made up his mind to seek out new opportunities and emigrate to Australia. However, as fate would have it, he was not to leave Deeside.
His cousin, Mary, was married to Braemar joiner Kenny Lawson and it was suggested that he join the business in Braemar rather than the next boat to the 'New World'.
The move to Braemar worked well and Sam was soon to find himself working on a number of jobs in the village and surrounding estates and then helping Kenny with preparations for the annual Braemar Gathering.
In fact it was August 1961 that Sam was first introduced to the art of crafting decorative ropes from Heather and Rowan Berries.
Each rope that you today see draped from poles across the roof of the Patrons' Box, or attached vertically to the front of the box is hand tied with sprigs of Heather and Rowan Berries attached to a sash cord.
Work on these ropes starts several weeks before the Gathering itself, each rope tied and then draped across tressels inside the box awaiting its place on the outside of the wooden building just a few days before the event.
Kenny Lawson retired from the job in the early 1970s and Sam was asked to continue in charge of the decoration. Since then he has had assistance from various quarters, often his wife, Helen, and family members helping out. His son, Chris, worked with him on the decorations for more than two decades.
Come late August the village of Braemar can be prone to some pretty chilly nights and Sam can recall spending quite a few of them working away inside the box to ensure everything was ready on time.
Heather, Rowan Berries and Spruce branches, covering the roof of the box, are the main components of the decoration and over the years they have been provided by the surrounding estates at Mar, Invercauld and latterly the Queen's estate at Balmoral. The Lairds of the local estates are all patrons of the Braemar Royal Highland Society and among them are responsible for the Patrons' Box which is often referred to as the 'Royal Box'.
Before the Braemar Gathering was given a permanent home in the village it was staged at various local estates and there, each year, a new Patron's Box was constructed. Some of these structures were very elaborate, particulary those at Balmoral Castle which were influenced not only by their Highland origins but by the various corners of the then British Empire.
The decoration for the Patrons' Box can be traced back to early games and clan gatherings when a 'bower' or shelter was constructed for the Clan Chief using materials and vegetation gathered from nearby hills.
Sam has always had some help at hand when it comes to gathering trailer loads of Spruce branches and sack after sack of Heather, in recent years that assistance has been provided by the groundsmen at the Princess Royal and Duke of Fife Park
With all the natural decorations prepared, work on the construction begins a few days before the Gathering, the roof first covered in Spruce than the Heather and Rowan ropes hung from poles at each corner of the building. The final element to be put in place is the Royal Coat of Arms. a magnificent gold leafed and coloured plaque above the opening front of the box.
Sam is also responsible for the flags and standards raised above the box.
Over five decades Sam has seen little change in the way things are done. The most significant, he says, has been a change in the diameter of the Heather and Rowan ropes. Up until the 1960s these were approximately nine inches in diameter. However, at such a size they were ery heavy and with the slightest wind they tended to preak their support poles. Also, if it rained once they were n place, then being natural they retained a lot of water nd subsequently added weight which again was often too much for the supports.
Sam is not quite ready to spend cold September nights ith his feet up by the fire. Over the last couple of years e has been teaching the skills of making Heather ropes to joiner Robbie Wright who has now taken over the role.