In the lovely village of Ceres there is a rather unusual wee statue - The Provost! The Provost is toby-jug type figure and is reputed to be a likeness of the Rev Thomas Buchanan, a man of great learning, the minister of the village Kirk from 1578-99, and the last Provost of Ceres.
The statue was originally in the gardens of Kirklands, the old church manse that once occupied what is now the church car park, where he was placed in 1837 by his first owner the Rev Joseph Crichton. It was the work of a local stonemason called John Howie. Howie apparently also carved the surround for his statue, placing the figure in a niche above a large panel which is said to depict a cavalry skirmish at the Battle of Bannockburn with a carved head on each side.
The statue remained, almost forgotten until 1933 when it was sold to a Mrs Lindsay of Cupar. The people of Ceres were not pleased and raised and it came back to the village and its current home.
Almost forgotten, the statue remained in his niche In the Kirklands wall, undisturbed for almost a century, until he was pushed into sudden notoriety in 1933 when he was sold by Mr Ogilvie, owner of Kirklands, to a Mrs Lindsay of Cupar. Such was the indignation caused by the loss of the figure to the village, that the people of Ceres insisted he be brought back as soon as possible.
On the last Saturday of June 1939 at 1 pm, the “Provost of Ceres” was unveiled by Jamas Henderson Stewart. The statue has faithfully remained in this post ever since, grinning at all who are fortunate to pass him by!
The Provost is located just off St Andrews Road, opposite The Ceres Inn.
