New Novel Explores the Towie Ball and the Search for Self-Knowledge
Elizabeth Hutchison Bernard's novel 'What Time Has Kept' follows two women, a Victorian antiquarian and a modern researcher, whose lives are shaped by a mysterious carved stone ball from Scotland.
A new novel by Elizabeth Hutchison Bernard, «What Time Has Kept», weaves together the stories of two women separated by more than a century, both drawn to a mysterious ancient artifact known as the Towie ball. The book, reviewed by Kirkus Reviews, explores themes of self-discovery, historical memory, and the enduring power of Scotland's cultural heritage.
The novel opens in 1872 with Christian Maclagan, a real-life historical figure and a «Lady Associate» of the Society of Antiquaries. Maclagan travels to a farm in Scotland in search of a carved stone ball similar to the Towie ball, an ancient relic whose origins and purpose remain a subject of anthropological debate. Was it a weapon, or was it connected to pagan spiritual practice? The author hints at supernatural or metaphysical significance, as when Christian writes a cryptic inscription in her book taken from a proverb: «Books lie, but the stone is true.»
Maclagan's narrative voice reflects her outspoken personality. She fumes over the «Lady Associate» invitation, noting that «the underlying fact that women are not taken seriously enough to be considered for full membership cannot be ignored.» Her frustration captures the broader struggle of women in Victorian intellectual life, a theme that resonates throughout the novel.
In 2023, Ellen Byrne, intrigued by the same cryptic inscription, travels to view the Towie ball in a Scottish museum. Like Christian, Ellen's «premonitions» mark her journey as a fateful one. Both women are powerfully drawn to the mysterious stone. «The weight of the stone in my palm, combined with the coolness of its polished black surface against my skin, is nothing short of intoxicating,» Christian narrates. «Since my trip last July to Edinburgh, I have become rather obsessed with the magnificent stone dug up outside the hamlet of Towie.»
Both women wish to evade long-buried personal secrets, but escaping their personal histories proves more difficult than anticipated. Christian and Ellen also parallel one another in their truth-seeking—not only into the origins and purpose of the Towie ball, but also regarding themselves. In this way, the narrative is more a quest for self-knowledge than it is a supernatural mystery or science fiction yarn, which may disappoint those who are anticipating an otherworldly revelation.
That said, the historical details fascinate. Curiosity about the Towie ball and evocations of Scotland's rich cultural heritage may invite further speculation and research on the part of readers. Some biographical details of Christian Maclagan are fictionalized for storytelling purposes, but the novel's engagement with real historical questions and its exploration of how the past continues to shape the present give it a depth that transcends genre.
«What Time Has Kept» is a meditation on time, memory, and the objects that connect us to those who came before. By placing a real historical figure at the center of a dual narrative, Bernard invites readers to consider how the stories we tell about the past—and about ourselves—are always shaped by the questions we bring to them. The novel will appeal to readers interested in Scottish history, women's intellectual history, and the enduring allure of ancient artifacts.
4
