Scottish National Dictionary (1700–)
Hide Quotations Hide Etymology
About this entry:
First published 1952 (SND Vol. III).
This entry has not been updated since then but may contain minor corrections and revisions.
CRAWFORDJOHN, n. A kind of granite, very dark in colour, from which curling stones are made (Fif.10, Kcb.10 1940).Sc. 1885 V. K. Erskine and W. D. Campbell Bailie MacPhee 8:
He shouthered his besom, His stanes were the guid Crawfordjohn.Sc. 1890 J. Kerr Hist. of Curling 384:
Crawfordjohn — Another porphyry, but here a porphyritic dolerite. . . . From the general compactness of this rock, and its freedom from vacuities, it should be an excellent one [stone]; while its components confer upon it surpassing weight.
