Ancient Alba

In Strathspey, close to the town of Grantown-on-Spey, there are two identical Class I Pictish stones. They date to around the 5 th /6 th centuries. They are located on the north bank of the River Spey. One is located at Inverallan and the other is located further down the river at Finlarig. Finlarig is actually located slightly north of the River Spey. The original location of the stone was at Ballintomb farm at the confluence of the River Spey and River Dulnain. The symbols include the crescent moon and V rod above the rectangle and Z rod. I’m not aware of any other identical stones which are so close to each other. This suggests they could be boundary stones. They could be marking the land of a local chief. There is an old hillfort at Lower Craggan just down the river from Inverallan. However, very little is known about it. The rectangle and Z rod is a common symbol in the area. There are two examples at Craigellachie and another close to Elgin. See the maps below for more info. W...

The Pictish beastie is one of the most iconic Pictish symbols. But what does it represent? It may be a Kelpie (a water horse of Scottish folklore), a dolphin, an elephant, a horse or a mythical creature. It even looks like a duck billed platypus. However, they are only found in Australia. The Kelpie was a water horse which lived in the rivers, streams and lochs. It would take the form of a human being and lure its victims into the water. However, I don’t think the Pictish beastie represents a Kelpie. It’s positioning on many of the Pictish stones suggests it’s a political or religious symbol. It often appears next to symbols like the double disc and Z rod and the crescent moon and V rod. I thought it looked like a Roman horse brooch. The Picts may have come across these through trade or plunder when raiding Britannia.  Roman horse brooch   It may also be a hybrid mythical creature worshipped by the Picts. Perhaps a horse and a dolphin? It was common for many cultures to create...

The Class II Pictish stone at Dyce On the southern bank of the River Don in Aberdeenshire, at a place called Dyce, there are two Pictish stones. They are found in the ruined chapel of St Fergus. One of the stones is a Class I stone dated to around the 5 th /6 th centuries, whereas the other is a Class II stone dated to around the 7 th /8 th centuries. The Class I stone includes two symbols - a Pictish beastie and a double disc and Z rod. The Class II stone includes a Christian cross, four symbols and Ogham script on the side of the stone. This post will focus on the Class II stone. The stone probably commemorates two individuals as there are two symbol pairs – the crescent moon and V rod and a triple disc and the double disc and Z rod and mirror case. The Ogham script reads - EOTTASSARRHETODDEDDOTS MAQQ ROGODDADD Like the Ogham script on the Brandsbutt stone, there are very few interpretations as to what this means. It clearly refers to an individual who is the son of Rogodadd....

www.canmore.org.uk In the small town of Inverurie in Aberdeenshire, there is a Pictish symbol stone with two symbols and some Ogham script on the left hand side of the stone. The stone is known as the ‘Brandsbutt stone’. The symbols include a crescent moon and V rod and a snake and Z rod. Ogham stones are mainly found in Ireland. However, there are a few in Wales and Scotland, mainly in Argyll and the north east. This suggests there was some level of Irish migration to these areas. The Ogham inscriptions usually include a personal name or two personal names e.g. X son of Y. However, the Ogham script on the Brandsbutt stone is unusual, to say the least. This, and other Ogham inscriptions on Pictish stones, have led people to believe that the Picts may have spoken some kind of pre Indo-European language. The Ogham script reads – IRATADDOARENS This may be a Pictish name. However, some scholars have suggested that ‘Ira’ is Old Breton for ‘here lies’. The Picts may have had a similar wo...