Rodney's Stone is a two-metre high
Pictish
Pictish is the extinct Brittonic language spoken by the Picts, the people of eastern and northern Scotland from Late Antiquity to the Early Middle Ages. Virtually no direct attestations of Pictish remain, short of a limited number of geographic ...
cross slab now located close on the approach way to
Brodie Castle
Brodie Castle is a well-preserved Z plan castle located about west of Forres, in Moray, Scotland. The castle is a Category A listed building and the grounds are included in the Inventory of Gardens and Designed Landscapes in Scotland.
The B ...
, near
Forres
Forres (; gd, Farrais) is a town and former royal burgh in the north of Scotland on the Moray coast, approximately northeast of Inverness and west of Elgin. Forres has been a winner of the Scotland in Bloom award on several occasions. There ...
,
Moray,
Scotland
Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to th ...
. It was originally found nearby in the grounds of the old church of Dyke and Moy. It is classed as a Class II
Pictish stone
A Pictish stone is a type of monumental stele, generally carved or incised with symbols or designs. A few have ogham inscriptions. Located in Scotland, mostly north of the Clyde-Forth line and on the Eastern side of the country, these stones ar ...
, meaning that it has a cross on one face, and symbols on the other. On the symbols face, at the top, are two fish monsters; below is a "
Pictish Beast
The Pictish Beast (sometimes Pictish Dragon or Pictish Elephant) is an artistic representation of an animal depicted on Pictish symbol stones.
Design
The Pictish Beast is not easily identifiable with any real animal, but resembles a seahorse, ...
", and below that a
double disc and
Z-rod. On the cross face there is a cross and some animals.
The stone is most notable, however, for its inscription, which is found on both of the sides and on the cross face. It is the longest of all Pictish inscriptions, and like most Pictish inscriptions, is written in the
Ogham alphabet. Much of the inscription is weathered, but it does contain the Pictish name
Ethernan (a prominent Pictish saint), written as "EDDARRNON".
It is a
scheduled ancient monument
In the United Kingdom, a scheduled monument is a nationally important archaeological site or historic building, given protection against unauthorised change.
The various pieces of legislation that legally protect heritage assets from damage and d ...
.
References
* Fraser, Iain, Ritchie, J.N.G., ''et al.'', ''Pictish Symbol Stones: An Illustrated Gazetteer'', (Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Scotland, 1999)
* Jones, Duncan, ''A Wee Guide to The Picts'', (Musselburgh, 2003)
Pictish stones
Tourist attractions in Moray
Scheduled Ancient Monuments in Moray
{{UK-archaeology-stub