Description

The monument is a Pictish cross slab, probably dating to the 8th or 9th centuries AD. It is carved in relief on both faces within a flatbed moulding. The west face bears a cross and the east face three large Pictish symbols. Three ogham inscriptions (a form of script in which letters of the alphabet are represented by lines or notches along an edge or angle) have been incised on the moulding. The stone is supported by a metal armature on each side. It was previously located in Dyke Village where it was found in 1781 within the churchyard, reused as a grave marker. It was moved to its current location in the early 19th century and is located beside the driveway leading to Brodie Castle, at about 25m above sea level.

The cross slab is of grey sandstone, measuring 1.9m high and 1.05m wide at its base, tapering to 0.95m at the top. The cross is carved with open circular armpits and spans the height and breadth of the west face. It is filled with interlaced knotwork and framed by a roll moulding. Weathered zoomorphic moulding forms the background. Panels have been hollowed out and the initials AC and KB cut either side of the cross shaft. The Pictish symbols on the east face are positioned one above the other. At the top are paired sea/fish monsters between which are five smaller motifs. In the centre is a Pictish beast and at the bottom a double disc and Z-rod. The ogham inscriptions have been incised on the moulding, one on the right side of the west face and two on either side of the east face. The inscription is largely unintelligible but includes the name 'Eddarrnonn'.

The scheduled area is circular, centred on the cross-slab, measuring 2m in diameter. It includes the remains described above and an area around for the monument's support and preservation, as shown in red on the accompanying map. The gravelled surface around the stone is specifically excluded to a depth of 15cm to allow for its maintenance.

Source: Historic Environment Scotland

Statement of Scheduling

The national importance of the monument is demonstrated in the following way(s) (see Designations Policy and Selection Guidance, Annex 1, para 17):

a.  The monument is of national importance because it makes a significant contribution to our understanding or appreciation of the past, or has the potential to do so. In particular, the cross slab has the potential to contribute to our understanding of Pictish culture, language and art and the emergence of Christianity in Pictland.

b.   As a well-preserved cross-slab the monument retains structural and decorative attributes which make a significant contribution to our understanding or appreciation of the past. These attributes inform us of the development and spread of insular art and the religious and social structures that may have led to its creation. It also contributes to our understanding of the techniques and skill used to create such monuments.

c.   The monument is a rare example of an early Christian Pictish carved cross-slab with ogham inscriptions. Only 60 or so examples bearing both Christian and non-Christian symbols are known, while it is one of only six Pictish cross-slabs on which ogham script has been inscribed, and one of only two in Moray. The inscriptions form the longest known ogham inscription in Scotland.

d.   The monument is a particularly good example of a carved Pictish cross-slab and is therefore an important representative of this monument type.

e.   The monument has research potential which could significantly contribute to our understanding or appreciation of the past. In particular, it has the potential to contribute to understanding of early Christian/ Pictish artistic styles and social hierarchy in Pictland through further study of the carvings and their symbology.

Assessment of Cultural Significance

This statement of national importance has been informed by the following assessment of cultural significance:

Intrinsic characteristics (how the remains of a site or place contribute to our knowledge of the past)

The monument is a well-preserved, elaborately carved, Pictish cross slab. It is in the grounds of Brodie Castle, having been moved from its previous location in Dyke Village in the 1820s or 1830s. The cross slab was found in 1781 in the churchyard where it had been re-used as a recumbent grave-slab, probably in the 16th or 17th centuries.

The combination of Christian and non-Christian symbols carved on the monument tells of the establishment of Christianity in north-east Scotland amongst the Picts. The combination of Pictish symbols and ogham inscriptions provides evidence for the use of different writing and communication methods within the same context.

Scientific study could reveal previously unrecorded detail and help our interpretation of the imagery and of the ogham inscriptions, the possible purpose of the stone and its date or chronological development. The carvings themselves have the potential to enhance the study of Pictish symbol stones and the development of the Insular art that was created in parts of Britain and Ireland in the early medieval period. Study of the cross-slab has the potential to provide information about the technical aspects of producing such monuments.

Carved stones such as this are particularly important evidence for the early church in Scotland because we have little other archaeological evidence for contemporary sites, as well an absence of manuscripts that art in other media suggests will have existed.

Contextual characteristics (how a site or place relates to its surroundings and/or to our existing knowledge of the past)

There are over 200 symbol stones known from eastern and northern Scotland. Around two-thirds are incised symbol stones, and the remaining third are Christian cross slabs. The cross slabs are found mostly in the northeast of the country and concentrated in 'Southern Pictland'. This indicates regional diversity in the use of different types of sculpture in the Pictish church. The symbols themselves are regarded as being a type of undeciphered script which may represent identities, perhaps names, although other uses such as displaying prestige, high status identities and activities have been suggested.

Only around 30 examples of ogham inscriptions are known on Pictish symbol stones. Of these only six are on cross slabs with Pictish symbols. Most ogham inscriptions tend to be fairly short and consist predominantly of personal names. Although the inscription has not been deciphered, it includes the name 'Eddarrnon'. This may refer to the 7th century saint, Ethernon, who may have been martyred by the Picts. The name is either of Irish or Pictish origin and is found on three other cross bearing symbol stones: Scooney's Stone in Fife, Newton Stone in Aberdeenshire and possibly the Fordoun Stone in Kincardineshire. The length of the examples on Rodney's Stone are unusual and together they form the longest known ogham inscription in Scotland.

Carvings such as those on Rodney's Stone also provide evidence for the cultural links that existed between different parts of Britain and Ireland in the early medieval period. While the symbol designs are unique to the Picts, the other content provides evidence for how the art of the Picts relates to the Insular art style of this period, and the relationship to art in different media, such as metalwork. Ogham is of Irish origin and seems to have been introduced into Pictland by Irish missionaries. Together this provides important evidence for extensive connections between the Picts and other political entities within Britain and Ireland.

By analogy with other Pictish cross-slabs, it is likely that this cross-slab was erected in relation to a significant Pictish site and the Christian symbolism of the cross indicates that its function was directly related to the purposes of the church. The cross slab was originally found within the burial ground of Dyke Parish Church (first recorded in the late 12th century), suggesting that the cross slab was the focus of religious of activity which developed into the medieval period. The monument retains the potential to help inform our understanding of these aspects of Pictish society. Comparing and contrasting the geographical location and artistic detail of this monument to other early medieval carved stones in Scotland provides information about the spread of Christianity into northeast Scotland, cultural influences and the relationship of early church sites to the subsequent establishment of the parish system.

Associative characteristics (how a site or place relates to people, events, and/or historic and social movements)

The stone was named in commemoration of Admiral Rodney's 1782 victory over the French feet during the American War of Independence at Saintes in the Caribbean.

Source: Historic Environment Scotland

Sources

Bibliography

Historic Environment Scotland http://www.canmore.org.uk reference number CANMORE ID 15529 (accessed on 30/04/2024).

Local Authority HER Reference NH95NE0002 (accessed on 30/04/2024).

Allan J R. and Anderson J. 1903. Early Christian monuments of Scotland: a classified illustrated descriptive list of the monuments with an analysis of their symbolism and ornamentation. Pt.3. pp. 132-5. Edinburgh. Available online at https://archive.org/details/earlychristianmo03alle/page/n5/mode/2up (accessed 27/05/2024).

Clancy, T. O. 2008. Deer and the early church in North-Eastern Scotland. In Forsyth, Katherine (ed.). Studies on the Book of Deer. pp. 375–77

Henderson, G. and Henderson, I. 2011 The Art of the Picts: Sculpture and Metalwork in Early Medieval Scotland. Thames and Hudson: London. p. 84.

James, H. F. and Yeoman, P. 2007. Excavations at St Ethernan's Monastry, Isle of May, Fife. Tayside and Fife Archaeological Committee: Perth.

Noble, G., Goldberg, M., and Hamilton, D. 2018. The origins of the Pictish symbol stones: inscribing identity and power beyond the edges of Empire, Antiquity 92,1329–1348. Available online at https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/antiquity/article/development-of-the-pictish-symbol-system-inscribing-identity-beyond-the-edges-of-empire/4F09B9C943A1C29F226591A20BEC5248# (accessed 27/05/2024)

RCAHMS 2008. The Pictish Symbols of Scotland. RCAHMS: Edinburgh.

Ritchie, A. 1989. Picts. Historic Scotland: Edinburgh.

Celtic Inscribed Stones Project BROD/1 (Rodney's Stone) at https://www.ucl.ac.uk/archaeology/cisp/database/stone/brod_1.html (accessed 27/05/2024)

Canmore

https://canmore.org.uk/site/15529/

Source: Historic Environment Scotland