Description

The monument is a Pictish cross slab dating probably to between about AD 700 and 1000. The stone is well preserved and stands within woodland to the SE of the village of Glamis, on the N flank of Hunters Hill, at about 120m above sea level. The monument was last scheduled in 1935, but the documentation did not meet modern standards: the present amendment rectifies this.

It comprises a large rectangular stone slab, measuring about 1.5m high, 0.72m across and 0.14m thick, sculptured partly with incised lines and partly in relief. The wide faces of the slab are oriented approximately E and W. The E face bears an interlace-decorated cross with single hollow armpits. To the top left is a seraph and to the top right a damaged scene depicting an animal-headed man with an axe and a second figure. To the left of the shaft are two deer and to the right two lion-like animals, a triple disc symbol and a 'flower' symbol. The W (back) face is undressed and displays a 'lion', a serpent and an unfinished mirror symbol, all incised, one above the other. There is a distinctive key pattern along the top edge of the stone.

The scheduled area is circular on plan, measuring 8m in diameter, centred on the stone, to include the remains described above and an area around them within which evidence relating to the monument's construction, use and abandonment may survive, as shown in red on the accompanying map. The scheduling specifically excludes the above-ground elements of the metal railings that surround the stone.

Source: Historic Environment Scotland

Statement of Scheduling

The monument is of national importance because of its potential to make a significant addition to our knowledge of the past, particularly our appreciation and understanding of early ecclesiastical sculpture and the development of Christianity. It has the potential to further our understanding of how such stone carvings were made, their functions, and their role in contemporary religious practices. The cross slab retains much of its original form, with its decorative carvings surviving in good condition and still visible on both main faces; there is high potential for comparative study both with other examples of Pictish carved stones, and with stones from Iona, Wales and Ireland. There is the potential to study the location and form of this cross with others across Angus, and to study its relationship with broadly contemporary places of worship to better understand the origins, development and organisation of the early church in Scotland. The loss of this monument would impede our ability to understand ecclesiastical sculpture, stone carvings and the early Christian church both in Angus and Scotland as a whole.

Source: Historic Environment Scotland

Sources

Bibliography

Other Information

RCAHMS record the monument as NO34NE 17. The Angus Sites and Monuments Record reference is NO34NE0017.

References

Allen and Anderson, J R and J, 1903 The early Christian monuments of Scotland: a classified illustrated descriptive list of the monuments with an analysis of their symbolism and ornamentation, Edinburgh, part 3, 221.

Laing, L, 2001 'The date and context of the Glamis, Angus, carved Pictish stones', Proc Soc Antiq Scot 131, 223-39.

Canmore

https://canmore.org.uk/site/32064/

Source: Historic Environment Scotland