MHG3413 - Balblair Stone - Moniack Castle
Summary
No summary available.
Type and Period (1)
- INSCRIBED STONE (Early Medieval - 561 AD to 1057 AD)
Protected Status
Full Description
NH54SE 9 5518 4357.
In the rockery at Moniack Castle is a stone, about 4 1/2 ft. in height, bearing the outlined figure of a man with a stick or other instrument in his hand, and fourteen cup-marks, one of which has been mistaken for the eye of the figure. The stone stands at the end of the rockery farthest from the entrance gate. 'This stone was brought from a spot where it stood for a time, close to the old parish school of Kilmorack, near Kilmorack Free Church. It was however, removed to this place between fifty and sixty years ago, from a spot 100 yard further west, when the ground was then reclaimed. There is nothing known of the stone, traditional or otherwise, beyond this (These sitings place the original location in the vicinity of Balblair. (NH 50 45))
W Jolly 1882.
This stone, at NH 55184357, is basically as described by Jolly, it is 1.3 metres high, 0.8 metres wide and 0.3 metres thick. Apart from the figure of a man, only three cup marks are now visible.
Surveyed at 1/2500.
Visited by OS (R D) 21 December 1964
Class I symbol stone.
A Mack, 1997
Scheduled as 'Balbalir Stone, symbol stone, Moniak [Moniack] Castle Wineries... an earthfast, upright carved stone bearing abstract and figurative carving which is prehistoric and early medieval in date'.
The stone is 1.3m high, 0.8m wide and 0.3m thick, and displays the Pictish carving of a man apparently walking from left to right holding a staff or sword, as well as prehistoric cupmarks. It is situated within a modern garden rockery immediately SW of Moniak [Moniack] Castle.
Information from Historic Scotland, scheduling document dated 9 March 2007.
Sources/Archives (7)
- --- Text/Publication/Article: Jolly, W. 1882. On cup-marked stones in the neighbourhood of Inverness; with an appendix on cup-marked stones in the Western Islands. Proc Soc Antiq Scot Volume 16. 300-401. 340-1; fig. 44.
- --- Text/Publication/Volume: 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. 95-6, 517.
- --- Text/Publication/Volume: Jackson, A. 1984. The symbol stones of Scotland: a social anthropological resolution to the problem of the Picts.
- --- Text/Publication/Volume: Mack, A. 1997. Field guide to the Pictish symbol stones. 111 & 145.
- --- Text/Report: RCAHMS. 1979. The Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Scotland. The archaeological sites and monuments of North-east Inverness, Inverness District, Highland Region. . 29, No. 238.
- --- Text/Publication/Volume: Ritchie, J N G. 1985. Pictish symbol stones: a handlist 1985. 11.
- --- Text/Publication/Monograph: Stuart, J. 1867. Sculptured Stones of Scotland. 2. Vol. 2, 72; pl 130.
Map
Location
| Grid reference | Centred NH 5517 4356 (6m by 6m) (Buffered by site type) |
|---|---|
| Map sheet | NH54SE |
| Civil Parish | KIRKHILL |
| Geographical Area | INVERNESS |
Finds (0)
Related Monuments/Buildings (0)
Related Investigations/Events (0)
External Links (2)
- http://portal.historicenvironment.scot/designation/SM932 (Online designation description (Historic Environment Scotland))
- https://canmore.org.uk/site/12732 (View RCAHMS Canmore entry for this site)
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