The Picts by Alex Johnston

Alex Johnston, Michael Donald, Jesse Holth, Anna Copley

The Picts December 4, 2012

Volume 1, Issue 1

The Picts December 4, 2012

Volume 1, Issue 1

Inside this issue: Introduction to the Picts

Pictish Symbols

By Jesse Holth

The Picts and Christianity

By Michael Donald Who is the Next King of the Picts?

By Alex Johnston

Pictish Metalwork

By Michael Donald Pictish Houses at a Glance

By Anna Copley

The Brough of Birsay: A Case Study

By Jesse Holth

The Victory at Dunnichen

By Anna Copley All Woads Lead to Rome By Alex Johnston

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where they originally came from: some theorize that they are the indigenous inhabitants, and were descendBecause the Picts did not leave any written documents ants of the prehistoric people in the area; others beof their own, they have always been shrouded in mys- lieve they were Britons, who had been displaced from tery. We know they inhabited the region north of the southern regions. Forth-Clyde in Scotland, around 297 to 841 AD. The term Pictish derives from the Roman ‘Picti,’meaning When it comes to Pictish culture, the line between ‘the painted ones,” which was first recorded in 297 reality and legend is often blurred. This magazine uses AD. This had led to the popular image of Pictish war- archaeological evidence and contemporary texts to riors painted blue with woad (Figure 1). However, it is determine what is true and what is not. It explores possible that the term Picti was simply a Romanized issues of religion, politics, military encounters, metalversion of what the Pictish people called themselves, work, housing, foreign impressions, language, and ‘people of the designs.’ The early Picts were not a symbolism. The Picts have captured the imagination single cohesive group, and consisted of a multitude of of popular culture, although their depictions can be far tribes – but by the middle of the 6th century, they defrom accurate. This magazine aims to separate fact veloped into a more united nation. It is not known from fiction. Introduction to the Picts

Timeline

297 – Roman orator Eumenius makes the earliest mention of “Picti.” 367 – Successful attack on Hadrian’s wall, organized by Picts and Scots. 397 – Christianity first introduced to the Picts by Bishop Ninian. Late 500s – Gaelic Dál Riata overrun by the Picts. 617 – Missionary St. Donnan and 150 followers are burned to death by a Pictish queen. 685 – Picts defeat the Northumbrians at the Battle of Dunnichen. 710 – King Nechtain of the Picts converts to Christianity, and crosses begin to appear of Pictish symbol stones. 756 – Picts and Northumbrians jointly bring Strathclyde under Pictish control. 795 – Vikings first raid the British Isles, on Iona. 839 – Picts defeated by the Norse at the Battle of Strathearn. 889 – The first King of Alba, and Gaelic Dál Riata and the Pictish kingdom begin to

The Picts marriage ties, and it has recently been argued that they

Pictish Symbols

even constitute a language (Figure 3).

By Jesse Holth The meaning of the Pictish symbols remains a mystery. There is no way to determine what they meant to the Picts or what role they played in their society. The symbols are mostly known from their appearance on the Pictish symbol stones (Figure 1), found throughout Scotland. They also appear as “graffiti” in caves; as engravings on silver and bronze jewellery, plaques, and chains; and on artefacts such as bone combs and gaming pieces, pebbles, and decorated stone discs.1 However, it is useful to study the symbol stones because they portray the widest variety of Pictish symbols. The stones are located mostly in the eastern mainland of Scotland, as well as the Scottish isles (Figure 2). There are many theories about the purpose of these stones. One of the most popular suggestions is that they were used as commemorative burial markers – however, there is limited evidence of graves in association with the stones. Other theories include territorial boundary markers, personal memorials, sacred sites, and the recording of important events, such as battles. The symbols themselves have been proposed to represent place names, personal names, or kinship or

Figure 1: A Pictish symbol stone, “Aberlemno III.” Shows the serpant, double disc and Z-rod, and mirror and comb.

Figure 2: Distribution of Pictish symbol stones, Scotland. Also includes locations where Pictish symbols are drawn on cave walls.

Many of the symbol stones are carved in such ornate detail that they are likely the work of skilled masons.2 The process used to incise the stones probably included the sketching of symbols, perhaps with charcoal, and then pecking and chiseling these designs. The Picts would have used the symbols long before they were carved on these stones, but the preservation and diversity of the stones make them the best resource for deciphering the symbols. There has been some disagreement about the number of symbols found, due to style variations (Figure 4); however, most scholars contend that there are around forty to sixty different symbols. The symbols can be categorized into two main types: animal symbols, and abstract geometric symbols.3 A third, smaller group found on the symbol stones are those that represent everyday objects. The symbols often appear in pairs, or combinations of pairs, and some them – such as the ‘Z-rod’ – have been used in conjunction with several different symbols. Figure 3: A Pictish Language? Recent developments in the study of Pictish symbols have led some to believe that they may record an aspect of the Picts’ spoken language, which has been lost over time. Using a technique called Shannon entropy, researchers deduced that Pictish symbols are not random, and form a type of writing. It has been proposed that there may be a one-to-one ratio between a word from the Pictish language and a symbol, but further studies are needed to confirm this theory. The creation of a comprehensive database containing all known Pictish symbols may be underway soon.

Figure 4: Examples of the variation between designs of the same type – V-rod and crescent.

The Picts The three most common symbols by far, occurring on between twelve and twenty percent of the 4

and twin discs. The everyday objects commonly found on the symbol stones are usually paired together, such

symbol stones, are the ‘crescent and V-rod,’ the

as the mirror and comb, hammer and anvil, and tongs

‘double disc and Z-rod,’ and the ‘Pictish beast.’ Many

and shears.7 The wide variety of symbols used by the

have argued that the crescent, pictured in Figure 5, rep- Picts have become the most enduring legacy of their resents the moon. If so, it means the Picts had some

culture. Though most of the meanings associated with

theoretical astronomical knowledge, not based on ob-

these symbols have been lost in time, with further study

servation, since a crescent moon never would have

we may be able to uncover what significance they had

been visible when pointing downwards (yet it does so

in Pictish culture.

in almost every representation). The double disc and Z

-rod may represent the clashing of cymbals or a bolt of

Cummins, W. A. The Picts and Their Symbols. Thrupp: Sutton Publishing, 1999.

lightning between two thunderclouds, but this is based

solely on speculation. Neither the V-rod nor the Z-rod

“Pictish Stones.” Historic Scotland. Accessed October 10, 2012. http://www.pictishstones.org.uk/

ever appear on their own, but while the V-rod is only

ever associated with the crescent, the Z-rod also ap-

Carver, Martin. Surviving in Symbols: A Visit to the Pictish Nation. Edinburgh:

pears with the ‘serpant,’ the ‘divided rectangle,’ and the ‘horseshoe.’ The ‘Pictish beast’ is the most enigmatic

Cannongate Books with historic Scotland, 1999. 4

of the animal symbols, and has been referred to as an

Cummins, W. A. The Picts and Their Symbols. Thrupp: Sutton Publishing, 1999.

elephant, a dolphin, and varying hybrids (Figure 6).

Ibid.

Other animal figures include the fish, eagle, serpant,

Ibid.

deer, goose, boar, dog’s head, stag, wolf, horse, and bull. Some of the more abstract symbols are the tuning

“Pictish Stones.” Historic Scotland. Accessed October 10, 2012. http://www.pictishstones.org.uk/

fork, flower, and rectangle, and the disc, triple discs,

Figure 5: Example of a Pictish crescent symbol (top, with V-rod).

Figure 6: One of the more unusual animal symbols, the ‘swimming elephant,’ or ‘Pictish Beast.’ What does it look like to you?

The Picts December 4, 2012 The Picts and Christianity By Michael Donald The Picts’ religious past, before their adoption of Christianity, cannot be determined with certainty but it is likely they practiced some form of Celtic paganism.12 There is, however, much literary evidence for their conversion and material evidence for Pictish churches, monasteries and other Christian sites. There is some controversy in the literature surrounding the Pictish conversion to Christianity. The Picts may have been subjected to conversion missions by St. Ninian, and in the 6th century, St. Columba, according to Bede’s Ecclesiastical History.13 The controversy stems from whether St. Ninian actually visited the Picts, as to some Scottish scholars Columba is associated with a foreign Irish influence.14 This controversy is not helped by what Isabel Henderson describes as “the general vagueness which surrounds the life and career of Ninian himself.”15 Whether or not Ninian or Columba converted the Picts, the progress of their conversion is said by Bede to have been complete by the 6th century.16

Volume 1, Issue 1 mission was established there by the later 6th century.”20 It is certainly Pictish as it is in the centre of Northern Pictland and the surrounding area contains many Class 1 Pictish stones.21 Not surprisingly, the site contains a graveyard with its earliest graves dating from the late 6th century.22 It is also noted by Carver that the gravestones feature Christian crosses incised or in relief.23 Pictish Christianity has a rich and complex archaeological history which is relatively unknown or lacking discussion compared to the religious histories of the Irish or Anglo-Saxons. Their contribution to Scottish religious history cannot be ignored as their architecture and art is remarkable in design.

12.Isabel Henderson, "Ancient Peoples and Places," The Picts, Vol. 54, ed. Dr. Glyn Daniel (New York: Frederick A. Praeger, 1967). p. 67 13.Ibid. p. 70 14.Ibid. p. 69 15.Ibid. p. 68 16.Ibid. p. 74 17.Ibid. p. 86 18. Sharp, Iris. 2006. "FROM WHITHORN TO Pictish Christianity is widespread in the WIGTOWN." British Heritage 27, no. 1: 18-24. archaeological remains as there are many church- Academic Search Complete, EBSCOhost es, monasteries and Pictish stones depicting (accessed November 2, 2012).http:// crosses throughout the lands associated with the 19.Ibid. Picts. The Pictish stones bearing crosses are esti- 20. Carver, Martin. 2004. "An Iona of the mated to have been manufactured sometime in East: The Early-medieval Monastery at the 8th century and attest to Christianity thriving Portmahomack, Tarbat Ness." Medieval Arin Pictish territory after the conversion.17 Archae- chaeology 48, no. 1: 1-30. Academic Search ological evidence for the Picts’ conversion is Complete, EBSCOhost (accessed December easier to gauge, as demonstrated by the stone 1, 2012). church and graveyard associated at Whithorn in 21.Ibid. p. 4 Southwest Scotland. The priory at Whithorn is 22.Ibid. p. 11 said to have been founded in A.D. 366 and is 23.Ibid. p. reputed to have been the base for St. Ninian’s mission of Pictish conversion.18 The original church was believed to have been timber until excavations in the 1980’s revealed lime washed stone and the remains of a cathedral dated to the 7th or 8th century.19 While Whithorn is not in traditional Pictish territory, it is important to mention as a reference point for the spread of Christianity into what is now Scotland. A definitively Pictish monastery can be found at Portmahomack, Tarbat Ness in northeastern Scotland. Martin Carver, a prominent British archaeologist tells us that “a Christian

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The Pictish burial rite

Picts often buried their dead in long-cists, a special type of grave lined with stone slabs. It is thought that this burial-right is associated with their conversion to Christianity.

The Picts only under exceptional circumstance that succession went through the female line, and that there are only a By Alex Johnston few instances where this actually occurred. Several historians including Alex Woolf and Alasdair Ross argue The succession of kings among the Picts has “that the succession was generally not dissimilar to that been a highly debated topic among early-middle age of other kingships in northern Europe.”3 What can be historians. There are two main theories about how the seen is that there are instances where succession went Picts decided the succession of their kings, those being through the female line, but there are also situations matrilineal, through the female’s line, versus patrilineal, where kingship passed from father to son, as well as through the males line. For quite some time the comfrom brother to brother.4 This means that Pictish succesmonly accepted theory among historians, was “the son of sion was not merely matrilineal or patrilineal, but enthe previous king’s sister becomes the next king” 1 This compassed a much broader lineage. The theories of kingwas widely accepted for many years, and was thought of ship and succession of the Picts are much more complias quite unique in terms of succession. However, begin- cated now than they were prior to the 1980s, and give a ning in the 1980s, this theory has come into question much more comprehensive view of the royal lineage of a from multiple sources, bringing up the idea that succes- group that ruled the northern half of Britain for several sion went down the male line. These are two contradic- centuries in the early Middle Ages. tory ideas, and the conclusion that most have come to is that both have occurred during Pictish rule. 1. Nicholas Evans, “Royal Succession and Kingship Prior to the 1980s, it was unquestioned that the among the Picts,” The Innes Review 59, no.1 (Spring Picts practiced matrilineal succession; this was largely 2008), 1. influenced by the writings of Bede. Bede wrote that 2. Alexander Boyle, “Matrilineal Succession of the Pict“The Picts obtained wives from the Scots of Ireland on ish Monarchy,” The Scottish Historical Review 56, condition that ‘when the matter was in doubt they would no.161 (April 1977), 7. choose their king from the female rather than from the 3. Evans, “Royal Succession and Kingship among the male royal line’”2 It was based on these writings that we Picts,” 2. got most of our information about Pictish succession. 4. Ibid, 4. However, more recent ideas suggest that it was Who is the Next King of the Picts?

Pictish warlord and monk follow the High King in procession, under the watchful feet of an eagle

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Pictish Metalwork By Michael Donald This article will serve as an introduction to metal artefacts and metalwork materials associated with the Picts. Archaeological evidence tells us that the Picts were skilled metalworkers and had a tradition and fondness for animal designs.1 The Picts produced penannular brooches, buckles, hanging bowls, chains and bracelets; the most common objects were made of bronze, while examples of a higher class were silver.2 These pieces of metalwork would have been manufactured using baked clay moulds such as the escutcheon bowl mould found at Craig Phadrig, Inverness.3 This introductory article will be primarily focused on the more rare silver pieces of surviving Pictish metalwork. The most renowned and intricate examples of Pictish metalwork are the large silver chains found in Scotland, from Inverness in the Highlands to Lanarkshire in the Lowlands.4 They consist of interlocking silver rings with a larger engraved terminal ring. Their use or purpose is as yet unknown, but it is speculated that they were neck jewelry designed for ceremonial displays of social standing or power.5 The Whitecleugh (or Whitecleuch) chain from Lanarkshire and the Parkhill chain from Aberdeenshire are noted as having stereotypically Pictish symbols engraved on them.6 It is further noted by scholars that only three of the chains have been found in historical Pictish territory, which leads them to suggest that some were taken south as spoils of war. 7 Pictish symbols also appear on a couple leafshaped plaques of silver and a silver hand pin from the Norrie’s Law, Fife hoard.8 The Pictish symbols that appear on the plaques are the common yet enigmatic ‘double disc and Z-rod’ and the typical ‘dog’s head’

The Whitecleuch Chain

design.9 The suspected date of the Norrie’s Law plaques, posited by the archaeologist couple George and Isabel Henderson, is around 700 A.D. 10 Pictish metalwork was extraordinarily intricate in its design, with minute attention to detail. It is worth mentioning that Pictish art began to hybridize with Anglo-Saxon and Irish styles as a result of contact and trade. This hybrid style is referred to as the Insular style. The Hendersons put it very succinctly, that the Picts were, “producing a genre of metalwork which was to play a crucial part in the transmission of forms and techniques which contributed to the evolution of Insular styles.” 11

1. Laing, Lloyd R, “Picts, Saxons and Celtic metalwork,” Proceedings of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland 105 (02/01/1974) 2. Ibid. 3. Henderson, George, Henderson, Isabel, “The Art of the Picts, Sculpture and Metalwork in Early Medieval Scotland,” (New York: Thames and Hudson Inc., 2004). 4. Breeze, Andrew, "Pictish chains and Welsh forgeries", Proceedings of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland 128 (1998) 5. Ibid. 6. Ibid. 7.Ibid. 8. Henderson, Isabel, "Ancient Peoples and Places,” The Picts, Vol 54, ed. Dr. Gly Daniel 9.Henderson, George, Henderson, Isabel, “The Art of the Picts, Sculpture and Metalwork in Early Medieval Scotland,” (New York: Thames and Hudson Inc., 2004). 10.Ibid. p. 70

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century AD, there is evidence that some of these buildings were occupied or reoccupied well into the early By Anna Copley medieval period and the time of the Picts. One such example is aâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; Cheardach Mhor on the Hebridean isWheelhouses land of South Uist, which had five phases of occupation, ending in the sixth century.2 Interestingly, wheelWheelhouses are round houses built from stone, and get their name from the wheel-like appear- houses are often associated with sites that previously ance created by interior cells surrounding the perime- housed brochs, and were sometimes built inside of round towers of hollowter of the building. The cells required the construction them. Brochs are Iron Age 3 wall stone construction. Wheelhouses were also comof dividing stone walls that radiated towards the center 1 monly dug into the ground or dunes, making them of the house, like the spokes of a wheel. In this center 4 partially subterranean. For this reason they are somewas open space, which was likely the hub of the buildtime called earth houses. ing where people gathered. Though predominantly associated with the early Iron Age, particularly the period between the first century BC and the second Pictish Houses at a Glance

Photograph of a reconstruction of a typical wheelhouse â&#x20AC;&#x201C; taken from the central space looking in towards the cells lining the perimeter (source: http:// en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wheelhouse_(archaeology)

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taining the hearth, surrounded by a number of round or rectilinear cells.7 Like wheelhouses, they were built from stone, which was a building Cellular houses date to a later period than the wheelhouses, and in some cases directly material readily available in the region. replaced them. For instance, a wheelhouse on the Isle of Lewis underwent several phases of A fascinating example of a cellular house is construction, through which it gradually became found at Buckquoy on Orkney. It has been a cellular house.5 The earliest examples of cellu- termed the ‘jelly baby’ house due to its distinclar houses date from the third century AD and tive shape. It went through five phases of domesbecame a dominant type of house in the early tic occupation, the first two of which can be datmedieval period in the Northern and Western ed to the Pictish period.8 There is another cellular Isles. They continued to be inhabited until the house of a similar shape at Gurness and this is arrival of the Vikings.6 Cellular houses are char- depicted in the picture below. acterized by a central oval-shaped chamber conCellular houses

Pictish ‘jelly baby’ house at Gurness, Orkney

Rectilinear Houses Later in the early medieval period there was a transition towards rectilinear, or rectangular, houses. For instance, this was seen at Orkney where the change in house planning is associated with the PictishNorse interface period.9 A particular type of rectilinear house found in Northern Scotland was ‘wags,’ rectangular buildings with rounded ends. These usually had dimensions of approximately 14 X 5 m and were divided into different sections by stone slabs.10 An example of this building type is the Wag of Forse at Caithness, depicted in the picture below. 1

Arial view of the Wag of Forse, Caithness

Lloyd Laing, The Archeology of Celtic Britain and Ireland: C. AD 400-1200 (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2006), 56. 2 Laing, Celtic Britain, 321. 3 Laing, Celtic Britain, 320. 4 Sally Foster, Picts, Gaels and Scots: Early Historic Scotland (Glasgow: B.T. Batsford, 1996), 57. 5 Foster, Picts, Gaels and Scots, 57. 6 Laing, Celtic Britain, 321 7 Anna Ritchie, “Excavation of Pictish and Viking age farmstead at Buckquoy, Orkney.” Proc. Soc. Ant. Scot.108 (1976): 182. 8 Ritchie, Pictish and Viking age farmstead, 192. 9 Laing, Celtic Britain, 58. 10 Laing, Celtic Britain, 58.

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bols of an eagle, a ‘Pictish beast,’ a disc or mirror case, and a crescent and V-rod (Figure 3). It is interesting to By Jesse Holth note that the first warrior seems to be a king or leader, as his depiction contains a few details that the others do The Brough of Birsay is a small island in the not: a fringed hem, a more ornately decorated shield, Orkneys of Scotland (Figure 1). It is a tidal island, so and curly hair, possibly with some sort of crown. The can only be accessed via land at low tide – at high tide, Brough of Birsay has been referred to as a “political the ocean rises high enough to cut the island off from centre,” 2 and there is substantive evidence to suggest the mainland. It was inhabited by the Picts in the 7th and that it was the power seat of Pictish Orkney. Directly 8th centuries, until Vikings arrived from Norway in the across from the Brough of Birsay is a Pictish farmstead early 9th century and turned it into a Viking settlement. called Buckquoy, and just a few hundred metres further Both ‘brough’ and ‘birsay’ come from the Old Norse are a number of cist graves dating from the Pictish periword ‘borg,’ meaning fort, but the former refers to the od.2 This indicates a settlement complex, based on mulisland’s innate defensive qualities while the latter refers tiple sites from the same time, having the Brough of to the island’s narrow land bridge.1 Many Pictish sites Birsay at its core. With easy sea access, excellent defenwere reused by subsequent groups, just as the Picts of- sive features, and potential sacred value, it’s no wonder ten reused prehistoric sites – the Brough of Birsay in the Picts of Orkney chose this spot (Figure 4). particular is a desirable spot because the sharp cliffs to 1 the north provide excellent defense, the view encom“Brough of Birsay Property Detail.” Historic Scotpasses the entire stretch of mainland coast, it made sea land. Accessed October 2, 2012. http://www.historictravel extremely accessible, and the area of Birsay was scotland.gov.uk/index/places/propertyresultsold/ arguably the seat of Pictish power in the Orkneys. propertyabout.htm? PropID=PL_042&PropName=Brough%20Of% The forms of the Pictish buildings on the 20Birsay. brough are hard to distinguish, because there are many layers of Viking structures built on top of them. Howev- 2 Graham-Campbell, James, and Batey, Colleen E. Vier, there was extensive evidence found for metalwork- kings in Scotland: An ing in the Pictish period, in association with a well that is still visible today (Figure 2). The well is small, only Archaeological Survey. Edinburgh: Edinburgh Univer75 centimetres deep, and covered by a stone slab. When sity Press, 1998. it was excavated between 1936 and 1939, it was sur3 Search: “Brough of Birsay.” National Museums of rounded by metalworking artefacts, including bronzeScotland. Accessed October 2, 2012. http:// working debris, crucibles, a decorated lead disc, dress pins, and many clay moulds, including those of penan- nms.scran.ac.uk/database/results.php? nular brooches, which often depicted animal symbols.2 field=where&searchterm=%22Brough+of+Birsay% 22&searchdb=scran. The Pictish metalworkers in this period began to use complex casting techniques, where a detailed mould 4 Graham-Campbell, James, and Batey, Colleen E. Viwas carved in two pieces, then it was closed and metal kings in Scotland: An Archaeological Survey. Edinwas poured into a hole at the top; a bone engraving burgh: Edinburgh University Press, 1998. found at the site also suggests that metalworkers were practicing their designs and techniques on bone before attempting them with metal.3 Since the type of objects found were mostly high-status commodities, there were Figures on next page... almost certainly people of importance at this site. The Brough of Birsay: A Case Study

Perhaps the most obvious Pictish relic on the Brough of Birsay is the symbol stone – a replica stands in its place today, but the original fragments are housed in the Museum of Scotland. This intriguing stone portrays three warriors below the more typical Pictish sym-

The Picts December 4, 2012

Figure 1: The Brough of Birsay, in the Orkney Islands, Scotland.

Figure 3: The Pictish symbol stone on the Brough of Birsay, featuring a mirror, crescent and V-rod, Pictish beast, eagle, and three warriors (replica cast).

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Figure 2: Pictish well on the Brough of Birsay â&#x20AC;&#x201C; covered with a stone slab, the well itself is made of beach pebbles.

Figure 4: Looking across to the Brough of Birsay, and the Pictish/Viking settlement.

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being killed by Bridei, then being eaten by a raven. 3 If this is indeed a depiction of the battle, it gives us valuaBy Anna Copley ble information about what happened from the Picts perspective and also suggests something of the signifiThe Picts of early medieval Scotland are often cance this victory had for them. depicted as naked savages, fierce warriors and tattooed or ‘painted’ people. Though much of it may be nothing The textual sources that mention the Battle of more than myth, one aspect of this image has a basis in Dunnichen come from the Northumbrians. The most reality. The Picts were indeed warriors and fought informative of these is an excerpt from Bede’s famous many battles against the Romans and their British eighth century work, A History of the English Church neighbors. One such example is the Battle of Dunand People. In his short description of the battle we nichen, also known as the Battle of Nechtanesmere, gain insight to the tactics that led the Picts to their unfought on May 20, 685 AD.1 This is a particularly falikely victory. Bede writes, “The enemy feigned flight mous battle in which the Picts, led by King Bridei Mac and lured the king into some narrow passes in the Bili, defeated the Northumbrians, led by King Ecgfrith. midst of inaccessible mountains; there he was killed It marked a turning point in the dominance of the with the greater part of the forces he had taken with Northumbrians and halted their northward advance. him.” He also says “…the King rashly took an army to ravage the land of the Picts, against urgent advice of There are few textual accounts of this event his friends”.4 From these two statements, it appears and those that we have lack detail. For this reason, that the Picts were successful due to superior strategy there is much debate about basic details of the battle, and the use of deception. Moreover, they were helped including how and where it was fought. For example, in their cause by the overconfidence and rash decisionthough it is traditionally thought to have taken place making of King Ecgfrith who led his men into the near Dunnichen, Angus, there is an alternative suggesdeath trap. tion that it was actually fought near Dunachton in the 2 highland region of Badenoch. However, by piecing By looking at sources such as the Aberlemno together the archeological and textual evidence at hand, Stone II and the writings of Bede, we learn that the we can gain an interesting insight into the real warrior Picts were not only fierce warriors, but also shrewd Pict. ones. The Battle of Dunnichen exemplifies this and was a critical event in the history of the Picts. The Picts left no written accounts of the Battle 1 of Dunnichen, yet they appear to have recorded this Lloyd Laing, The Archeology of Celtic Britain and event by another method - carving a symbol stone. This Ireland: C. AD 400-1200 (Cambridge: Cambridge Unistone, known as Aberlemno II, was found in the Aber- versity Press, 2006), 310. lemno churchyard in Angus, no more than a few miles 2 Alex Woolf, “Dun Nechtain, Fortriu and the Geografrom the most likely site of the battle. It is thought to phy of the Picts.” The Scottish Historical Review 85 depict scenes from the battle, including the death of (2006): 182-201. 3 King Ecgfrith. There are three rows of symbols, each Martin Carver. Surviving in Symbols: A Visit to the illustrating a different scene. According to the interpre- Pictish Nation (Edinburgh: Cannongate Books with tations of archeologist Anna Ritchie, the top row repre- historic Scotland, 1999), 45. 4 sents Ecgfrith fleeing Bridei Mac Bili, with Ecgfrith Medieval Sourcebook: Bede (673-735): Ecclesiastical dropping his sword. The second row shows Ecgfrith History of English Nation, Book IV. confronting Pictish foot soldiers after fleeing Bridei, and the final row portrays Ecgfrith The Victory at Dunnichen

Aberlemno II Stone generally believed to depict the Battle of Dunnichen

The Picts All Woads Lead to Rome

empire.

The infamous people that occupied Northern Britain for such a long period of time likely had a name for themselves. However, the name that remains and The Romans had a massive impact on Britain that this group is associated with is “Pict.” This name in the early-middle ages, and left the most written histo- came from Romans, and “is usually said to derive from ry about the Picts of Northern Britain. They were rethe Latin pictus, meaning ‘painted’”3 This likely comes garded by the Romans as a fierce tribal people, who from the notion that the Picts tattooed their bodies with often came into conflict with those who occupied the a blue substance known as woad that gave off an indigo South. The connection between the Picts and Romans colour.4 That their name derived from a nick-name givcan be seen in numerous examples, including the conen to them by the Romans displays the importance of struction of a massive wall between the North and Roman impressions when speaking of the Picts. They South, as well as origins of the name “Picts.” Also, the never kept any written history, so it is imperative to conflicts and clashes between the Romans and Picts look at outside groups for this is probably why the name display the influence both groups had on each other in the Romans gave the Picts is still in use. Northern Britain. After the rest of Britain had been conquered and occupied, the Pictish North remained wild, There was almost constant conflict between with very little Roman presence. Even after many expethe Romans and the Picts during the time that the two ditions by the Romans into the Northern half of Britain, it remained unconquered. This is a testament to the for- groups were in contact. The Picts caused the Romans no titude of the possibly painted group known as the Picts. end of troubles on Hadrian’s Wall. From attacks on the wall, to invasions into their territory, the Picts were a After Emperor Hadrian visited the British ex- thorn in the side of the Romans that garrisoned Wall. However, the Romans did not make it easy for the Picts tension of his empire, he commanded the construction either, with multiple expeditions to try and tame the of “a massive wall, fronted by a wide ditch, stretching unconquered North of Britain. For several centuries from coast to coast, just beyond the existing chain of they were at each other’s throats, with neither group forts.”1 It was erected to keep out those fierce groups gaining a decisive edge against the other until Rome’s from the North, as well as to moderate any crossings into and out of their territory. From its erection, to when evacuation of the empire. the Romans fell into obscurity in Britain, the wall was a 1. Colin Martin, “Hadrian’s Wall,” British Heritage 25, magnet for violent and militaristic conflicts with the no.5 (September 2003): 29. Picts. In order to protect their territory from the Picts, 2. Ibid, 30. the Romans had to turn the wall into a massive line of defence. They built “Two turrets between each pair of 3.Paul Wagner, Pictish Warrior AD 297-841, (Oxford: milecastles [to] ensure that every yard of the line reOsprey Publishing, 2002), 4. mained under close surveillance.”2 The construction of the wall shows the success and ferocity of the Picts, 4.Gillian Carr, “Woad, Tattooing and Identity in Later who came in to repeated contact with the Romans, yet Iron Age and Early Roman Britain,” Oxford Journal Of remained on the unoccupied outskirts of such a massive Archaeology 24, no.3 (August 2005): 277. By Alex Johnston

Approximate location of the Pictish Kingdoms

Roman Britain Organisation in the North

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The Painted Picts: Woad Various textual sources make reference to the people of “Briton” painting their skin with woad, or Isatis tinctoria, a native plant from which a blue pigment is derived. “They . . . tattoo their bodies with various patterns and pictures of all sorts of animals. Hence the reason why they do not wear clothes, so as not to cover the pictures on their bodies.” –Herodian III, 208 AD

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Reference List

Boyle, Alexander. “Matrilineal Succession of the Pictish Monarchy.” The Scottish Historical Review 56(161), (April 1977): 7.

Breeze, Andrew. "Pictish chains and Welsh forgeries.” Proceedings of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland 128 (1998): 481-484.

Carr, Gillian. “Woad, Tattooing and Identity in Later Iron Age and Early Roman Britain.” Oxford Journal Of Archaeology 24(3), (August 2005): 273-292.

Carver, Martin. "An Iona of the East: The Early-medieval Monastery at Portmahomack, Tarbat Ness." Medieval Archaeology 48(1), (2004): 1-30.

Carver, Martin. Surviving in Symbols: A Visit to the Pictish Nation. Edinburgh: Cannongate Books with historic Scotland, 1999.

Clarke, D. V. “Reading the Multiple Lives of Pictish Symbol Stones.” Medieval Archaeology 51 (2007): 1939.

Cummins, W. A. The Picts and Their Symbols. Thrupp: Sutton Publishing, 1999.

Evans, Nicholas. “Royal Succession and Kingship among the Picts.” The Innes Review 59(1), (Spring 2008): 1.

Foster, Sally. Picts, Gaels and Scots: Early Historic Scotland. Glasgow: B.T. Batsford, 1996.

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Graham-Campbell, James, and Batey, Colleen E. Vikings in Scotland: An Archaeological Survey. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press, 1998.

Henderson, George, and Henderson, Isabel. The Art of the Picts, Sculpture and Metalwork in Early Medieval Scotland. New York: Thames and Hudson Inc., 2004.

Henderson, Isabel. "Ancient Peoples and Places." The Picts 54, ed. Dr. Glyn Daniel, New York: Frederick A. Praeger, 1967.

Historic Scotland. “Brough of Birsay Property Detail.” Accessed October 2, 2012. http://www.historicscotland.gov.uk/index/places/propertyresultsold/propertyabout.htm?PropID=PL_042&PropName=Brough% 20Of%20Birsay. Historic Scotland. “Pictish Stones.” Accessed October 10, 2012. http://www.pictishstones.org.uk/ Laing, Lloyd. The Archaeology of Celtic Britain and Ireland: C. AD 400-1200. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2006.

Laing, Lloyd. “The date and context of the Glamis, Angus, carved Pictish stones.” Proc. Soc. Antiq. Scot. 131 (2001): 223–239.

Laing, Lloyd. “Picts, Saxons and Celtic metalwork.” Proceedings of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland 105 (1974).

Martin, Colin. “Hadrian’s Wall.” British Heritage 25(5), (September 2003): 26-29.

Medieval Sourcebook. “Bede (673-735); Ecclesiastical History of the English Nation, Book IV.” Accessed November 30, 2012. http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/basis/bede-book4.asp

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National Museums of Scotland. “Search: Brough of Birsay.” Accessed October 2, 2012. http:// nms.scran.ac.uk/database/results.php?field=where&searchterm=%22Brough+of+Birsay% 22&searchdb=scran.

Ritchie, Anna. “Excavation of Pictish and Viking age farmstead at Buckquoy, Orkney.” Proc. Soc. Ant. Scot. 108 (1976): 174-227.

Sharp, Iris. "From Whithorn to Wigtown." British Heritage 27(1), (2006): 18-24.

Wagner, Paul. Pictish Warrior AD 297-841. Oxford: Osprey Publishing, 2002.

Woolf, Alex. “Dun Nechtain, Fortriu and the Geography of the Picts.” The Scottish Historical Review 85 (2006): 182-201.

Image Sources “Pictish” man and woman. http://inviting-ambiguity.deviantart.com/art/quot-The-Picts-quot-Detail-84236341

Pictish warrior (black and white). http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Caledonian-pict.jpg Pictish tattooed tribe. http://www.vanishingtattoo.com/tattoo_museum/pict_warrior_tattoos.html Painted Pictish woman. http://members.multimania.co.uk/cruithne1966/Picts.htm Pictish stone replica, Hilton of Cadboll. http://www.northernsights.net/seaboard-14.html Pictish stone, Easterton of Roseisle. http://www.megalithic.co.uk/article.php?sid=17913

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Pictish stone at Brodie. http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Pictish_Stone_at_Brodie_-_geograph.org.uk_-_1512035.jpg

Pictish stone distribution. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Pictish_Stone_distribution.jpg Pictish stone, Aberlemno III. http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Aberlemno_III_symbols.jpg Pictish Beast symbol. http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:PictishBeast.PNG Symbol Stone, crescent and V-rod design. http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Aberlemno_III_symbols.jpg Symbol variation, crescent and V-rod. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Pictish_Symbol_Stones_designs_-_V_Rod_%26_Crescent_Selection.png Long-cist. http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Ri_Cruin_Cairn_-_outer_cist.jpg Pictish symbol stone, warriors. http://devorguila.wordpress.com/ Whitecleuch chain. http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/72/Whitecleuch_chain.jpg/220pxWhitecleuch_chain.jpg Wheelhouse. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wheelhouse_(archaeology) Cellular house. http://www.pictishstones.org.uk/pictishstones/pictishstoneshome/aboutthepicts/society/lived.htm

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Rectilinear house. http://www.pictishstones.org.uk/pictishstones/pictishstoneshome/aboutthepicts/society/lived.htm

Brough of Birsay, map. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Orkney_Islands_UK_relief_location_map.jpg Antler combs from the Brough of Birsay. http://nms.scran.ac.uk/database/record.php?usi=000-000-136-628-C Brough of Birsay at a distance. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Brough_of_Birsay_in_summer_2012_%284%29.JPG Aberlemno II symbol stone. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Pictish_Stone_at_Aberlemno_Church_Yard_-_Battle_Scene_Detail.jpg Tattooed Pict warrior. http://halfmoon.tripod.com Pictish kingdoms map. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Pictish_kingdoms.png Roman Britain. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Roman.Scotland.north.84.jpg