Picts at Forres

Forres lies to the west of Banffshire in the neighbouring county of Moray.

There are two outstanding Pictish stones in the area, Rodney's Stone (aka The Fortune Stone) and Suenno's Stone

On one side are two elaborately decorated creatures, facing each other, above a similarly elaborate Pictish Beast. Itself above a double disc and z-rod symbol, which is also highly decorated.

There are a number of much smaller symbols or decorations between the symbols, and around the edge is a border of ogham.

Only one part of the ogham had been worked out , the name Ethernan

Rodney's Stone

sources

Information board

The New Statistical Account vol XIII, 1845 (online)

The Statistical Account vol XX (online)

trove.scot (online)

photos

my own

Version 1.1 Updated with details from the Statistical Accounts and trove.scot

The Rev. Mark Aitken, in the entry for Dyke and Moy, County of Elgin, The New Statistical Account of 1845 states that the stone was found when digging out the foundations of the current church. Some parishioners claiming it had been gravestone. It was put up in the village to celebrate the victory of Admiral Rodney over the Count de Grass (which was in 1782), before being moved to Brodie Park a few years before 1845. The chapter describes it as having an elaborately carved cross and a number of 'rudely sculptured animals', and it was 'very much defaced' and "no trace of any inscription can now be seen upon it".

This description does not match the stone as it is today.

The Rev. John Dunbar in the Statistical Account Vol XX of 1798, for the chapter 'Parish of Dyke Including The Annexed Parish of Boy' does not mention the stone, although he includes a section on antiquities. He states that a new church was built in 1781.

A 1856 drawing of the stone by John Stuart in 'The Sculptured Stones of Scotland', (image available on trove.scot) does not show the two sets of initials

Currently standing in the grounds of Brodie Castle it was moved here in the 1830s, from the church at Dyke, where it was found in 1781.

On the other side is a highly decorated cross, with interlacing patterns within the cross itself and in the panels around it. the Upper two panels appear to have had some kind of beasts within an inter-twining pattern.

Ogham script is also around the outside border on this side.

The lower two panels have much later inscribed letters. in one the letters 'AC' and 'KB' in the other.

The information board states the stone had been used as a burial marker, possibly in the 16th century. These letters may the the initials of the deceased.

Interesting the letters are currently displayed upside down and therefore if used as a burial marker, presumably the cross would have been.