Following the launch of trove.scot in February 2025 we are now planning the retiral of some of our webservices. Canmore will be switched off on 24th June 2025. Information about the closure can be found on the HES website: Retiral of HES web services | Historic Environment Scotland
Birse Description of stone
Event ID 1084406
Category Descriptive Accounts
Type Early Medieval Carved Stones Project
Permalink http://canmore.org.uk/event/1084406
Birse (St Michael), Aberdeenshire, Pictish cross-slab fragment
Measurements: H 0.29m, W 0.13m
Stone type:
Place of discovery: NO c 555 973
Present location: built into the interior face of the garden wall at Birse Manse, near the church.
Evidence for discovery: first recorded in 1995.
Present condition: all edges are broken but the surviving carving is clear.
Description
This small fragment appears to be part of a Pictish cross-slab. It is incised with a curlicue, probably the lower right portion of a cross-shaft, and a double-sided comb tucked in above. A curving line above the comb is likely to be the tip of the handle of a mirror symbol.
Date range: eighth or ninth century.
Primary references: Fraser 2008, no 5.
Desk-based information compiled by A Ritchie 2019
