Field Visit

Date 14 August 2000

Event ID 920358

Category Recording

Type Field Visit

Permalink http://canmore.org.uk/event/920358

(Inverurie no. 1). This Class I symbol stone, which bears a crescent and V-rod, a mirror-case, a serpent and rod, and a double disk and Z-rod, lies horizontally upon two pairs of rectangular blocks. A pink granite slab, it is irregular in shape, and measures 1.76m in length by 0.52m in breadth and 0.36m in thickness. The uppermost symbol is the crescent and V-rod incised at the N end of the upper face, but the right hand edge and terminal of the V-rod is wholly missing, and the left hand terminal, which has a tulip-like expansion and two curlicues, has been mutilated. The crescent is enriched with simple curvilinear decoration and dots, the central portion reminiscent of a motorcycle helmet. Each arm of the crescent contains a single curved line. Below this is the mirror-case symbol, its upper part containing an inner circle with a central dot. The base and sides of the foot are concave and are paralleled by the remains of a less well defined inner quadrangle.

Below this the curving body and tail of the serpent can be seen. The line of the interweaving rod is less deeply incised, but two curlicues on the edge of the stone indicate that this has been a straight rod, rather than the more usual Z-rod. The remainder of the terminal is missing. The portion of the stone bearing the neck and head of the serpent, which was described in Allen and Anderson (1903, p.168, fig. 179), is now also missing.

The double-disk and Z-rod symbol lies below this, but one disk is entirely lost, and only a little over half of the other is preserved. This contains two concentric circles and a central dot. The surviving portion of the bar between the disks has concave sides and is crossed by a Z-rod with bracketed angles.

The presence of four symbols on one face of a Class I stone is unusual. However, it is clear that the serpent and double-disk are more deeply incised than the crescent and V-rod and mirror-case, raising the possibility there are two phases of symbols on the stone. Indeed, the depiction of the head of the serpent recorded by Allen and Anderson indicates that the lower pair of symbols are aligned down in relation to the upper pair. This indicates that the symbol stone inverted and reused at some time, though which pair takes precedence is unclear.

Visited by RCAHMS (IF), 14 August 2000.