Archaeology InSites

Sitting peacefully in a quiet village and yet located beside one of the busiest roads in the country is the most complete 12th century church in Scotland. While the landscape that surrounds it has seen constant change, the church has faithfully served the parish of Dalmeny for about 900 years, and continues to do so. Norman churches in this condition are extremely rare, but Scottish parallels are to be found at Leuchars and at Dunfermline Abbey, both of which bear similar mason’s marks.

The monastic settlement at Kame of Isbister consists of at least 19 small stone buildings perched on top of a precarious sea stack. An archaeological excavation in 2003 recovered material that was radiocarbon dated to c.860 AD, falling into a period in Shetland that can be described as Late Pictish or Norse.