Rhynie, Plough Inn

These two symbol stones were removed from the centre of the square, and placed close together at the NW end of the square, at NJ 4980 2715, when the war memorial was erected c. 1918 (information from Mr W G McPherson, Ashvale, Rhynie, By Huntly, Aberdeenshire). The symbols on the smaller of the stones, a Z-rod and double mirror, have been completely obliterated. It has been erected upside-down.

Re-surveyed at 1/2500.

Visited by OS (NKB) 3 October 1967.

These stones were originally found around 1836 at NJ 4985 2702 and are now on the village green at Rhynie. On no. 2, the symbols are virtually invisible, while of the man on no. 3 only the spear is clearly visible.

RCAHMS 1994.

A pair of small stones stand to either side of the N gate of Rhynie Square. That to the W of the gate is a granite boulder, 0.9m high by 0.55m broad, and 0.31m thick. It bears the incised figure of a man carrying a spear and a rectangular shield. The stone is very worn and areas of the surface have flaked off. The only surviving portions are the line of the back of the head and shoulders, the lower legs and feet, the right hand holding the spear which terminates in a circular knob, the lower portion of the rectangular shield, and a fainter line indicating its upper edge, and a further line between the figure and the spear, terminating in a circle, of uncertain significance. A line running diagonally across the legs, and also depicted by Logan in 1825 appears not to be original. Below the feet of the figure a curved feature appears to correspond with the upper edge of a circular object depicted by Logan. The second stone, which stands to the E of the gate, is also of granite, 0.68m high by 0.48m broad, and 0.2m thick. No trace of sculpture is visible.,

Visited by RCAHMS (JRS, IF), 6 May 1996.

Two class I symbol stones.

Rhynie 2 : a double-disc and Z-rod above a crescent and V-rod.

Rhynie 3 : a horseshoe with a cloaked figure above (cp. NO21SE18)

A Mack 1997.

NJ 4980 2715 The work this year, undertaken 6–14 September 2014, focused on the findspot of one of the symbol stones from Rhynie (No 3) – a second human (or human-like) figure carrying a spear or staff that was found on the southern outskirts of the modern village. The stone is reported to have been in a cairn when it was found in the 19th century. The

findspot, recorded in an open field on the 1st Edition OS map, is now in the garden of Ashvale House on the S side of the village just off the main road.

A 4 x 4m trench was dug in the garden of Ashvale on the W side of the house plot. This identified a sub-rectangular building or wall made of earth and stones. The largest stretch of wall was aligned SW–NE and curved to the SE and into the baulk of the trench on that side. No floor deposits were found, but the wall surrounded a posthole or pit in the eastern side of

the trench. No finds, charred deposits or features were found to further elucidate the date or function of this structure. In the NW part of the garden a 2 x 1m trench was dug. Below topsoil a layer of stones were found, possibly part of a cairn or platform on top of the knoll currently occupied by Ashvale House and the other houses in this part of the village. Another

2 x 1m trial trench in the neighbouring garden identified further elements of this cairn or platform; a layer of large boulders and split stone extended for around 0.2m below the modern topsoil and a levelling layer. Charcoal from the old land surface below the stones and from a layer of soil beneath

was sampled for dating. The results are significant given the 19th-century accounts of a cairn in association with the Rhynie symbol stone No 3.

A large machine dug trench was opened in the field adjacent to Ashvale House; the nearest area a larger evaluation could take place. The trench (c20 x 15m) revealed a number of features of archaeological origin. These included a circular ring ditch c4m across. The ring ditch closely resembles the form of a barrow itch, but no central burial was found within. A single flint flake was found in the ditch fill and two small pits were found in the interior of the ring ditch. The ring ditch may be the remains of a prehistoric mound. Surrounding the ring ditch were a number of pits or postholes. Each was half-sectioned; no finds were made, but samples were taken for dating. Test pits were also dug in the village square and in surrounding gardens of the village. Only modern and 19th-century features and finds were found in these test pits.

Archive: University of Aberdeen

Funder: University of Aberdeen, British Academy and Heritage Lottery Fund

Gordon Noble, Cathy MacIver and the Rhynie Woman Collective – University of Aberdeen

(Source: DES)

Discovering a Lost People

Modern day Rhynie is a rural village in central Aberdeenshire, surrounded by open countryside. It is a picturesque location, and deceptively modest, for archaeological evidence attests to many centuries of high status settlement in the area. Even the name Rhynie itself is regal, deriving from 'Rig' meaning King. Many Pictish stones have been found here, including the famous 'Rhynie Man', a 6ft high figure carrying an axe, found in a field in 1978.

So who were the Picts, and what were they doing at Rhynie? These are the very questions which are currently being investigated by The University of Aberdeen's Northern Picts project. The project aims to find the Picts in the landscape of Northern Scotland, and has had many notable successes in recent years. The Rhynie Environs Archaeology Project (REAP) is a key case study within the Northern Picts project. It is a collaborative endeavor between the Universities of Aberdeen, Chester and Glasgow and the local community artist collective Rhynie Woman.

Excavations in 2011 and 2012 revealed a series of fortified enclosures near to the the Craw Stane, a Class I Pictish symbol stone which still stands today. This is located at Barflat, northwest of the present day village and very close to where Rhynie Man was found in the 1970s. Early indications were that this was an important settlement. Further work revealed a series of concentric enclosures centred on a ring ditch and other possible timber structures, and in association with the Class I symbol stone. An interpretative reconstruction of the site has recently been completed and it is available to view online. You can access it by clicking on the link below.

Settlement evidence for this period is very rare, and the evidence for Pictish buildings which has been found at Rhynie is extremely important. Equally significant is the evidence for large-scale high status metalworking at the site, and a range of Continental imports which have been found here, indicating without doubt that Rhynie was an important power centre dating from the 4th to the 6th centuries AD. A contemporary cemetery has been found closer to the village.

Contextualising Rhynie / Moulds and Metal

The Rhynie Environs Archaeology Project is investigating the interaction between the high status site here and the wider landscape. The complex at Barflat is close to two small fortified sites at Cairnmore and Wheedlemont, and the great hillfort at Tap O'Noth [see previous Archaeology InSites feature under Age of Iron]. A 5th/6th century phase has been identified at Cairnmore and it is very likely that both Wheedlemont and Tap were in use at this time, but connections between these sites and Rhynie are still to be established. Understanding the links between these sites, and indeed if they are there at all, is key to understanding the development and control of the landscape of the Strathbogie area.

Rhynie has yielded a rich assemblage of high status material. One of the most iconic finds from the site is the axe shaped pin which was found in 2012. This pin, with its serpent design, resembles the axe which is carried by Rhynie Man, now in the reception area of Woodhill House, the headquarters of Aberdeenshire Council. The 2016 excavations revealed the best evidence yet for high status metalworking at Rhynie. Over 50 sherds of crucibles were found at the site, and clay moulds were uncovered in greater numbers than at any other known Pictish site. These moulds produced a range of different pins and brooches. There was even evidence for enameling. The finds from the 2016 season are currently undergoing conservation work, and although less visually striking than the finished products, they have the potential to tell us far more.

Dr Kirsty Owen - Archaeology and World Heritage Team