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Picts: Part 2- Symbols and Statements — Transcript

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0:13[Music]
0:24The meaning and purpose of the Pish
0:26symbol stones continue to perplex
0:29scholars.
0:30What do they mean and what were they
0:32for? In our first film, Symbols and
0:35Signs, we looked at some of the
0:37different ways in which scholars have
0:39tried to make sense of the symbol stones
0:41over the years.
0:43Some were interpreted as badges of
0:45office of members of the Pictish elite.
0:48Others, it was suggested, may have been
0:50connected to early astronomical
0:52calculations.
0:54Some were thought to be badges of
0:55particular pictish lineages with paired
0:58symbols marking marriages between the
1:01lineages and the stones designating
1:04their territories.
1:06The mirror and comb symbol was regarded
1:08by many observers as a clear gender
1:12statement.
1:14But current thinking favors interpreting
1:16the symbols as pictish personal names
1:20and this opens up new possibilities for
1:22unlocking the symbol code.
1:25Of the 250 or so pictish sculptured
1:28stones, about a dozen also have
1:31inscriptions alongside the symbols.
1:35Most of these inscriptions are in the
1:37Augum script like this one here at
1:39Brunbut in Inuri.
1:43Can the inscription help us to
1:45understand the meaning of the symbols?
1:48Can the inscriptions confirm the view
1:50that the symbols are names?
1:54Augum script originated in Ireland in
1:56the fourth or fifth century as a form of
1:59lettering based on the phonetics of the
2:02Irish language.
2:04Pictish and Welsh variations of this
2:0620let alphabet were evolved as the
2:09script spread from Ireland.
2:13If a translated Augum inscription
2:15produces the same name alongside the
2:18same Pish symbols on different stones,
2:21then could we conclude that the symbol
2:24and the inscription are the same?
2:38The two pictish stones which today stand
2:40in the gardens of Newton House near Pit
2:43Mah are not in their original position.
2:46They were found quite close together not
2:48far from here and were moved to their
2:51current location in the early 19th
2:53century.
2:55The stone on the right has a serpent and
2:57zed rod with a double disc.
3:00The stone on the left has no symbols but
3:02does have Augum script on its left edge.
3:11The translation of the Augum script has
3:13produced this lettering as part of the
3:15script.
3:21[Music]
3:22It's been suggested that this is the
3:25name Ederern or Ederernon, the same as
3:28Tieran.
3:33Is it possible that the stones were
3:35erected together and that the Augum
3:38inscription and the symbols are linked?
3:42The Augum script on the remarkable Brans
3:45stone has also been translated.
3:49Some scholars believe that this is also
3:51the name Ederern or Ederernon. The
3:54symbols here are a serpent and zed rod
3:57and a cresant and verrod.
4:00The serpent and zed rod therefore appear
4:02on both the bransbut and the newton
4:04stone located only a few miles apart.
4:09It has also been pointed out that
4:10ederern seems to be the same name that
4:12appears in augam inscriptions on other
4:15stones too. For example, at Broady in
4:18Murray,
4:23the translation of the Augum inscription
4:25at Broady has produced this.
4:34The Pictish symbols on the broad stone,
4:37however, are the Pictish beast and the
4:39double disc and zed rod. There is no
4:42serpent and zed rod.
4:47The pictish stone from Sconeyi in F now
4:50in the Museum of Scotland also displays
4:52the inscription Eernon and like Broady
4:56has a carved pictish beast.
4:59[Music]
5:03This name Ederernon which appears on
5:05several pictish symbol stones may be
5:08that of Tieran who is well known in
5:11Aberdine and Angus as St. Tieran the
5:14fifth or sixth century bishop of the
5:16picss.
5:18Tieran is thought to have been born in
5:20fordon in the merrens and ordained by
5:22St. Peladius at the chapel of the same
5:25name in Oken Blé.
5:28Could this be the same Tieran who spent
5:30time as a monk in Kuros in Fe providing
5:33a possible link to the skoon stone?
5:37He's also thought to have established a
5:39mission in Banker on Dside where today
5:42the town's churches bear the name Banker
5:44Tieran.
5:51Tieran's mission to Banker might have
5:53taken him over the mouth, the range of
5:55hills that connect the lands of the
5:57Merins to upland Dside.
6:00This vast area of the East Grampian
6:03Hills and Mountains has often been
6:04described as a barrier limiting
6:07connections between the lands and the
6:09highlands in this part of Scotland.
6:12But passes through and across the mouth
6:14were known from the earliest times and
6:17Tieran may have used some of these in
6:19his aim to spread Christianity to the
6:22northern picss.
6:27[Music]
6:29Tieran's missionary efforts on both
6:31sides of the mouth may have created a
6:33cult of St. Tieran shared by both
6:35northern and southern picss.
6:41But we do have to be careful with the
6:43very limited evidence that we have about
6:45the real Tieran. There may be in fact
6:48several Tierans operating in different
6:50periods of pictish history. But whether
6:53the Augum inscriptions refer to one man
6:56or to several different men, there is no
6:59doubting the powerful impact this name
7:01has had on both sides of the mouth.
7:05[Music]
7:27While some inscriptions definitely
7:30enhance our understanding of the symbol
7:32stones, others resolutely resist
7:35interpretation.
7:37Here at Daiso Church, the cross slab,
7:40which we saw in the first of our film,
7:42Symbols and Signs, also has an OUM
7:45inscription down its right hand edge.
7:55A recent translation of this inscription
7:57has produced the following lettering.
8:01[Music]
8:04The middle part is a gic form of Mach
8:09meaning son of but the name which
8:11follows is unclear and uncertain.
8:15So although part of the Augum
8:17inscription is certainly a personal
8:19name, it's unclear what the name is and
8:22it's not possible to link it clearly to
8:25any of the four symbols on the cross
8:27slab.
8:34This brief look at some of the symbol
8:36stones with Augum inscriptions does not
8:39produce a consistent connection between
8:41some of the inscriptions and particular
8:44symbols.
8:46But we can conduct a similar type of
8:48investigation at the Drston Stone at St.
8:51Vigilians near our broth where pictish
8:54symbols accompany an inscription not in
8:57Augum but in the Roman alphabet.
9:01St. Vigil's Church on the outskirts of
9:03our broth commemorates a 7th century
9:06Irish saint.
9:08Standing at the top of a natural mound,
9:11St. Vigils was a pictish monastic site
9:13from the 8th century.
9:16A number of stones were found in the
9:18church precincts and nearby.
9:21They are housed in historic Scotland's
9:23small St. Vigil's Museum. Today we're
9:26interested in one particular stone
9:28inside the museum, the so-called Drston
9:30stone.
9:35And this is the Drston stone, the 9th
9:37century sandstone cross slab. The cross
9:41is beautifully decorated with this
9:43intricate braiding. And the side panels
9:46have a series of mythical animals. This
9:49panel has vine scroll carved on it. Vine
9:52scroll is an established method of
9:54depicting the eukarist in Christian
9:56carving of this period. On the opposite
9:58side from the cross is a hunting scene
10:01and at the bottom a panel depicting a
10:04number of different animals including a
10:06wild boar. And here a hunter is about to
10:10release an arrow possibly from a
10:12crossbow.
10:13And this may represent an osprey with a
10:17fish in its talons. The picish symbols
10:20on the stone are the double disc and zed
10:22rod, the cresant but not with a V-rod
10:26and a mirror and comb.
10:32But what we're particularly interested
10:33in today is the inscription in Latin at
10:37the base of the stone.
10:39Current thinking is that the script
10:41reflects GIC language structure and
10:44reads Dston in the time of Urat and
10:48Forcus. Dr. is one of the Pictish names
10:51that features quite frequently in the
10:53king list as is Urat. While the identity
10:58of this particular dr is not clear, the
11:01name Urat may refer to Kenneth
11:04McCalpine's immediate predecessor as
11:07king of the picss. So can we conclude
11:09that there is a connection between the
11:11names in the inscriptions and the pish
11:15symbols on the stone? Could dr for
11:18example be the same as the double disc
11:20and zed rod? Could Urat be represented
11:24by the cresant? And what's the
11:26connection between forcus and the mirror
11:30and comb? The fact is that we can't be
11:33certain of a definite link between the
11:35names revealed in the inscription and
11:37the pictish symbols on the dst stone. We
11:41need this to be confirmed by another
11:42stone which also displays a Latin
11:45inscription and pictish symbols.
11:52In searching for this one pish symbol
11:55stone might be of particular importance.
11:58There is a class two stone which is
12:00thought to be unique in that it
12:03expresses its meaning not in two but in
12:06three languages.
12:08A pictish symbol, an inscription in the
12:10Roman alphabet and a possible
12:13inscription are all present on the Ford
12:16stone and this stone is less than 30 mi
12:19from St. Vigs at Oken Blé.
12:26Oken Blé is in the parish of Fordon.
12:29According to some sources, the
12:31birthplace of St. Tieran, Bishop of the
12:33Picss. The ruined chapel of St. Peladius
12:36sits in the church grounds.
12:39St. Padius was one of the first
12:41Christian missionaries to picked land in
12:43the fifth century and is said to have
12:45ordained Tieran here on the site of the
12:47chapel.
12:54The forden stone is inside the parish
12:56kirk.
13:04The forden stone was probably carved in
13:07the 9th century several centuries after
13:10the death of St. Tieran. It's a
13:12sandstone class 2 cross slab with a
13:16hunting scene in which horsemen
13:19accompanied by dogs pursue their quarry.
13:24And just below the hunting scene is the
13:27classic pictish symbol of the double
13:29disc and zed rod.
13:34There's also some further carvings at
13:36the top of the stone. Um, but this is
13:39definitely not the pectish beast, but it
13:42may be another aquatic mythical animal,
13:45the hippoc camp. But it's the
13:47inscription at the top left hand corner
13:50of the cross slab. That's particularly
13:52fascinating.
13:54The inscription reads P I D A R N O I N.
14:01So, is this Adernon? Is this Tieran?
14:06Could the double dis and zed rod
14:09represent the name? And will this be
14:13confirmed by theum inscription which has
14:15been discovered on the side of the cross
14:18slab?
14:20Only parts of the inscription have been
14:23deciphered. It is said to read.
14:33The translation does not reveal a
14:35recognizable name, but the very last
14:37part is intriguing. It suggests the
14:40possibility of a word beginning with E
14:43and ending in N with spacing that is
14:47certainly consistent with Edn.
14:54Speculation of course is no substitute
14:57for hard evidence and it's simply not
14:59possible to definitely establish a link
15:02between the symbol the Augum script and
15:05the Latin inscription on the forden
15:07stone
15:11and in terms of the pish stones more
15:13generally although it's certainly true
15:16that the symbols may represent personal
15:18names they're not necessarily ly the
15:21names revealed in the inscriptions.
15:32Although a key to unlock the symbol code
15:34still eludes us, this should not be
15:37taken as evidence that the symbol stones
15:40are silent.
15:43The class 2 sculptured stones are
15:45important for what they do tell us
15:48rather than for what they don't tell us
15:50about depicts.
15:57The stones which Allan and Anderson
15:59referred to as class 2 provide a wealth
16:02of information on the social and
16:04political lives of the picss and their
16:06transformation to a Christian kingdom
16:08between the 6th and 9th centuries.
16:11The symbols on class one stones are
16:14uniquely pictish, but the design and
16:17decoration on class 2 and three cross
16:19slabs form part of a wider cultural
16:22context linking the different societies
16:25and cultures in Ireland and Britain at
16:27this time. Art historians refer to this
16:31as insular art.
16:47Knowledge of the illuminated religious
16:49manuscripts helped to provide
16:51inspiration for pictish sculptures whose
16:54work in turn must have influenced the
16:56decorated gospel books like the book of
16:58Daro and the book of Kels.
17:07[Music]
17:27This beautiful image from an 8th century
17:30North Umbrean gospel book bears a
17:33remarkable similarity to the carved
17:35pictish sea eagle and the tilly tarment
17:38stone near Huntley.
17:49[Music]
17:53I wonder who came first, the pictish
17:55sculptor or the North Umbrean monk.
18:00The vine scroll carvings on a number of
18:03cross slabs including Hilton of Cadbull
18:06and the Drston stone at St. Vigils was a
18:09recognized method in manuscripts of
18:12depicting the eukarist.
18:14It places the pictish carver firmly
18:17within the context of contemporary
18:20Christian carving and writing.
18:25Pictish carvers had a thorough knowledge
18:27of the gospel stories resulting in
18:29scenes like David in the lion's den in
18:32this cross slab from MIGO museum.
18:36The Christian saints and their stories
18:38were well known to the sculptors.
18:41These two figures on the Dunfalland
18:43stone near Pitri are thought to be St.
18:46Anthony and St. Paul in the desert. The
18:50raven bringing the bread is another
18:52depiction of holy communion.
18:58Equestrian hunting scenes were
19:00particularly popular with pictish
19:01carvers, but it's not clear whether they
19:04show real members of the Pictish elite
19:07or are general statements of elite
19:09lifestyle and activities.
19:21This is the remarkable replica of the
19:24Hilton of Cadbull cross slab. The
19:27original is housed in the Museum of
19:30Scotland in Edinburgh.
19:36One of the striking aspects in the cross
19:39slab is this depiction of a pictish
19:43horsewoman sitting side saddle during
19:46the hunt.
19:55It's not clear whether it refers to a
19:58specific woman who existed at the time
20:01or whether it's a more general statement
20:03about aristocratic status. It might even
20:06be a specific classic or biblical
20:09reference. What it does reveal is a
20:12pictish elite completely comfortable
20:15with the status and trappings of real
20:17power and also relaxed about the
20:20combination of ancient pictish values
20:24and Christian culture.
20:29Some stones may depict real historical
20:32events. The class 2 cross slab at Arber
20:35Lemnok may represent the battle of
20:38Denkton in 685.
20:40Although historians are by no means
20:42agreed on this or on the actual
20:44location.
20:46What they do agree on is that the
20:48victory of Brriy's Pictish army over the
20:51Anglian forces led by Egfreth put a stop
20:54to Anglian expansion in the north and
20:57that Eggfreth was killed during the
20:59battle. On the left, the Pictish army is
21:04advancing against Angan cavalry.
21:07Some of the Anglican cavalry have
21:09retreated, discarding shields and
21:12weapons as they go. A particularly large
21:16figure on the cross slab is being pecked
21:19by a raven. Could this possibly be the
21:22dead King Eggf?
21:25There are two symbols at the top of the
21:27stone, the notched rectangle and zed rod
21:31and a triple disc. Could they possibly
21:34be the names of Victor or Vanquished?
21:40The picked sculptured stones are an
21:42enormously important source of
21:44information about Pictish life. They
21:47reveal the development of a
21:48sophisticated, cultured, and connected
21:51society whose artists reveled in
21:54displaying the heritage of their unique
21:56symbols, as well as testifying to their
21:59place within the European and wider
22:01Christian community.
22:05Renewed interest in the history and
22:07archaeology of the picss is helping to
22:09reveal the key developments in the
22:11history of picked land. A study of the
22:14class 2 sculptured stones plays an
22:17important role in this, revealing the
22:19transformation in Pictish culture and
22:22society.
22:46But it's important to remember that
22:48there was continuity as well as change.
22:52The class two stones reveal that even in
22:55the context of enormous social change
22:57among the picss pictish stonemasons and
23:01the communities they represented
23:03continued to seek inspiration from their
23:06amazing symbol heritage.
23:10[Music]
23:17[Music]

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