Aberlemno Sculptured Stones

  • Aberlemno, Angus

 

Overview

Witness a battle and a hunt at this magnificent range of sculptured stones, featuring some of the finest surviving Pictish carving. 

There are four stones with Pictish carvings in the village of Aberlemno, variously dating between about AD 500 and 800. Three stand on a roadside, while one stands in the village churchyard. They comprise: 

  • a leaning, reused prehistoric standing stone 
  • an unshaped boulder bearing traces of two symbols 
  • a magnificent cross-slab 
  • a sandstone cross-slab in the churchyard 

The stones show a range of carvings, from characteristic Pictish symbols to overtly Christian iconography. 

Opening times

The Aberlemno Sculptured Stones are free to visit.

Please note, the stones are covered with wooden boxes from the end of September until early April for their protection against the elements.

Historic Scotland

Facilities

The tall church spire and ruins of Restenneth Priory on a field surrounded by trees

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Restenneth Priory
Boggy landscape leading to a hill

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Brown and White Caterthuns
A tall but narrow roundtower reaching into the sky next to a traditional church tower

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Brechin Cathedral Round Tower
A solitary wall, all that remains of Maison Dieu

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Maison Dieu Chapel, Brechin
A celtic cross in front of a small stone house

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Lindsay Burial Aisle
A general view of the tower house at Edzell Castle.

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Edzell Castle and Garden
A series of stone walls, partly filled in with soil and covered in grass. Fields in the background.

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Carlungie Earth House
Several stone lined ditches that once used to be the cellar of a round house

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Ardestie Earth House
A celtic cross in front of a small stone house

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Lindsay Burial Aisle
A tall Pictish cross-slab with a prominent, ornate cross carved on the front. Detail shows a hunting scene and a boat.

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St Orland's Stone
Interior of a museum with a range of pictish stones on display.

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St Vigeans Stones and Museum
A detailed view of Eassie Sculptured Stone. The back of the stone is decorated with a number of things including a double-disc and z-rod, a Pictish beast, three men with cloaks carrying spears and several cows with scroll joints.

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Eassie Sculptured Stone
An aerial photograph looking down at the ruin of a cathedral set within a graveyard beside a small town and a bay.

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St Andrews Cathedral
A photograph of a stone carved with three horsemen

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Meigle Sculptured Stone Museum
Several standing stones that are part of Tomnaverie Stone Circle

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Tomnaverie Stone Circle
A small stone circle on a field

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Cullerlie Stone Circle

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