People in Easter Ross encouraged to explore rich heritage of Pictish trail during holidays
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Holidaymakers and local families in Easter Ross are being encouraged to explore its rich Pictish heritage during the summer holidays.
The Highland Pictish Trail, which dates back more than 25 years, has recently been extended to include 32 of the area’s most impressive and accessible Pictish sites, including carved stones set in superb scenery, museums and visitor centres.
Examples of these intricate works of art from more than 1000 years ago can be seen at Rosemarkie, Nigg, Shandwick, Tarbat and Hilton of Cadboll.
Tarbat Discovery Centre is this summer offering younger visitors the chance to have a go at archaeology by digging for exciting Pictish objects in the centre’s archaeology pit.
The centre also has a new exhibition focusing on eight of its special finds – including the 6th to 7th century decorative disc from an aristocratic Pictish horse harness and the stone corbel, possibly from the lost Pictish church on site.
The Picts dominated north and east Scotland from around 400AD for about 600 years, and the carved stones they left in the landscape, with their mysterious symbols, carvings of animals, and, later, intricately-carved Christian crosses and images of bible scenes, battles and hunting, have been a source of fascination for hundreds of years.
They also left other marks on the Highland landscape including impressive hill forts and the important Pictish religious centre at Tarbat on the Easter Ross peninsula.
Also on the trail is the amazing Pictish carved stone at Nigg Old Church, which neighbours the Shandwick Stone and the Hilton of Cadboll stones near Balintore.
The trail extends to the Black Isle after a short trip across the water on the ferry where the outstanding Pictish carved stones in Groam House Museum are on show in Rosemarkie.
The recently-launched Highland Pictish Trail website at highlandpictishtrail.co.uk has full details of all the sites on the route as well as a wealth of information to help people plan short and longer Pictish-themed visits around the Highlands.
A downloadable free app of suggested tours is available on the website and the new trail leaflet can be downloaded from the website or is available in printed form in local museums, libraries, visitor centres and Highland accommodation ‘welcome’ folders.
Chief executive of High Life Highland Steve Walsh said: “The Pictish heritage of the Highlands has not been at the forefront of tourism marketing in the past but some of the carved stones on the Highland Pictish Trail are outstanding examples of early medieval European art and all the Trail sites give their own insights into a time when the Highland area was an important centre of Pictish power.”
Graham Watson, board member of Museums and Heritage Highland, said: "After all the stresses and strains of the last two years, the Highland Pictish Trail offers local people and visitors the chance to step back into a time when life in the Highlands was very different from today.
"You can admire the skill of the Pictish stone carvers, think about what the symbols and images are telling us about life here more than 1000 years ago.
"Visiting the stones housed in local museums and visitor centres gives you the chance to find out more from the people who look after them while the outdoor sites offer the chance to enjoy the stones in their beautiful Highland landscapes while filling your lungs with fresh Highland air."
The Highland Pictish Trail project is a partnership of The Highland Council, High Life Highland and Museums and Heritage Highland and has received financial support from The Highland Council, the National Lottery Heritage Fund and Museums Galleries Scotland.
