Dupplin Cross

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The Dupplin Cross in St Serf's Church, Dunning Dupplin Cross, St Serfs Church.jpg
The Dupplin Cross in St Serf's Church, Dunning
The harper on the Dupplin Cross, Scotland, circa 800 AD DupplinHarper.jpg
The harper on the Dupplin Cross, Scotland, circa 800 AD

The Dupplin Cross is a carved, monumental Pictish stone, which dates from around 800 AD. [1] [2] It was first recorded by Thomas Pennant in 1769, on a hillside in Strathearn, a little to the north of (and on the opposite bank of the River Earn from) Forteviot and Dunning. In 2002 it was placed in the care of Historic Scotland, and was placed for preservation under the 11th/12th-century tower of St Serf's Church, Dunning.

The Dupplin Cross is a high cross, that is a free-standing stone cross. While relatively common in Ireland, Northumbria and in Dál Riata, such crosses are rare survivals in the lands of the Picts, though fragments of shattered crosses (probably cast down during the 16th-century Reformation) show that a number once existed. In the 18th century a second cross, the Cross of Dronachy, was recorded as having stood on the lands of Invermay, south of Forteviot and also overlooking Forteviot, but having fallen and broken. [3] The cross base survives in situ, but the records do not provide details of its exact form.

The cross is carved from Old Red Sandstone, the cross stands about 2.5 metres tall, 1 metre broad over the arms of the cross. It is carved with various scenes, religious, martial and traditional Pictish animal carvings. The cross contains a partially legible inscription, of which only the name CUSTANTIN FILIUS FIRCUS can be read. This name is taken as the Latin form of the early 9th-century Pictish king's Gaelic name Caustantín son of Fergus (fl. 793820).

Since the inscription implies that the cross was carved either during, or shortly after, the reign of Caustantín, it is particularly important as giving a fixed point in the chronology of Pictish sculpture. It also indicates that Gaelic was spoken at the time as it uses the Gaelic personal name of his father in Latin.

The Rider, Dupplin Cross The Rider, Dupplin Cross.jpg
The Rider, Dupplin Cross

Other carved themes on the cross include a rider with an oversized head and ponytail showing him to be a man of authority. On the obverse a man fights bears with his bare hands. The sides include a man (probably David) playing a harp, and hunting dogs.

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The Picts were a group of peoples who lived in what is now northern and eastern Scotland during Late Antiquity and the Early Middle Ages. Where they lived and what their culture was like can be inferred from early medieval texts and Pictish stones. Their Latin name, Picti, appears in written records from the 3rd to the 10th century. Early medieval sources report the existence of a distinct Pictish language, which today is believed to have been an Insular Celtic language, closely related to the Brittonic spoken by the Britons who lived to the south.

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Dunning, Perth and Kinross

Dunning is a small village in Perth and Kinross in Scotland with a population of about 1,000. The village centres around the 12th–13th century former parish church of St. Serf, where the Dupplin Cross is displayed. It is in Strathearn, the valley of the River Earn, north of the Ochil Hills. It is just south of the A9, between Auchterarder and Perth.

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Forteviot Human settlement in Scotland

Forteviot is a village in Strathearn, Scotland on the south bank of the River Earn between Dunning and Perth. It lies in the council area of Perth and Kinross. The population in 1991 was 160.

Longforgan is a village and parish in the Carse of Gowrie, in Perth and Kinross, Scotland. It lies 5 miles west of Dundee on the main A90 road.

Eassie Stone

The Eassie Stone is a Class II Pictish stone of about the mid 8th century AD in the village of Eassie, Angus, Scotland. The stone was found in Eassie burn in the late 18th century and now resides in a purpose-built perspex building in the ruined Eassie church.

Aberlemno Sculptured Stones

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St Vigeans Sculptured Stones Museum, located in the Angus village of St Vigeans, houses an outstanding collection of Pictish carved stones. St Vigeans, close to Arbroath, was the centre of a royal estate in the Early Middle Ages, and was of religious importance as a monastery founded in the 8th century. The present-day St Vigeans Church was built in the 12th century, on a 40-foot (12 m) mound.

St Serfs Church, Dunning

St Serf's Church in the Scottish village of Dunning, Perth and Kinross is a Category A listed building largely dating to the early 19th century, but incorporating a 12th-century tower.

References

  1. Historic Environment Scotland. "St Serf's Church, Dunning (Category A Listed Building) (LB52454)" . Retrieved 6 March 2019.
  2. Dunning, St Serf's Church And ChurchyardCanmore
  3. Hall, Mark (2011). Pictish Progress: New Studies on Northern Britain in the Middle Ages. Brill. pp. 160–162. ISBN   9789004187597 . Retrieved 21 February 2022.

Coordinates: 56°18′45″N3°35′14″W / 56.31250°N 3.58722°W / 56.31250; -3.58722