The Lang Stane in Aberdeen, Scotland is a granite Menhir type standing stone that sits recessed into an alcove at the south east corner of 10 Langstane Place, just off Aberdeen's main thoroughfare Union Street.
A menhir, standing stone, orthostat, or lith is a large man-made upright stone, typically dating from the European middle Bronze Age. They can be found solely as monoliths, or as part of a group of similar stones. Menhirs' size can vary considerably, but they are generally uneven and squared, often tapering towards the top.
Union Street is a major street and shopping thoroughfare in Aberdeen, Scotland. It is named after the Acts of Union 1800 with Ireland.
There is suggestion that the nearby Crabstane and the Lang Stane were both used as boundary stones of Craibstone Croft, site of the Battle of Craibstone in 1571. Whilst close to its location as a boundary marker its current site is unlikely to be the exact location of the Craibstone boundary as it would have been moved during the construction of Union Street and the surrounding infrastructure. Prior to this the stone was probably part of a stone circle, [1] the conclusion taken as the base has been carved into a keel shape- common of recumbent stone circles found in Aberdeenshire, [2] which usually date to approximately 3000BC.
The Crabstane is a boundary stone that used to mark out part of Craibstone Croft which was located near Hardgate, Aberdeen.
A boundary marker, border marker, boundary stone, or border stone is a robust physical marker that identifies the start of a land boundary or the change in a boundary, especially a change in direction of a boundary. There are several other types of named border markers, known as pillars, obelisks, and corners. Border markers can also be markers through which a border line runs in a straight line to determine that border. They can also be the markers from which a border marker has been fixed.
The Battle of Craibstone was fought on 20 November 1571 between Clan Gordon and the Clan Forbes on an area that has now been constructed over, found in central Aberdeen, Scotland. It was part of the Marian civil war in which the Clan Forbes supported the King and Clan Gordon supported the Queen.
The stone has dimensions of 1.8m height, 0.68m breadth and approximately 0.3m thickness. [3]
On Paterson's Map of the Burgh of Aberdeen printed in 1746 prior to the construction of Langstane Place, the stone can be seen in approximately its current location, [4] though it does not appear as part of a stone circle.
Throughout the city the name reoccurs with the single word differentiation 'Langstane' - indeed the area of the city where the Lang Stane sits is within the aptly named former Langstane political ward. [5] The title occurs often in local business and areas with examples such as the former Langstane Kirk (now Soul), Langstane Press and Langstane Housing Association.
Curiously in the immediate area of Aberdeen there are other standing stones with same name, such as the Lang Stane of Hilton area of the city and the Lang Stane of Auquhollie just south Aberdeen.
The Lang Stane in Hilton, Aberdeen, Scotland is a granite Menhir type standing stone with measurements of approximately 2.95 m in height, 1.5 m in breadth and 0.9 m in thickness at ground level. Its broad face is aligned WNW and ESE.
The Lang Stane of Auquhollie is an Ogam-inscribed standing stone some 6 kilometres north-west of Stonehaven in Scotland. Situated on south side of Meikle Carew Hill at a height of about 140 metres above sea level, the stone is approximately 3 metres in height and 0.75 metres in diameter, an unshaped monolith of gneiss.
