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The symbol stones of the Picts remain one of Scotland's greatest archaeological enigmas. First appearing on record in the third century AD, the kingdoms of the Picts stretched from Shetland to the Forth. In the eighth century the Picts were absorbed into the kingdom of Alba, the core of what was to become the medieval kingdom of Scotland.The Picts are best known today for the wealth of highly accomplished stone sculpture that they left behind. Among these are many that bear a distinctive group of symbols, some apparently abstract and decorated with the geometrical motifs of Celtic art, others beautifully naturalistic. There have been many attempts to decipher the significance of the symbols, but their meaning remains obscure.Brought up to date with recent discoveries and a new introduction, The Pictish Symbol Stones of Scotland draws together all the known symbol-bearing stones and artefacts, providing succinct descriptions and suggestions for further reading. Fully illustrated, with modern and antiquarian photographs as well as detailed scale drawings, Pictish Symbol Stones provides the definitive resource for anyone, academic or amateur, with an interest in Pictish sculpture.

The Picts were an ancient nation who ruled most of northern and eastern Scotland during the Dark Ages. Despite their historical importance, they remain shrouded in myth and misconception. Absorbed by the kingdom of the Scots in the ninth century, they lost their unique identity, their language and their vibrant artistic culture. Amongst their few surviving traces are standing stones decorated with incredible skill and covered with enigmatic symbols - vivid memorials of a powerful and gifted people who bequeathed no chronicles to tell their story, no sagas to describe the deed of their kings and heroes. In this book Tim Clarkson pieces together the evidence to tell the story of this mysterious people from their emergence in Roman times to their eventual disappearance.

“A major study of the art of the Picts.” —Library Journal Drawing on their extensive research and expertise, renowned historians George and Isabel Henderson illuminate one of the great enigmas of medieval art: the unique metalwork and sculpture of the Picts. Tribal Celtic-speaking warriors and farmers in what is now Scotland, the Picts were one of the major peoples of early medieval Britain, but their culture and their beautiful art have puzzled historians for centuries. George and Isabel Henderson’s acute analysis reveals an art form that both interacted with the currents of “Insular” art and was produced by a sophisticated society capable of sustaining large-scale art programs. The illustrations include specially commissioned drawings that help one understand the mysterious symbols found in the art.