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<< Our Photo Pages >> Sueno's Stone - Class III Pictish Cross Slab in Scotland in Moray

Submitted by alligator on Saturday, 31 December 2016  Page Views: 21787

Early Medieval (Dark Age)Site Name: Sueno's Stone Alternative Name: Sueon's Pillar; Forres 1
Country: Scotland County: Moray Type: Class III Pictish Cross Slab
Nearest Town: Forres
Map Ref: NJ0465559533  Landranger Map Number: 27
Latitude: 57.615662N  Longitude: 3.597668W
Condition:
5Perfect
4Almost Perfect
3Reasonable but with some damage
2Ruined but still recognisable as an ancient site
1Pretty much destroyed, possibly visible as crop marks
0No data.
-1Completely destroyed
4 Ambience:
5Superb
4Good
3Ordinary
2Not Good
1Awful
0No data.
3 Access:
5Can be driven to, probably with disabled access
4Short walk on a footpath
3Requiring a bit more of a walk
2A long walk
1In the middle of nowhere, a nightmare to find
0No data.
5 Accuracy:
5co-ordinates taken by GPS or official recorded co-ordinates
4co-ordinates scaled from a detailed map
3co-ordinates scaled from a bad map
2co-ordinates of the nearest village
1co-ordinates of the nearest town
0no data
5

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hallsifer visited on 2nd Jul 2022 - their rating: Cond: 3 Amb: 3 Access: 5 Gorgeous stone with absolutely oustanding carvings, the glass case makes for difficult photos but the informational plaques are outstanding.

bishop_pam visited on 13th Apr 2018 - their rating: Cond: 4 Amb: 3 Access: 5

XIII visited on 9th May 2017 - their rating: Cond: 3 Amb: 2 Access: 5

h_fenton visited on 6th May 2011 Its a great shame that the glass surrounding the stone is so reflective, OK the stone is protected from the weather but you can't see it properly for all the reflections.

JCBH visited on 1st Jan 2010 - their rating: Cond: 4 Amb: 3 Access: 5 Sueno's Stone

megalithicmatt visited on 1st Jan 2004 - their rating: Cond: 4 Amb: 3 Access: 5 Gigantinormous.

Klingon visited - their rating: Cond: 4 Amb: 3 Access: 5

AngieLake HaggisAction have visited here

Average ratings for this site from all visit loggers: Condition: 3.67 Ambience: 2.83 Access: 5

Sueno's Stone
Sueno's Stone submitted by Cosmic : Another view of the Sueno Pictish Stone at NJ046595. The largest stone we've ever seen - enclosed in perspex case to protect it - only yards away from A96 Dual carriageway and yet how many people ever notice it? (Vote or comment on this photo)
Class III Pictish Cross Slab in Moray

For more information see Canmore site no. 15785, which contains notes from field visits, archaeological assessments and a publication account. According to the latter, "This, the tallest and most complex piece of early medieval sculpture in Scotland, most probably commemorates a heroic battle campaign, possibly against the Norse settlers of Orkney, by the men of Moray".

The Canmore Entry from the Early Medieval Carved Stones Project tells us the height of the stone is 65m above its socket stone, 1.14m wide and 0.36m deep. The "first reference to the stone is possibly Pont’s map of about 1590, which shows a pair of pillars north of Forres (McCullagh 1995). The socketed base appears to have been cladded with dressed stones to form a three-stepped circular plinth early in the eighteenth century, and a protective metal cap was added sometime before 1890. The stone was covered by a glass pavilion in 1991".

Canmore date this pillar to the late 9th or 10th century, and describes all the panels on the different faces, together with photographs to illustrate these.

The Journal of Antiquities also features a page for Sueno’s Stone, Forres, Moray, Scotland, which includes a description, photographs plus a list of reference sources for further information.

Note: Sueno's Stone enclosure attacked by vandals. See the latest comment submitted by golux.
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Sueno's Stone
Sueno's Stone submitted by h_fenton : Sueno's stone. 6 May 2011 (1 comment - Vote or comment on this photo)

Sueno's Stone
Sueno's Stone submitted by durhamnature : Drawing from "Sculptured Stones of Scotland" via archive.org (Vote or comment on this photo)

Sueno's Stone
Sueno's Stone submitted by h_fenton : Sueno's stone. IR camera (no filters) 6 May 2011 (Vote or comment on this photo)

Sueno's Stone
Sueno's Stone submitted by dodomad : Vandals have caused more than £10,000 worth of damage to the glass panels which surround a medieval stone in Moray. Photo Credit: Historic Environment Scotland (1 comment - Vote or comment on this photo)

Sueno's Stone
Sueno's Stone submitted by durhamnature : Drawing from "Sculptured Stones of Scotland" via archive.org (Vote or comment on this photo)

Sueno's Stone
Sueno's Stone submitted by durhamnature

Sueno's Stone
Sueno's Stone submitted by durhamnature

Sueno's Stone 037
Sueno's Stone 037 submitted by Andy B : Part of the Burnham family holiday to Tomintoul, Moray in August 2003

Sueno's Stone
Sueno's Stone submitted by hallsifer : Sueno's Stone in it's glass case. Cloud and reflections on the glass do make it hard to take a picture.

Sueno's Stone
Sueno's Stone submitted by bishop_pam : Taken on Friday 13 April 2018 to show that the glass case is fully restored

Sueno's Stone
Sueno's Stone submitted by PrincessOfAvalon : East side of Sueno's stone.

Sueno's Stone
Sueno's Stone submitted by PrincessOfAvalon : North edge of Sueno's stone

Sueno's Stone
Sueno's Stone submitted by Alta-Falisa : Overall view, May 2015. When the sky is blue, it is blue -- and it is (sometimes) worth waiting for some time.

Sueno's Stone
Sueno's Stone submitted by Alta-Falisa : The sides have survived in much better shape than the faces. May 2015.

Sueno's Stone
Sueno's Stone submitted by Alta-Falisa : Close-ups show how urgent it was to protect Sueno's Stone. May 2015.

Sueno's Stone
Sueno's Stone submitted by Alta-Falisa

Sueno's Stone
Sueno's Stone submitted by scottish-prints : Thankfully not all standing stones are inside a giant glass box. (1 comment)

Sueno's Stone
Sueno's Stone submitted by AngieLake : Defenders preparing for a footie penalty shot?! ... These amusing little figures can be seen on the huge Pictish 'Sueno stone', sheltered inside its glass case at Forres. A shame that the glass reflected the light. Taken 5th July 2001. This Class III stone is one of the finest examples of Dark Age sculptures in Europe. It has been suggested that the enormous and intricate carving shows the co... (2 comments)

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"Sueno's Stone" | Login/Create an Account | 5 News and Comments
  
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Sueno's Stone: an 8th, 9th, 10th or 11th century monument? by Andy B on Sunday, 14 August 2022
(User Info | Send a Message)
In which Fiona Campbell-Howes grapples with the thorny topic of when this extraordinary stone was carved

Fiona writes: Many historians avoid the topic, but as Sueno’s Stone is at the core of my forthcoming MA research, it’s one I can’t really dodge.

I’d seen the range 850-950 AD cited many times, and all the outliers I was aware of put it later, so I was a bit thrown by the suggestion that consensus now puts it in the mid-700s. Had I missed some new research? This blog summarises my efforts to find out.

More at
https://fortrenn.substack.com/p/suenos-stone-an-8th-9th-10th-or-11th
[ Reply to This ]

Sueno's Stone enclosure attacked by vandals by bat400 on Saturday, 31 December 2016
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Golux writes: Vandals have caused more than £10,000 worth of damage to glass panels which surround a medieval stone in Moray. Three panels at Sueno's Stone at Forres, between the B9011 and the A96, were broken between Wednesday and Thursday. The early medieval period carved standing stone is more than 20ft tall.

Police Scotland said: "It is disappointing for the community that this has happened and this type of behaviour will not be tolerated."
See photo of workmen boarding up the glass panels: http://www.northern-scot.co.uk/imagelibrary/Client_Images/Client00007/03485000/03485136.jpg

Text Source: BBC News website
[ Reply to This ]

Re: Sueno's Stone by Anonymous on Thursday, 10 January 2008
Impressive due to its sheer size alone!!
[ Reply to This ]

Re: Sueno's Stone by TimPrevett on Sunday, 15 October 2006
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There is no public access within the greenhouse here, disappointingly. Getting a decent picture or two is nigh on impossible as the glass reflects so much. The need for preservation is understood, but this really prevents a meaningful encounter with the monument, IMO.
[ Reply to This ]

Re: Sueno's Stone by Anonymous on Tuesday, 02 September 2003
A Scottish power company has admitted trying to get blood out of a stone - after sending a bill to an ancient Highland standing stone.

The Suenos Stone, on the outskirts of Forres, Morayshire, has been floodlit since 1993 and the electricity bill is forwarded to Historic Scotland.

But a mix-up meant the most recent bill was sent directly to Suenos Stone,Findhorn Road, Forres. The envelope was even marked with the stone's postcode and a postal worker attempted to deliver the letter. The stone is about 1100-years-old

Finding no letter box, he knocked on the glass door only to receive a stony silence. Confused, he re-directed it to the local council office, which has promised to send it on to the stone's custodians, Historic Scotland.

The bill shows the stone consumed £175 worth of electricity over the last six months and that it has somehow managed to get to the bank to make a payment of £230, leaving its account in credit. Scottish Hydro-Electric has sorted out the mix-up and promised that Scotland's largest surviving relic of the picts will not be bothered again.

Spokesman Darren Kirby said: "The supply has been there since 1993 and we have been happily sending out bills to Historic Scotland, but for some reason the billing address has been changed to the supply address. It looks like human error. The stone is housed in glass

"Had the bills not been paid I doubt we would have started legal proceedings, mainly because the stone is in credit - it must have managed to get to the bank and pay something in." The 23ft stone, which dates back to the ninth century, is housed in a special glass building and is visible from the main Inverness to Aberdeen road.

At night drivers on the A96 can see it in all its glory thanks to a 10,000 watt system of floodlights. http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/uk/scotland/newsid_1170000/1170273.stm Wednesday, 14 February, 2001, 15:50 GMT
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