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<< Our Photo Pages >> St. Ninian's Bay - Standing Stones in Scotland in Argyll

Submitted by Andy B on Sunday, 11 February 2001  Page Views: 16728

Neolithic and Bronze AgeSite Name: St. Ninian's Bay
Country: Scotland County: Argyll Type: Standing Stones
Nearest Town: Rothesay, Isle of Bu  Nearest Village: Straad
Map Ref: NS037617  Landranger Map Number: 63
Latitude: 55.808563N  Longitude: 5.134045W
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.
5 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
4

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St. Ninian's Bay
St. Ninian's Bay submitted by SumDoood : I haven't yet visited this site, but took these from the road thinking that the peninsula looks like a good contender for the south of Scotland's equivalent of the Ness of Brodgar. There you are, I've said it now. (Vote or comment on this photo)
Standing Stones in Argyll

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St. Ninian's Bay
St. Ninian's Bay submitted by SumDoood : The stones would be, I reckon, about 4/10 in from the right, and roughly in line with the peninsula. I haven't yet visited this site, but took these from the A844 thinking that the peninsula looks like a good contender for the south of Scotland's equivalent of the Ness of Brodgar! There you are, I've said it now. The low island in the L half is Inchmarnock, known for its cist burials and th... (Vote or comment on this photo)

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Nearby Images from Geograph Britain and Ireland:
NS0361 : Standing stones at St Ninian's Bay by Elliott Simpson
by Elliott Simpson
©2017(licence)
NS0361 : St Ninian's Bay Standing Stones - Isle of Bute by Raibeart MacAoidh
by Raibeart MacAoidh
©2018(licence)
NS0361 : Standing stones close to St Ninian's Point by Gordon Hatton
by Gordon Hatton
©2022(licence)
NS0361 : Shell Beach, St Ninian's Bay by Barbara Carr
by Barbara Carr
©2009(licence)
NS0361 : St Ninian's Point, Bute by Karl Peet
by Karl Peet
©2005(licence)

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Nearby sites listing. In the following links * = Image available
 1.8km WSW 252° Inchmarnock Cists Cist (NS0199361233)
 2.4km N 354° Castle Cree* Hillfort (NS0356464133)
 2.7km ESE 111° Bicker's Houses* Chambered Cairn (NS062606)
 2.9km E 86° Loch Dhu Crannog* Crannog (NS06646176)
 3.4km SE 132° Loch Quien Crannog* Crannog (NS06185929)
 3.5km SSE 147° Scalpsie Dun* Stone Fort or Dun (NS05485866)
 3.7km SE 140° Scalpsie Barrow* Round Cairn (NS05955873)
 3.7km ESE 122° Ambrisbeg Hill Cairn* Cairn (NS0677459579)
 4.2km ENE 60° Craigberoch* Standing Stone (Menhir) (NS0745263652)
 4.3km N 1° St Colmac's A Stone Circle (NS040660)
 5.0km NNE 28° Dun Burgidale* Stone Fort or Dun (NS0627766051)
 5.1km N 5° St Colmac Cottages Stone Circle* Stone Circle (NS044668)
 5.2km ENE 67° Townhead Neolithic Settlement Ancient Village or Settlement (NS086635)
 5.3km WNW 298° Ardlamont Point* Rock Art (NR99146439)
 5.4km ENE 65° St Mary's Well (Rothsay)* Holy Well or Sacred Spring (NS0866763750)
 5.5km NNE 16° Acholter* Standing Stone (Menhir) (NS0546466961)
 5.6km N 10° Colmac Bridge* Standing Stone (Menhir) (NS0491367160)
 5.6km N 6° St Colmac's Cross Standing Stone (Menhir) (NS0452167263)
 6.8km E 94° Mountstuart* Cist (NS1048360922)
 7.2km NNW 333° Glecknabae* Chambered Cairn (NS0074568263)
 7.9km SE 141° Stravanan Bay* Stone Row / Alignment (NS0846555361)
 8.1km SE 135° Blackpark* Stone Circle (NS0916455666)
 8.2km NNW 336° Carnbaan* Chambered Cairn (NS0063269316)
 9.6km NNW 331° St Michael's Grave* Chambered Cairn (NR9947070314)
 9.7km NNW 333° Glenvoidean* Chambered Cairn (NR9970870570)
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"St. Ninian's Bay" | Login/Create an Account | 19 News and Comments
  
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Re: St. Ninian's Bay by Anonymous on Tuesday, 03 July 2018
A place of great peace and beauty, where ancient Celtic Christianity took root, without damaging the existing holy places. They called their worship places 'kirks' after the Latin 'circe', reflecting the importance of the existing stones, and the circle of fellowship of a church.

A holy place where I have sat in the chapel, read and prayed.

Bro' John.
[ Reply to This ]

Re: St. Ninian's Bay by jamesharvey12 on Thursday, 16 August 2012
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Many thanks for all comments. Go to the sleepingwarrior/flickr photosharing.This is the best I can find-apart from mine!
this photo is taken from the Ayrshire coast with Bute in the foreground.At St.Ninians you are about 13 miles closer and at a better angle.
[ Reply to This ]

Re: St. Ninian's Bay by PAB on Wednesday, 15 August 2012
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The CANMORE entry for this site has some aerial photos and lots of information, but no photo of the Sleeping Warrior. Shame - may just have to go and visit, sounds like a wonderful place. Reminded me of the St Ninian's chapel on Shetland - also accessible only at low tide, and all the more magical for that...

I won't be removing any fences though, having seen how much damage cattle can do to stones - using fence posts as firewood (and being proud of doing so!) really is vandalism. In Anon's case, it can't even be put down to 'mindless' vandalism - s/he even thought about it first & pretended they were doing it for the benefit of the stones!

CANMORE Link
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Re: St. Ninian's Bay by jamesharvey12 on Tuesday, 14 August 2012
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I revisited the bay & peninsula after 20 years absence. It is a beautiful & atmospheric place which I sensed on my fist visit in 1974before I knew its history.It is what the Gaels call "A thin place" i.e. A place where our world and the otherworld are drawn so close together that they overlap.
"The headland on the peninsula is the site of St. Ninians Chapel.It was excavated in 1952 and this showed that it had been an ancient burial ground before being a Christian place of worship & burial in the 6th century.The chapel was built not later than the 8th century."(para) Dorothy N. Marshall FSA FSA (Scot) This must have been considered an important pre-Christian site for the followers of Ninian to build & dedicate a chapel to him as early as the 6th cent.St.Ninian 350-432 was born in galloway & learned about christianity from the occupying Roman garrisons there.He travelled to Rome & returned to found his church at Whithorn.This pre-dates St.Columba of Iona d.597 by150 years.
At spring tides the headland at ST.Ninians becomes an island.In my opinion the 2 small standing stones are an entrance (portal) to an "island of the dead" & mark the end of a processional route across the isle of Bute. Across the sea at the headland is the isle of Inchmarnock where Iron age cists were excavated & the lignite Inchmarnock necklace was recovered.Towering above Inchmarnock are the peaks of the mountains on the Isle of Arran with the astonishing profile of "The sleeping warrior" towards its northern end.
This natural sculpture of A DEAD MAN LYING ON HIS BACK would have been as awesome to our ancestors,as it was to me, when viewed from this spot,that they saw it as a confirmation that they should bury their dead here.
I recommend that you visit on a clear day to see all the features.
I regard St.Ninians point as a place of pilgrimage & have only gone to the headland 5 times in 38 years as I believe it was an island of & for the dead & I suspect that our ancestors would only have gone there for burials probably at spring tides when it is an island.
I have however viewed it many times from the high road and it is a beautiful site when the tide is in.
[ Reply to This ]
    Re: St. Ninian's Bay & landscape 'Sleeping Warrior' by AngieLake on Wednesday, 15 August 2012
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    I enjoyed reading about your visit James. Have you got a photo of this 'sleeping warrior' profile in the mountains of Arran?
    [ Reply to This ]
      Re: St. Ninian's Bay & landscape 'Sleeping Warrior' by jamesharvey12 on Wednesday, 15 August 2012
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      Yes I do have a good photograph of the warrior taken last thursday on an exceptionally clear evening.unfortunately I am new to the net and have not mastered the art of posting pictures on the site.My laptop is not even connected to a printer! I thought I might contact the site and see if they could post it for me.Any ideas?
      I am glad you enjoyed my article.
      [ Reply to This ]
      Re: St. Ninian's Bay & landscape 'Sleeping Warrior' by Runemage on Wednesday, 15 August 2012
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      Hello James, I'll help you with uploading your photograph to our site page. Do you have a digital camera and do you know how to upload your photos to your laptop? You don't need to print the image first so no printer is fine.
      [ Reply to This ]

Re: St. Ninian's Bay by Anonymous on Wednesday, 03 September 2008
Hi, I have just spent the most magical weekend at the point, the fence has been re-arrected, what a buitiful place to visit, would definately return, lost me glove there!!!!!!!!!!!!

A Great Scott
[ Reply to This ]

Re: St. Ninian's Bay by Anonymous on Friday, 22 February 2008
As a long time visitor to the "Bay" - my aunt lived there for quite a while - I picked up on local gossip which said that the stones were reputed to mark thegraves of two sailors who were drowned nearby. The sailors were said to have been part of the Spanish Armada which sailed round the North of Scotland and down the West coast after their defeat. Many storms were encountered and these sailors perhaps perished in one encountered near St Ninians Bay.
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Re: St. Ninian's Bay by butephoto on Saturday, 18 March 2006
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The stones have since been surrounded by a more substantial fence and barbed wire once more, like pigs in a pen.
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    Re: St. Ninian's Bay by Anonymous on Saturday, 05 May 2007
    Well that's all the more firewood eh!
    [ Reply to This ]

Re: St. Ninian's Bay by Anonymous on Thursday, 18 September 2003
Myself and my close friend spend at least three nights at St Ninian's bay every summer, as we have done for the last 7 years, we cant resist the 'draw' of the stones and camp approx. 200 yards from them.
There was originally three stones (a small mound remains of once standing stone), now unfortunately only two remain. The two stones stand about 3-4ft high and are about 5 ft apart, facing in a line N/S.
Approx 300 yards round the bay at the point remains the ruins of St. Ninians chapel, one of the founding sites of the christian church.
To the west of the stones lies the small island of Inchmarnock, with Arran beyond.
All these features combined with the peace and solitude of St Ninians bay make a truly magical place to visit.
As an aside, a couple of years ago there was a rudimentary fence with barbed wire erected round the stones, presumably to protect from cattle, but there never seems to be any around, so myself and my friend dismanteled the fence, and subsequently used it as fire wood. Dont be mistaken, we are not vandals in any shape or form, however there was no way the stones could reside within barbed wire.
That evening has gone down in history as the night we freed the stones.
[ Reply to This ]
    Re: St. Ninian's Bay by Anonymous on Wednesday, 15 August 2012
    The stones are still unfenced.However as the stones are only about 1 metre high they could easily be knocked over by cattle using them as rubbing stones or by a large herd of sheep grazing there at present.One of them is already tilted at an angle.It is an act of vandalism and a criminal offence to destroy a fence which is there to protect them.The last thing we want to see are the stones lying flat on the ground. Furthermore the land is privately owned and used for agricultural purposes and such acts could lead to restricted access being sought by owners or tenants.
    [ Reply to This ]

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