V. NOTE LULACH'N O S S STONE, KILDRUMMY, ABERDEENSHIREA ; SYMBOL STONE RECENTLY FOUN N MORTLACDI H CHURCH- YARD, BANFFSHIRE; AND OTHER ANTIQUITIES. By W. DOUGLAS SIMPSON, M.A., D.LiTT., F.S.A.ScoT. Lulach's Stone, Kildrummy.— e mosth One f t o impressiv e th f o e solitary standing-stones in Aberdeenshire is Lulach's Stone, hidden in Drumiiahive Wood, due west of Mossat Bridge, in the parish of Kil- drummy (O.S inches6 . , Aberdeenshire, shee shapeltald a s an lti li.)t I y. pillar of schist, 8 feet 9 inches in height above the present level of e groundth , though older descriptions mak e heighth e feet1 t 1 A t . the shoulder the breadth of the stone is 2 feet 8 inches; the back is e thicknesroundeth d an ds very irregular t greatesta , abou feet2 t . There seem to be no cup-marks and no indication of tooling, and e pillath r ston e dignifieeth l standal d n i ssimplicit s naturait f o y l rudeness, gred lichean y n stained, hoary wite mutth h e obliviof o n its forgotten purpose. The name of the stone is of considerable interest. On Green Hill, in the parish of Tough (O.S. 6 inches, Aberdeenshire, sheet Ixiii.), is a similar monolith, also called Lulach's 8 1 VOL. LX . 274 PROCEEDING E SOCIETYTH F O S , APRI , 192612 L . or Luath' se traditioth Stone; d an nl attache o t eacd h pillas i r that it marks the place where Lulach, stepson of Macbeth, was over- take d killean n d afte s father'hi r s defea d deatan t t Lumphanaa h n (15th August 1057). The historical facts about Lulach the Fatuous are f Macbeth'o n so briefla s s wifes followsa ywa ,e H Gruochr . he y b , 2 previous husband, Gillacomgain e ancienth f o , t hous f Moraviao e d an , himsel cousia f f Macbeth.o n After Macbet s defeatewa h d killedan d y Malcolb m Canmore, 3 Lulach s stepfather'carriehi n o d s claimst bu , himsel s killewa t f Essiea d Strathbogien i , 17tn o , h March 1058, and, like his stepfather, was buried in lona. Two sources aver that Lulach was killed by Malcolm in battle, but another says that he died by treachery.4 Doubtless the two monoliths that bear his name are far anterio s tim hi thein i ee probablo t rar r e origin t greatlw t yno bu ; y wron regardinn gi g their subsequent popular association with Lulach's memor chaie th lina f othe no s n ki y a r e largevidencth eo t pars a e t which the province of Mar played in furthering the cause of the Macbeth dynasty against the rival and Normanising house of Canmore. Symbol Stone found n Mortlachi Churchyard, Banffshire.—On 18th September 1925, when opening a grave in the old churchyard of Mortlach, near Dufftown, Banffshire (O.S. 6 inches, Banffshire, sheet xxv.), the sexton came upon a large flat stone about 6 feet under the surface. It was lying face downwards and pointing to the south-east. Un- fortunately, in order to take it out the stone was broken into five pieces, onls anwa ybeed t daftei ha n t i broughr surface th o fragmentt n ti e s thae symbolth t s were discovere e undeth n a ro luckd y faceB y . chance the carved figures were almost unscathed by the breaking up e fractureth f e o stone oth e fs on jus, t passing throug e scrolleth h d hin e d"elephant. th fee f o t place Th "e s founwherwa s withi i dt i e n e north-wessomth fee 0 3 o ee well-knowt t th f o t n " Battle Stonef o " Mortlach. inciseo Thtw e e upped th symbol f e o r th parp f to o st e founth n o d ston familiae th e s i (fig ) r1 . " elephant," wrought with great spirite Th . lower symbo s hitherti l o unrecorded unablm a I hazaro t ed an , d even a conjectur y purpor o what ma s o t representt i a et e inciseTh . d sculpturing is beautifully wrought and extremely well preserved. In heigh stone th t e measures abou feeabou5 s ti inches 3 t inche i 0 1 td an ,s in greatest thickness. A small fragment, having become detached when s submitte s takewa , wa nup t i o Professodt . GribbW . ,A r M.A., D.Sc., Statisticalw Ne e 1Se Account, vol. xii 613. p . 1 Lulach fatuus—Chronicle Picts e oScotsd th f an . Skene) F (ed. W .. 152 p , . genealogicae 3Se . AndersonlO . tablA n ei , Early Sources of Scottish History, . 580volp . .i . 1 Tigernach, Annals, . StokeW . Revuen i sed Celtique, vol. xvii . 398p . ; Annals f Ulstero Hennessy). M (ed . W . ; Chronica 4 ,. volp . ii . de Mailros (ed . Stevenson).J . 227p , . SYMBOL STONE OTHED AN S R ANTIQUITIES. 275 of the Chair of Geology in Aberdeen University, who reports that the stone is a metamorphic rock, psammitic gneiss or impure quartzite, and is probably an erratic from the Moine area on Speyside. The church of Mortlach is one of the most ancient Christian sites districe Speye th th monaster A n d i . tan betwee e plantes De y wa e nth d here by St Moluag of Lismore, whom St Comgall the Great of Bangor, e Ard th f Ulster o sn i , dispatche a missio n o d n into Pictlan 562.n di 1 It is a beautiful example of the insita sibi species venustatis of an Old Celtic religious site, occupyin a glovel y position o n the west bank of the Dullan. The mediaeval parish church stands on a terrace overlooking the haugh by e riversidth esymboo whertw e lth estone s ared an , where it is therefore probable that St Moluag's com- munity was placed. On the opposite side of the river the bank rises steeply and is clothed with'fine timber. Though greatly modernised e churcth , h still retains its mediaeval proportions, and some beautiful lancet windows of the thirteenth century. Within it are preserved a number of interesting mediaeval grave- a gooslabs d d an , recumbent a effigmail-cla f o y d knight—said to represent Alexander Leslie of Kininvie, dieo dwh about 1549. The " Battl side eon a Celti Stonen o c s cros"ha s between two fish-like monsters facing each other on top and a grotesque beast at the base, while on the othe ra bird sid e a serpent,ar n eox' a sd skullan , , an dhorsemaa n wite illustratio hounds th hhi n I . n of the back of this stone in the Early Christian Monuments of Scotland, part iii. p. 156, the bird is not Pig. 1. Symbol Stone at Mortlach, Banff- shown e cross beeTh ha s. n carved wit a hsimpl e shire. scroll ornament e sculpturinTh . e s incisedgi th d an , e othe th techniquspiriteo s n r o t stone Battle s no da Th s ei . e Stone is 5 feet 9 inches in height above ground, and is 7 inches in greatest thickness t e pillaleas A th e belofee .2 f tar r o e surfacetw th , being wedged in among stones. The material appears to be similar to that e otheoth f r stone. Bound the Battle Stone " St Molloch's Fair " was formerly held. The churc ancientld hha yRonnaca h bell Priest'e . th Neas i st i rWell. 8 t Moluag'S r Fo snorth-easte worth Originsy n ki m e f Christianityo se , Aberdeenshiren i pp.1 19-22. 1 For these and other particulars about the church and churchyard o£ Mortlach, see A. Jervise Epitaphs and Inscriptions of the North of Scotland, vol. i. pp. 326-34. 276 PROCEEDINGS OF THE SOCIETY, APRIL 12, 1926. The stone recently discovered is of an earlier type than the Battle Stone, havin e symbolth g s withou e distinctivelth t y Christian cross. Whether this clas f stono s s pagai e a muc s ni h vexed questiont bu ; the presence of the monument at a definitely Early Christian site is borne b a fac mindo n t i et I kno. f fifteewo n ancient church sites Spee th yd witan betweee h whicDe e e associatenth har d symbol stones e oldesoth f t class n manI . y other cases wher a esymbo l stonw eno stands unrelated wity knowan h n church site l knowledgal , n a f o e early wooden or wattled chapel or other religious centre on the spot y welma l hav t i thae face f th s o cleati perishede n t wi o re d an , cannot rejec e possibilitth t e symbolisth f yo m having been Christian from the outset. At all events, it is certain that whether pagan in their origi r note o nsymbol th , 1 s were capabl n theii e r entiretf o y bearin ga Christia n meaning s theia , r association wit e cros hth son o s- e monumentmanth f yo s shows. The chronology of these symbols is equally obscure. Mr J. Graham Callander has drawn my attention to one fact that may have some bear- ing on this important problem. In the famous hoard of silver articles found at Norrie's Law, Largo, Fife, in 1817, occur two plates of silver and a silver pin (figs.