Scheduled MonumentsScotlandMaiden Stone, cross slab
Cross slab

Maiden Stone, cross slab

Scotland
HES SM90210
Site type
Cross slab
Nation
Scotland
Boundary

Scheduled area

© Mapbox · © OpenStreetMap contributors · Boundary data © Historic Environment Scotland

Overview

History & significance

Maiden Stone is a Pictish cross slab located near Tillynorthide in Aberdeenshire, Scotland, dating to the eighth or ninth century. The monument is carved from a single stone and displays a prominent cross in relief on its obverse face, accompanied by characteristic Pictish symbols including a crescent and V-rod. The reverse face bears relief carvings of figures and animals, typical of the elaborate iconographic programmes found on Pictish symbol stones. As a Class II Pictish stone, it represents an important example of early medieval sculptural art from northern Britain and provides evidence of Christian adoption alongside indigenous Pictish artistic traditions during the Early Medieval period.

Maiden Stone, cross slab is a scheduled monument protected by Historic Environment Scotland under reference SM90210. View the official record →

About this monument

Questions & answers

What is Maiden Stone, cross slab?

Maiden Stone is a Pictish cross slab located near Tillynorthide in Aberdeenshire, Scotland, dating to the eighth or ninth century. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by Historic Environment Scotland under reference SM90210.

Who is responsible for protecting Maiden Stone, cross slab?

Maiden Stone, cross slab is a Scheduled Ancient Monument, legally protected by Historic Environment Scotland — the body responsible for designating and safeguarding heritage sites in Scotland. The official designation reference is SM90210.

What other scheduled monuments are near Maiden Stone, cross slab?

Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Mithergarth, ring-ditch houses 280m SSE of (3.7 km), Old Braco, chapel and enclosure 190m SSE of (3.7 km), Woodend, cairn and cross-incised stone 550m SSW of (3.9 km).

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Everything a full report reveals about Maiden Stone, cross slab

This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 14 strands of Maiden Stone, cross slab's history, each drawn from the record and mapped to the exact spot:

Overview
An interactive map of the location with every monument and battle plotted, and a plain-language history built only from what the record holds.
Monuments
The legally protected scheduled monuments around the location, each with its period, type and significance.
Battlefields
The battles and sieges fought on this ground, mapped and set on a timeline of the wider conflict.
Roman Britain
The Roman roads, forts and towns near here, and the Iron Age people who held the land before Rome arrived.
Stat Accounts
The parish Statistical Accounts of the 1790s and 1830s, describing life, work and population here.
Civil War
The Civil War fighting, garrisons and recorded militaria in this area, woven into the arc of 1642 to 1651.
Geology
The bedrock beneath the site, its age and rock type, reaching back hundreds of millions of years.
Local Names
What the street and field names around here actually mean, and the history buried inside them.
Historical Maps
Ordnance Survey maps from the 1800s, layered over the location as it stands today.
Literature
The books, county histories, charters and archives that mention this place, quoted with their sources.
Legal
The protected sites nearby and the metal-detecting, access and treasure laws that apply to this ground.
Spotlight
A deep dive into the most remarkable, lesser-known history of the place, traced back to the record.
Target Zones
For detectorists: the most promising ground to search nearby, ranked by confidence, with what to expect.
Timeline
The whole story of the location told era by era, from prehistory to the present day.
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The ground beneath

The bedrock under Maiden Stone, cross slab

Maiden Stone, cross slab stands on Argyll Group, bedrock that formed in the Neoproterozoic. The rock here is psammite, semipelite and pelite.