Walk and debate on Pictish battle

Reay Clarke believes Carrie Blair near Edderton was the backdrop for a clash between Picts and Vikings.

He said Pictish stones - including one with two armed horsemen carved on it - were evidence of a battle.

Mr Clarke will lead a walk around Edderton as part of Highland Council's Archaeology Fortnight which runs from 30 September to 15 October.

A programme of events have been arranged in Caithness, Sutherland, Ross and Cromarty, Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey, Skye and Lochalsh and Lochaber.

"That stone is telling us something"
Reay Clarke
Local historian

They include talks about the Romans, Iron and Bronze ages and council ranger-led walks.

Mr Clarke, 83, was asked to become involved in the fortnight a number of years ago and has written book about his belief that Carrie Blair was the scene of a battle.

He said: "In Edderton there is an old church and in the graveyard a Pictish cross slab with a horseman and crosses on each side and two armed horsemen below.

"That stone is telling us something. It was carefully sculpted and someone was sent out to cut the stone from a quarry."

The area has other standing stones, including a stone circle solar calendar, and the sites of Pictish forts, said Mr Clarke.

His guided walk on 4 October, The Picts that were in Edderton, features a visit to the graveyard where people can argue about his battlefield theory.

Other events during the fortnight include talks about fossils, the Romans and a look at 6,000 years of history at Rosemarkie caves.

RELATED INTERNET LINKS
Undiscovered Scotland
Highlands Archaeology Fortnight
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