The development of the Pictish symbol system

inscribing identity beyond the edges of Empire

Gordon Noble (Corresponding Author), Martin Goldberg, Derek Hamilton

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article

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Abstract

The date of unique symbolic carvings, from various contexts across north and east Scotland, has been debated for over a century. Excavations at key sites and direct dating of engraved bone artefacts have allowed for a more precise chronology, extending from the third/fourth centuries AD, broadly contemporaneous with other non-vernacular scripts developed beyond the frontiers of the Roman Empire, to the ninth century AD. These symbols were probably an elaborate, non-alphabetic writing system, a Pictish response to broader European changes in power and identity during the transition from the Roman Empire to the early medieval period.
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)1329-1348
Number of pages20
JournalAntiquity
Volume92
Issue number365
Early online date26 Oct 2018
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Oct 2018

Fingerprint

Roman Empire
symbol
change in power
artifact
Symbol Systems
Artifact
Chronology
Symbol
9th Century
Early Medieval Period
Writing Systems
Carvings
Excavation
Scotland

Keywords

  • Scotland
  • Pictish
  • symbolism
  • carving
  • language
  • writing

Cite this

The development of the Pictish symbol system : inscribing identity beyond the edges of Empire. / Noble, Gordon (Corresponding Author); Goldberg, Martin; Hamilton, Derek.

In: Antiquity, Vol. 92, No. 365, 10.2018, p. 1329-1348.

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article

Noble, G, Goldberg, M & Hamilton, D 2018, 'The development of the Pictish symbol system: inscribing identity beyond the edges of Empire', Antiquity, vol. 92, no. 365, pp. 1329-1348. https://doi.org/10.15184/aqy.2018.68
Noble G, Goldberg M, Hamilton D. The development of the Pictish symbol system: inscribing identity beyond the edges of Empire. Antiquity. 2018 Oct;92(365):1329-1348. https://doi.org/10.15184/aqy.2018.68
Noble, Gordon ; Goldberg, Martin ; Hamilton, Derek. / The development of the Pictish symbol system : inscribing identity beyond the edges of Empire. In: Antiquity. 2018 ; Vol. 92, No. 365. pp. 1329-1348.
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