Until recently there wasn't a lot of interest in excavations relating to Pictish sites and as a result we don't have a lot of information regarding Pictish settlements. As the number of archaeologists and academics interested in the study of the Picts increases more material evidance will become available.

Buildings surviving from the Pictish period include brochs (round stone towers), souterrains (possibly underground storage passages once attached to surface dwellings), hillforts, crannogs and houses of several different kinds. Pictish houses largely survive in the treeless Northern and Western Isles, where buildings had to be constructed of stone. Different house styles employing wood or turf would once have existed in other parts of Pictland, reflecting its environmental diversity and the length of time it existed. Few traces of such structures survive above ground, but their form can be guessed at from marks that can show up among modern day crops in aerial photographs, revealing the sites of ancient settlements.

Major ecclesiastical sites are also of great importance and the recent excavation at Portmahomack in Easter Ross should lead to a deal of new infomation becoming available. Given that archaeologists' traditional obsession with all things Roman is at last beginning to fade, we can perhaps hope to see many more Pictish site investigations in the future.

Domstic artefacts of Pictish provenance are extremely rare though we have some remarkbale silver objects which have survived.

One of the methods commonly used in defining the areas once inhabited by the Picts is by looking at Pit name distribution. Throughout Pictish Scotland there appears a number of place names that start with the prefix "Pit" (eg. Pitcaple, Pitcur, Pitlochry etc).

The "Pit" prefix has been generally accepted as being Pictish in origin and is thought to mean a piece of land, perhaps defined by its yield rather than a specified area. The term is believed to be akin to Latin petia which in turn gave rise to the word piece. It is striking that the majority of Pit names appear to have a Gaelic word as the secondary part of the name. While not all Pit names may be directly related to archaeological evidence of settlement sites, the Pit names do give us a clear indication of some of the areas inhabited by the Picts

Souterrains

(right) The inside of a Pictish souterrain at Pitcur, Perthshire. This is one of the few remaining souterrains (often referred to as Picts' Hooses) in which the roof sections - the large slabs of stone forming the roof - remain intact. Such passageways are believed to have been used as food stores (traces of grain have been found at some sites). Other suggestions have included some sort of ceremonial use, and that they were used as hideouts.

Brochs

Brochs survive mainly in the North and West of Scotland where a lack of timber lead to the creation of these stone fortified dwellings, which are unique in early architecture.Scattered examples also can be found in the East and South of Scotland. The design of these defensive structures is remarkably efficient illustrating both ingenuity and practicality on the part of their creators. The Broch of Mousa (right) in Shetland was probably built between the last century BC and the first century AD. The tower is 15m (50ft) in diameter and still stands to height of 13m (42ft). The broch was last occupied in the Viking period and is mentioned in both the Egils Saga and Orkneyinga Saga as late as 1153AD.

These passageways are often connected to dwelling houses on the surface suggesting a close link with daily life. They are found all over Scotland and their function is still the source of much debate.

Hillforts

(left) Still impressive, the remains of the hillfort at Monifieth Laws. Located on a position which provides commanding views over all the surrounding countryside it is easy to see why the hillforts became such important strategic sites. This site shows signs of continuous occupation from prehistoric times through to the late medieval period.

(right) Tap o' Noth, Rhynie, Aberdeenshire. The collapsed rectangular wall of the fort, the second highest hillfort in Scotland, can still be clearly seen.The timberlaced wall, which probably stood to around 6m in height, was at some point set on fire.This is thought to have caused a process known as vitrification, in which the stones became so hot that they started to melt and were fused together into a solid mass

It is unknown whether this was a deliberate action or occured while the fort was under attack. Attempts to recreate the process of vitrification have met with limited success.

Pictish Houses

Domestic architecture seems to have varied considerably both geographically and chronologiclly, with a variety of round and rectilinear forms utilising both timber and stone architecture, according to area and style. Some large timber hall structures are thought to have been built in Pictish times though whether their function was communal part of the social activity of an elite is impossible to say.

It is notable that a number of buildings and settlements from the period have no defensive element in their construction, suggesting peaceful times. (right) The remains of an early dwelling site and its associated souterrain at Mains of Ardestie, Angus. The foundations of the stone dwellings are all that remain of this Pictish dwelling. The unroofed souterrain passage can be seen just to the top right of the photo

Crannogs

Crannogs are a type of ancient loch dwelling found throughout Scotland and Ireland. They were built out in the water as defensive homesteads, secure from potential invaders. People began living in these island homes as early as 5,000 years ago, and continued to do so up until the 17th century AD.

Here in the wooded heartland of Scotland, the prehistoric crannogs were originally timber-built roundhouses supported on piles driven into the lochbed. Today, they appear as tree-covered islands or remain hidden as submerged stony mounds. (right) Reconstruction of a Lochside Crannog at the Scottish Crannog Centre, Loch Tay

The Centre is open to the public from April - October. www.crannog.co.uk

Daily Life (Artefacts)

It is likely that the daily life of the Pictish peoples was not significantly different from that of the other tribal peoples of contemporary Britain and Northern Europe. Several families linked together forming tribes which tended to live in small communities practising basically self-sufficient agriculture, though there would have been some inter-tribal and possibly longer distance trading. The Romans are believed to have provided a market for Caledonian bears to provide entertainment in their bloody circuses.

Domestic artefacts like the spindle whorl found at Buckquoy, Orkney (right), as well as knives, mirrors and combs give a limited picture of Pictish life though we have little or no evidence for their weaving, cooking or agricultural practices due to the effects of Scottish weather on such artefacts as would have been used.

There is evidence from some Symbol Stones for the Picts having for harps and pipes and others show such artefacts as ironworking tools.

(left) Pictish Hammer Symbol from the Class I stone at Abernethy, Perthshire.

(right) Pictish Shears Symbol from the Migvie stone, Aberdeenshire. Often it is the symbols on the Pictish stones which provide evidence for the use of such tools.

(above) A wood-carver's toolbox found preserved in a peat bog at Birsay, Orkney.

There are a considerable number of cauldrons depicted on Symbol Stones and these are likely to have been the primary cooking implement, most likely suspended over a central hearth in the home, though their depiction on the stones and the discovery of some in ritual contexts suggests they had other less mundane functions or associations.

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