The Govan Stones – Treasures From The Viking Era In Britain

A. Sutherland  - AncientPages.com - An extraordinary and priceless collection of Viking-age monuments, located at Govan Old Parish Church, Glasgow, Scotland, represents one of the best collections of early medieval sculpture anywhere in the British Isles.

Govan stones. Image credit: Deadmanjones - CC BY-SA 3.0

Carved in the 9th – 11th centuries, the Govan Stones probably commemorate the power of those who ruled the native Briton Kingdom of Strathclyde, the lost kingdom of the northern Britons.

The total number of stones was forty-five, but many were lost. They all had a large cross carved on the front, surrounded by Celtic interlace patterns. Interestingly, the missing ones were the same type: the horizontal cross-slab, designed to be placed on top of a grave.

By the end of the nineteenth century, many ancient carvings had worn away after a thousand years of exposure to the elements,

The Govan medieval stones are covered with classic Viking patterns, elaborate carvings of crosses, and cross shafts. Still, they are not found in Scandinavia. Also known as “Hogback monuments”, these house-shaped Viking tombstones (dated to the 10^th – 12^th century) have been found in northern England and even as far north as the River Tyne.

A side of the Govan Sarcophagus, with animal and interlace carvings. Image credit: Viking870 - CC BY-SA 4.0

However, they are considered a remarkable and odd invention associated with the Viking settlers, who built the tombs of the dead in Norwegian style. Did the settlers intend to design the coffins to represent Viking longhouses for the deceased to continue living in the afterlife?

The Govan Sarcophagus with warrior figures is particularly interesting, the only one from solid stone from pre-Norman, northern Britain. It was discovered in the church graveyard in December 1855 and brought into the church in 1908.

The sarcophagus is believed to commemorate St. Constantine, the son of Pictish king Kenneth MacAlpin, King of Dál Riada (841–850), King of the Picts (843–858), and the first King of Alba (843–858).

Side of the Viking-Age Govan Sarcophagus thought to depict a royal saint killed by Vikings in the 870s. Image credit: Viking870 - CC BY-SA 4.0

The coffin is carved from a block of sandstone, with the sides covered with panels depicting animals and a horseman alongside ribbon motifs. Perhaps, it was intended to hold the mortal remains of the founder of the medieval Church of St Constantine, built on the site where Govan Old Parish Church stands today.

There are no religious motifs on the stones depicting warriors and animals. Otherwise, it could suggest that these were gravestones for the local clergy when Govan was a center of royal power in the kingdom of Strathclyde. Still, there is a distinct possibility that the stones commemorated the warrior aristocracy.

The names of the deceased are unknown, for no early inscriptions are visible on any of the Govan stones.

Written by – A. Sutherland  - AncientPages.com Senior Staff Writer

Updated on February 26, 2023

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