‘Remarkable’ Pictish ring buried for about 1,000 years found on last day of dig

An amateur archaeologist has told of his excitement at finding a Pictish ring buried for more than 1000 years on the last day of a dig.

The kite-shaped ring has a garnet, or red glass centre, and was discovered at Burghead fort, Moray, by volunteer John Ralph, a former engineer and graduate of the University of Aberdeen.

The area is known as a former Pictish site, but its historical value was assumed to have been lost when the town of Burghead was constructed in the 1800s, covering much of the fort and dismantling the stone that remained to be used for building new homes.

The timing of the find also marks the 50th year of Mr Ralph’s association with the University of Aberdeen.

A shot of the Pictish ring shortly after it was excavated. (University of Aberdeen/PA). PA Media

The 68-year-old grew up in the area, and joined the university as an undergraduate in 1974 and completed both his engineering degree and a PhD at the institution.

Mr Ralph’s ancestors moved to Burghead in support of the fishing industry, and years later, he signed up as a volunteer for excavations there after seeing a post by Aberdeen University archaeology professor, Gordon Noble.

Mr Ralph, who described himself as an “enthusiastic amateur”, said that upon discovering the ring, he did not realise it was actually something of value.

Speaking of the find, he said: “My sister still lives in Burghead and it sounded interesting so I thought why not? I have now joined three different digs there, each for two weeks.

A close-up of the ring (University of Aberdeen/PA). PA Media

“I thoroughly enjoyed them all but my initial enthusiasm for finds was somewhat dented by my knack of getting excited for shiny pebbles.

“I had found a few interesting items including bone pins and it was great being part of the team, which was the real draw.

“So, when I picked up a bit of earth from the final trench on the last day of excavations, I thought, ‘here we go again’. It was only when I showed it to the volunteer next to me and he got excited that I thought it might really be something.”

He added: “My ancestors were part of the movement of people encouraged into the new town to support the fishing industry – the reason that much of what remained of the fort was destroyed.

A reconstruction of what the Pictish settlement may have looked like (University of Aberdeen/Alice Watterson/PA). PA Media

“It is good to think that I’ve given something back with this little piece of the puzzle of the past.

“I like to think of archaeology as a dot-to-dot picture and I am delighted to have been able to make my own little mark.”

Mr Ralph said it is a “real thrill” to have probably been the first to have seen the ring in 1,000-1,500 years.

“It becomes a real guessing game of who owned it, what did they use it for and how was it lost,” he said.

Professor Noble, who has led excavation work funded by Historical Environment Scotland for the last three years, said the find was ‘truly remarkable’.

He said: “John was digging and then came over and said, ‘look what I’ve found’. What he handed over was incredible.

“Even before the conservation work, we could see it was something really exciting as despite more than a thousand years in the ground we could see glints of the possible garnet setting.

“There are very few Pictish rings which have ever been discovered and those we do know about usually come from hoards which were placed in the ground deliberately for safekeeping in some way.

“We certainly weren’t expecting to find something like this lying around the floor of what was once a house but that had appeared of low significance so, in typical fashion, we had left work on it until the final day of the dig.”

The ring has been passed to the National Museum of Scotland’s post-excavation service for analysis.

Professor Noble added: “We will now look at the ring, evidence of buildings and other artefacts to consider whether the ring was crafted on the site and who such an important piece of jewellery might have been made for.

“We have some other evidence of metalworking and the number of buildings we have uncovered is quite striking.

“This further indicator of the high-status production of metalwork adds to the growing evidence that Burghead was a really significant seat of power in the Pictish period.”

Susan O’Connor, head of grants at Historic Environment Scotland, said: “Whilst the materials used themselves are not particularly valuable in today’s monetary sense, this find is hugely significant for what it tells us about Pictish lives and society.

“We’re excited to find out more once our colleagues in the National Museum have finished their investigations.”