Archaeologists from the Cornwall Archaeological Unit and English Heritage have found a stone inscribed with Christian symbols as well as Latin and Greek letters at Tintagel Castle in Cornwall, England, a site linked with the legend of King Arthur.
The ruins of the upper mainland courtyards of Tintagel Castle, England. Image credit: Kerry Garratt / CC BY-SA 2.0.
The newly-discovered inscribed stone — a 2-foot long piece of Cornish slate — is the second example of early medieval writing to be found at Tintagel Castle.
The first, discovered in 1998, was a stone inscribed with several words including the Celtic name ‘Artognou.’
The newfound stone includes Roman and Celtic names — ‘Tito’ (Titus) and ‘Budic’ — hinting at a thriving multicultural community in the region. The Latin words ‘fili’ (son) and ‘viri duo’ (two men) also appear.
The stone itself served as a window ledge in a building which seemed to be part of a major early medieval settlement.
“The 1,300-year-old letters, words and symbols appear to be the work of someone practising writing,” English Heritage experts said.
“This person was familiar with both the informal style of writing used for documents and the formal script used in the illuminated Gospel books of the period.”
“This lends further weight to the theory that Tintagel was a royal site with a literate Christian culture, and a network of connections stretching from Atlantic Europe to the eastern Mediterranean.”
Detail of an inscription on a stone discovered at Tintagel Castle, England. Image credit: Christopher Ison / English Heritage.
“It’s incredible to think that 1,300 years ago, on this dramatic Cornish cliff-top, someone was practising their writing, using Latin phrases and Christian symbols,” said English Heritage Curator Win Scutt.
“We can’t know for sure who made these marks or why, but what we can say is that 7th century Tintagel had professional scribes who were familiar with the techniques of writing manuscripts — and that in itself is very exciting.”
“Our ongoing research has already revealed the extent of Tintagel’s buildings and the richness of the lifestyle enjoyed here.”
“This latest find goes one step further to show that we have a literate, Christian community, with strong connections from Atlantic Europe to the Mediterranean.”
“Writing was a privileged pursuit, undertaken by specialist scribes attached to the Church or wealthy households.”
“The discovery of this stone supports the idea that Tintagel was an important, thriving trade port, and a high-status settlement which could have been the seat of Cornish kings.”
“The survival of writing from this period is rare and this is a very important find, especially in terms of the continuity of a literate Christian tradition in post-Roman Cornwall,” said Dr. Michelle Brown, an expert on writing at the University of London.
“The lettering style and language used, as well as Christian symbols exhibiting Mediterranean influence and contacts, all reveal precious clues to the culture of those who lived at Tintagel in the 7th century.”
Source link: https://www.sci.news/archaeology/seventh-century-inscribed-stone-tintagel-castle-06108.html
