Pictish ring believed to be more than 1,000 years old unearthed

A "remarkable" Pictish ring thought to be more than 1,000 years old has been unearthed by an amateur archaeologist on a dig in Moray.

John Ralph said it was a "real thrill" to dig up the kite-shaped ring, which has a garnet or red glass centre, at Burghead Fort.

Although known as a Pictish site, its historical value was widely 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 for building.

The dig was led by the University of Aberdeen.

Former engineer and University of Aberdeen graduate Mr Ralph had signed up as a volunteer for the Burghead digs when he retired.

During the two-week excavation, there were many moments where he thought he had discovered something special only to be told by the experts that he had a knack for finding "shiny pebbles".

But on the last day of the dig, he found the ring.

Mr Ralph said: "It is a real thrill to dig up an artefact in the knowledge that you are probably the first person to see it for 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."

Mr Ralph, who grew up in the area and whose sister still lives in Burghead, said he was delighted to have added his own piece to the puzzle in understanding the region's Pictish past.

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.

"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."

The ring is currently with the National Museum of Scotland's post-excavation service for analysis.

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Gordon Noble, professor of archaeology at the University of Aberdeen, has led excavation work funded by Historic Environment Scotland for the last three years.

He described the ring as "truly remarkable".

Professor Noble 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 1,000 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."

Professor Noble said experts will now look at the ring, evidence of buildings and other artefacts to consider whether the jewellery was crafted on the site and who it might have been made for.

He added: "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."

An open day - where the public can learn more about the work at Burghead - will take place on Sunday between 10am and 4pm.