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Can You Decode Them?

January 2004

by Janet Brennan

A notched rectangle and Z-rod and a triple-disk cauldron (without the usual cross bar) decorate the back of an eighth-century cross slab in the churchyard at Aberlemno. A battle scene is below the symbols. The hole penetrating the stone is a modern addition, reason unknown.

Picture this: The year is a.d. 610. You are a farmer in Scotland, walking along a path as you search for your lost cow. Suddenly you come upon a large rock standing on end alongside the path. It has three images carved on it. The top picture is a fish, below that is something that looks like a tuning fork lying on its side, and at the bottom is a hand mirror and a double-sided comb. You know what message these three carvings convey.

Now, imagine this: The year is 2004. You are a tourist vacationing in Scotland. As you drive through the northeastern part of the country, you see a tall stone standing upright along the roadside. It has three figures carved on it. The top image is two connected discs with a backwards Z bisecting it, below that is a snake also bisected with a Z, and at the bottom is a hand mirror. You have no idea what these symbols mean.

You decide to search out other similar stones, to try to discern a pattern. But you would need months to see them all, as Scotland has more than 250 of these things, known as Pictish symbol stones. Read the rest of this entry »

The quest for legendary creatures draws seekers to all corners of the globe, yet this remote Scottish lake remains the epicenter of cryptozoology.

October 1999

by Loren Coleman

Rumors of — and searches for —   the Loch Ness Monster, known affectionately as Nessie, date back to Celtic times in Scotland. This summer, however, an unusual number of crypto-seekers descended on the loch, prompting several of them — including myself — to organize an international conference at the historic locale that is the epicenter of cryptozoology. Gary Campbell, Read the rest of this entry »

In the murky waters of ancient Loch Ness, a prehistoric “monster” has replaced the dragons of myth. But along these bucolic shores, a roving Yank reporter discovers a people still battling the dragons within.

October 1999

Story and photos by Billy Cox

Drumnadrochit, Scotland —Just outside this blink of a village on the western banks of Loch Ness, in a pub called Smiddy’s Bar, ancient animosities are never more than an ale away. Danny McCormick, having discovered a Yank in his midst, indulges a favorite Read the rest of this entry »