What happened to the Picts?
The Picts wrote nothing down in their own language. However, manuscripts written by the Irish and English have survived which tells us something of their story. Viking raids took place in the late 8th and 9th centuries in northern Pictland and on the west coast. Orkney and Shetland came under Norse rule and even Ross and Cromarty was threatened. To protect themselves against this Viking threat the Scots and Picts amalgamated under a Scottish king, Kenneth mac Alpin, in 843AD. One of the results of this was that the unique style of Pictish craftsmanship in sculpture and metalwork was lost. Geometric and animal symbols no longer appeared. Sculptors and metalworkers worked for new masters with different ideas. The culture of the Picts was overwhelmed by the Scots, but the Christian faith continued. These cross-slabs are therefore the last tangible record of the Picts in Easter Ross.
