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Carved stone · Pictish & early medieval · Highland

Clach an Tiompain

Open access · About 45 min · Moderate walking

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A carved eagle on a Pictish stone became, centuries later, the marker for a clan battle and the trigger for a seer's flood prophecy.

On a hillside above Strathpeffer stands a slab of blue-grey gneiss just over two and a half feet tall, its southeast face carved with a horseshoe-shaped arc sitting above the unmistakable outline of an eagle. The symbols are the work of Pictish carvers, and the stone belongs to the small group of Class I Pictish stones — undressed monoliths marked only with incised symbols, without the later addition of a cross or ornamental border.

The stone did not start life where it now stands. It once sat lower down the slope, on the route towards Dingwall, before being moved to its present position in 1411. That relocation is bound up with one of the more evocative pieces of local tradition in Easter Ross: that the eagle carved into its face marks a victory of Clan Munro over a branch of Clan MacDonald in a battle fought that same year.

Centuries after the stone found its resting place, it acquired a second layer of meaning through the prophecies attributed to the Brahan Seer, the legendary 16th-century Highland visionary. According to the prediction linked to his name, the stone’s fall — three times over — would herald the flooding of the valley below, with the stone itself pressed into service as an anchor.

What follows is drawn from published sources, with each claim labelled by how firmly it is established.

The name

Clach an Tiompain translates from Scottish Gaelic as the "Sounding Stone," a name distinct from its other common label, the Eagle Stone, which refers directly to the bird carved on its face.

History

Pictish carvers cut two symbols into the southeast face of the stone: a horseshoe-like arc sitting above the figure of an eagle. The stone belongs to the Class I category of Pictish monuments — plain, uncarved stones bearing only such incised symbols, without any later Christian cross-work added to the design.

In 1411 the stone was moved from its original position further down the hill, on the route towards Dingwall, to its current site on the northern outskirts of Strathpeffer. Local tradition ties this same year to a battle fought between Clan Munro and a branch of Clan MacDonald, and holds that the stone's eagle symbol commemorates a Munro victory. The historian Norman Macrae recorded a version of the story in which the Munros placed the stone there while marching to meet Donald of Islay, Lord of the Isles.

During the 16th century the stone became attached to the prophecies of the Brahan Seer, Coinneach Odhar, a Highland visionary whose sayings passed into wide local legend. He is said to have predicted that should the stone ever fall three times, the valley around it would flood, and the fallen stone would then serve as an anchor for the water that covered it. The stone has since fallen twice, matching two of the three falls named in the prophecy attributed to the Brahan Seer. It has now been set into concrete at its hilltop site, a modern measure that keeps the final, flood-triggering fall from ever taking place.

People

  • Coinneach Odhar (the Brahan Seer)

    16th-century Highland visionary to whom the prophecy of the stone's three falls and the valley's flooding is attributed.

  • Norman Macrae

    Historian who recorded the tradition that the Munros placed the stone at its present site while marching against Donald of Islay, Lord of the Isles.

  • Donald of Islay, Lord of the Isles

    Figure named in the tradition as the leader the Munros were marching against when the stone was moved in 1411.

Cultural influences

  • Pictish Class I carving

    The incised eagle and horseshoe-like arc belong to the Class I Pictish symbol-stone tradition, using symbols on an otherwise unshaped standing stone.

Connections

  • Clan Munro

    Local tradition credits the Munros with the 1411 victory the eagle symbol is said to commemorate, and with moving the stone to its present site.

  • Clan MacDonald

    Named as the opposing side in the 1411 battle tradition associated with the stone's relocation.

  • Strathpeffer

    The stone stands on a hill on the northern outskirts of this Easter Ross settlement.

What to look for

  • The eagle symbol

    Carved on the stone's southeast face, the eagle is the emblem local tradition ties to Clan Munro and the battle of 1411.

  • The horseshoe-like arc

    Positioned above the eagle, this second incised symbol is characteristic of the Pictish Class I symbol repertoire.

  • Blue gneiss material

    The stone is cut from blue gneiss and measures 32 inches high, 24 inches wide, and 10 inches thick.

  • The concrete setting

    Having fallen twice, the stone is now fixed in concrete at its hilltop position above Strathpeffer.

What is said

Folklore and tradition, recorded as what is said — not as established fact.

  • The Munro battle tradition

    One old tradition holds that the stone marks the site of a 1411 battle between Clan Munro and a branch of Clan MacDonald, and that its eagle symbol commemorates a Munro victory.

  • The Brahan Seer's flood prophecy

    The Brahan Seer is said to have predicted that if the stone fell three times, the surrounding valley would be flooded and the stone used as an anchor — a prophecy it is thought to have partly fulfilled, having fallen twice already.

Plan your visit

Location
57.5914°N · 4.5356°W
Nearest settlement
Inverness
Access
Open access
Terrain
Moderate walking
Time needed
About 45 minutes

Opening & admission

  • Small stone on a hill on the outskirts of Strathpeffer.

Nearby places

Questions people ask

What does the name Clach an Tiompain mean?
It is Scottish Gaelic for the "Sounding Stone"; the stone is also known as the Eagle Stone after the bird carved on its face.
What is carved on the stone?
Two symbols on its southeast face: a horseshoe-like arc above the figure of an eagle, typical of a Class I Pictish symbol stone.
Why was the stone moved in 1411?
Tradition ties the move to a battle that year between Clan Munro and a branch of Clan MacDonald, with the eagle said to mark a Munro victory.
What is the Brahan Seer's prophecy about the stone?
He is said to have predicted that if the stone fell three times, the valley would flood and the stone would serve as an anchor.
Has the prophecy come true?
Not fully — the stone has fallen twice and is now set in concrete, which prevents the third fall the prophecy requires.

Sources

  1. Canmore site 12458
  2. Wikipedia: Clach an Tiompain
  3. Wikidata: Clach an Tiompain
  4. Norman Macrae — local history account

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