The Fetternear Steen, The Kemnay Steens

This square shaped stone lies in mature woodland within the Fetternear Estate near Kemnay, Aberdeenshire. It can be found alongside a track just north of Bankhead Pool on the north bank of the river Don. One side of the stone shows two people on horseback fording a river. The figures appear to reference the origins of the Leslies of Balquhain (of Fetternear) and Clan Leslie. In 1067 a nobleman named Bartolf came to Scotland from Hungary in the court of Princess Margaret, who was later to become the Queen of Malcolm III and eventually St Margaret of Scotland. Malcolm III made Bartolf the first governor of Edinburgh Castle and gave him estates in Fife, Angus and Aberdeenshire. As the Queen's Chamberlain, Bartolf once helped Queen Margaret cross a swollen river on horseback. During the crossing the horse stumbled and the Queen, fearing she would fall cried, “Gin the buckle bide?!” Bartolf answered, “Grip Fast!” and they made it to the other side. He was so alarmed by the incident that he later had two more buckles added to his belt. Bartolf would go on to build a castle at Lesselyn in the Garioch which is where the name Leslie originates, with three buckles on a belt becoming the Leslie's arms and "Grip Fast" the motto. The other side of the stone features the same four figures that can be seen on the Shakin Briggie Steen. Here the two monks and their attendants are shown with their boat moored at Fetternear. A text above them reads: 'FOITHIRNER IRE UINEUS ET NECHTAN'. Some of the text and the style is similar to a carving that appears on the ninth century Drosten Stone from St Vigeans near Arbroath. 'Foithir ner' (Fetternear) can be translated as the slope of Ner which has been linked with an entry in the Irish chronicles mentioning the death of an Abbot Uineus of Ner in 623. Another entry mentions the death in 679 of a St Nechtan or Nechtan Ner, potentially linked to an early monastic settlement nearby. The text therefore translates as, 'Fetternear in the time of Uineus and Nechtan'. Their attendants carry an enlarged version of a medieval reliquary which bears a resemblance to the early 8th century Monymusk reliquary, one of the most important artefacts from the period which is now at the National Museum of Scotland in Edinburgh. The carving on the end of the stone shows the source of the rivers which appear on the other carvings. Here they are shown being poured by a figure with a salmon at his feet, perhaps representative of the 'salmon of knowledge,’ believed to contain all the wisdom in the world. The figure may represent Nechtan or Nodens, who in Celtic mythology is often associated with wells and springs. Nechtan was a common name for Pictish kings. The stone is one of the Kemnay Steens, nine carved stones placed along footpaths in and around the village with the aim of encouraging people to explore the rich history, folklore and natural identity of the surrounding landscape. The stones reference local Pictish carvings and later medieval styles but they also have their own visual vocabulary; the more stones that are encountered, the more reoccurring symbols, characters and themes are noticed. Each stone tells its own story but there is also a deeper narrative hidden in the carvings, waiting to be unpicked. The designs for the artworks are the result of six months of research and engagement activity which included community events, talks and stone carving workshops. The project began in July 2019 and was led by The Kemnay Public Art Group a sub-group of Greener Kemnay; a group of local residents who support the reduction of the carbon footprint of the village. The group was asked by Aberdeenshire Council to manage a public art project using the balance remaining in the Percent for Art Fund, accumulated from previous housing developments. Additional funding was then secured from The National Lottery Community Fund.