Building record MAB29058 - ST ADAMNAN'S CHURCH, FORVIE

Remains of Forvie church, also known as Forvie Kirk, dedicated to St Adamnan.

Remains of Forvie church, also known as Forvie Kirk, dedicated to St Adamnan. It probably dates from the late 12th Century, and has early associations with the Knights Templar. Intrusive burials suggest that it became ruined in the 15th Century. The floor of the chapel was excavated by a local doctor near the end of the 19th century. Under a stone slab was discovered a clay-built grave containing a human skull, and a piscina was found close by. The walls of this structure were found to be pierced by entrances in the north and south. In the vicinity of the church, the foundations of square huts, built of roughly-shaped stones and red clay, apparently of a medieval period, had been uncovered by workmen draining sheep pastures. This may be the site of the medieval hamlet of Forvie. The ground around the church is disturbed and indeterminate traces of walling can be seen, but no 'square huts' can now be identified. In the Middleton collection are a bronze pin, two spindle whorls and 14th Century pottery which he found in 1953 in a midden to the south of the church. This is now obscured by sand blow. The fabric of the church was restored to roof height in 1981. A watching brief was carried out in February 2003 during replacement of the bridge that crosses the Old Kirk Burn at Forvie Kirk, and upgrading of pathway either side of the bridge. A buried turf line was recorded on the east side of the bridge, but no other archaeological features or finds were observed. A watching brief was maintained by Murray Archaeology Ltd in June 2007 while two holes were dug for an information board being erected. Human bone was found in the base of two postholes indicating the presence of the medieval cemetery to the south and west of the church. The human remains were recorded but left in situ and the posts moved to a different area. A building survey of the church was carried out by Cameron Archaeology in August 2015.

Period Notes
Medival origins; given by James VI to King's College, Aberdeen in 1574; local doctor dug it out of sand drifts late 19thC when piscina was discovered; fabric of the church was restored to roof height in 1981.

Author unknown, , PRESS & JOURNAL, 21/12/81 (Bibliographic reference). SAB1416.

Author unknown, , PRESS & JOURNAL, 27/07/57 (Bibliographic reference). SAB1416.

MOIR, J, 1897, A NEW HISTORY OF BUCHAN FROM THE EARLIEST TIMES, 285 (Bibliographic reference). SAB1179.

SCOTT, H, 1950, FASTI ECCLES SCOT, 200 (Bibliographic reference). SAB1806.

GODSMAN, J, 1952, HISTORY OF THE BURGH & PARISH OF ELLON, ABERDEENSHIRE, 32,34 (Bibliographic reference). SAB591.

KIRK, W, 1953, PREHISTORIC SITES AT THE SANDS OF FORVIE, ABERDEENSHIRE: A PRELIMINARY EXAMINATION. IN ABERDEEN UNIV REVIEW 35, 150-71
, 152 (Bibliographic reference). SAB979.

KIRK, W, 1957, DES, 13, 4 (Bibliographic reference). SAB986.

EASSON, D, 1957, MEDIEVAL RELIGIOUS HOUSES: SCOTLAND, 132 (Bibliographic reference). SAB440.

MURRAY, JC, 2003, FORVIE KIRK, SANDS OF FORVIE: WATCHING BRIEF ON BRIDGE REPLACEMENT, WB report (Bibliographic reference). SAB2916.

MURRAY ARCHAEOLOGICAL SERVICES, 2006, FORVIE KIRK, SANDS OF FORVIE, SLAINS, ABERDEENSHIRE: WATCHING BRIEF (Bibliographic reference). SAB4718.

MURRAY, J. C., 2007, DES VOL7, 2006, P.22 (Bibliographic reference). SAB4569.

WATCHING BRIEF

ARCHAEOLOGY SCOTLAND, 2008, DISCOVERY & EXCAVATION SCOTLAND, p.29 (JC Murray) (Bibliographic reference). SAB4029.

BOGDAN, N, 2008, EARLY CASTLES OF ABERDEENSHIRE (Bibliographic reference). SAB3811.

CAMERON ARCHAEOLOGY, 2015, FORVIE CHURCH, NEWBURGH. REPORT ON LEVEL 1 STANDING BUILDING SURVEY FOR SCHEDULED MONUMENT CONSENT, L1 SBS (Bibliographic reference). SAB6726.

SCAPE, 2023, COASTAL ZONE ASSESSMENT SURVEY ABERDEENSHIRE AND CITY OF ABERDEEN: CULLEN TO MILTON NESS, ID 15721 (Bibliographic reference). SAB4866.

Apr 10 1997 , AAS/97/04/CT23, AAS/97/04/CT23 (Air-oblique Photograph). SAB16693.

Aug 17 1978 , AAS/78/06/S8/35-6, AAS/78/06/S8/35-6 (Air-oblique Photograph). SAB14924.

Dec 21 1981 , COLOUR PRINT, COLOUR PRINT (Ground Photograph). SAB14926.

Jan 1 1978 , AAS/GR/78/CT84,90, AAS/GR/78/CT84,90 (Ground Photograph). SAB32535.

Jan 1 1981 , AAS/GR/81/CT06, AAS/GR/81/CT06 (Ground Photograph). SAB33193.

Jan 1 1989 , AAS/GR/89/CT442-446,470, AAS/GR/89/CT442-446,470 (Ground Photograph). SAB32757.

Mar 1 2011 , AAS/2011/2;/DG3299, AAS/2011/2;/DG3299 (Air-oblique Photograph). SAB13208.

MURRAY, JC, n.d., FORVIE KIRK, SANDS OF FORVIE - ARCHAEOL WB, WB report (Bibliographic reference). SAB2979.

Author unknown, n.d., NSA, VOL 12, 593 (Bibliographic reference). SAB1269.

Nov 17 1974 , BRP 18, BRP 18 (Air-oblique Photograph). SAB14925.

Sep 9 1989 , JI 2-12, JI 2-12 (Ground Photograph). SAB33719.

Record last edited

Feb 26 2024 10:59AM