STONE CIRCLES TRAIL
Stone circles can be found throughout Britain and Ireland, in various forms, and were erected between c.2700 – 2000 BC (the Bronze Age). Around 10% of the total number of stone circles recorded in Britain can be found in Aberdeenshire, and the region even boasts its own unique style of circle – the Recumbent Stone Circle.
VisitAberdeenshire
Found almost exclusively in Aberdeenshire, more than 70 examples of Recumbent Stone Circles have been recorded in the region. The distinctive feature of the Recumbent Stone Circle is a massive stone, laid horizontally on its side in the Southwestern or Southern arc of the circle, flanked by the two tallest stones of the circle.
Recumbent Stone Circles are usually found on the crests of hills or terraces, with wide southerly views, although in some cases the landscapes in which they now sit would be unrecognisable to their creators.
The sites listed present 10 of the best examples of Aberdeenshire’s stone circles.
Click here to view the PDF version.
Housed in part of the former Roman Catholic national junior seminary 7 miles southwest of Aberdeen, Blairs Museum offers a unique insight into Scotland’s Catholic history and heritage with spectacular collections spanning more than 500 years.
“For 157 years, Blairs College was home to a magnificent collection of paintings, church textiles, sacred silver and Jacobite memorabilia belonging to the Scottish Roman Catholic Church.
From its establishment Blairs College was recognised as a safe place to receive and preserve artefacts relating to Scotland’s Catholic heritage. Over the years Blairs accumulated an internationally renowned collection of fine and decorative art from a number of benefactors, including bishops, priests and friends of Blairs as well as inheriting important collections from the former Scots Colleges throughout Europe. When the College closed in 1986, an independent trust was created, overseen by the Scottish Catholic Heritage Commission, to preserve, interpret and display this important collection of religious heritage.
Today, Blairs Museum gives visitors a unique insight into Scotland’s Catholic heritage, providing an enjoyable, memorable, and inspiring experience for all.”
VisitAberdeenshire
Local Hero is a 1983 Scottish comedy-drama film written and directed by Bill Forsyth and starring Peter Riegert, Denis Lawson, Peter Capaldi, Fulton Mackay and Burt Lancaster. Produced by David Puttnam, the film is about an American oil company representative who is sent to the fictional village of Ferness, to purchase the town and surrounding property for his company. Most of the Ferness village scenes was filmed at Pennan, 40 miles north of Aberdeen, while the beach scenes at Morar and Arisaig on the West Coast.
For his work on the film, Forsyth won the 1984 BAFTA Award for Best Direction.
Local Hero Wikipedia Page
Forget about Brigadoon and Whisky Galore, forget about Trainspotting (and certainly forget about Braveheart!), this is indisputably the best Scottish film ever made. Starring Peter Riegert, Burt Lancaster, Wedge Antilles, the Twelfth Doctor and just about every Scottish actor alive in the 1980s, the film is just fantastic.
It has also got an incredible film score written by Mark Knopfler.
The Museum of Scottish Lighthouses is based in the bustling fishing port of Fraserburgh on the North East corner of Aberdeenshire. It’s all here; Kinnaird Head Lighthouse – the very first lighthouse on mainland Scotland (1787), Kinnaird Head Castle containing the lighthouse and the purpose-built museum alongside.
Museum of Scottish Lighthouses
The museum tells the great story of the Northern Lighthouse Board, the engineers who built the lights and the keepers who tended them.
It is a story of skill, courage, technical genius and brilliant organisation.
The Kinnaird Head Lighthouse and Museum at Historic Environment Scotland
