History of Pitreavie (Part 1)

Thanks to Alastair M. Redpath at Project Dunfermline for the information.

The Pitreavie area of Dunfermline is bounded by Hospital Hill and Pitcorthie to the north, Masterton to the east, Rosyth and Camdean to the south, and the Grange Road to the west. It is a Pictish placename of 9th century origin, from "pett" meaning estate or portion of land, and an uncertain second element.

A broken, polished axe of greenish quartz is the oldest sign of human habitation at Pitreavie. It was donated to the National Museum of Antiquities of Scotland (NMAS) in 1898. North Wood (between Masterton Road and the golf course) contains a much mutilated and grassed over barrow/cairn. Two pieces of Bronze Age pottery were found here and donated to the NMAS. To the south lies Dunfermline Crematorium, opened in 1973.

A short cist was found in April 1961 during work preparing the Dunfermline approach road to the Forth Road Bridge, near the old lane from Rosyth to Masterton. When excavated, the cist was covered by two cap-stones with an earth layer between them, although heavy machinery had damaged the site. The cist was made of five rectangular sandstone slabs. All the joints had been luted with sticky grey clay, that kept it water-tight and free from silt. Post-holes were found in the corners of the cist, probably used to support the end-stone when it was being built.

Artifacts found here comprised a pair of Early Bronze Age armlets, a bronze dagger blade, a bronze blade, and a jet necklace. The floor contained the fibrous remains of a European bison hide. The only human remains were some tiny fragments of bone inside the armlets and over the dagger, and the crowns of some teeth near the beads. The grave-goods, and the unusual size of the cist, suggests a double burial, of a man and a woman.

Another nearby prehistoric site is at Masterton of Pitreavie, where a flat dagger, a decomposed horn hilt and other remains were discovered.

The most prominent ancient landmark at Pitreavie is the Saint Margaret Stone, referred to in the "The Auld Register" of the Abbey as the "Auld Stane". Tradition has it that St. Margaret and her exiled family rested here en route to their new home at Dunfermline in the late summer of 1067. The stone is a fragment of a cromlech or dolmen, a Druid stone whose place of origin was probably a narrow footway or bridle-path. Over the centuries pilgrims, visitors, tourists and inhabitants have used the stone as a resting place, as Margaret did on her journeys to and from the Queen's Ferry.

The Stone does not appear to have been moved from its original place until 1856 when, on the instructions of a road surveyor, it was relocated in order to widen the road at what is now Pitreavie Business Park. In 1879, funds were raised to preserve the ancient site. In November 1983, the stone was once again moved to make way for the Bank of Scotland development, where it rests today.

Sketch of St Margaret’s Stone in 1825

The associated farm of St. Margaret Stone had three outbuildings and a horse-engine. It has long since been demolished and stood roughly where the Business Park is today.

* The Stone has now been moved to Rosyth to allow for the development of the Industrial Estate and the Bank of Scotland Visa Centre, and also to have it on a site where visitors could view it more safely.

1856 map of St Margaret’s Stone area

St Margaret’s Stone, Dunfermline

Source: Images from The Northern Antiquarian

* Thanks to Frank Connelly of Old Dunfermline for the update on the Stone’s current location.