"Cursing Stone" found in Scotland

fljustice · Post by **fljustice** » Sun May 20th, 2012, 4:21 pm

Early Christian artifact, but the article doesn't explain why the stones are called "cursing stones"--from description, I would think "prayer stone" to be more apt. Anyone have more information?

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-h ... s-18130259

annis · Post by **annis** » Mon May 21st, 2012, 2:44 am

Bulluan stones (as they are technically known) date from well before the Christian period, and appear to have always had some sort of magical or supernatural associations with healing and enhancing blessings and/or curses. They're at least Bronze Age in provenance and possibly neolithic.

It was one of those cases where pragmatic Christianity rather than forbidding their pagan use, just "Christianized" it instead - though you do get the impression that people carried on pretty much as usual, perhaps tossing in the odd prayer to a saint for good luck (some of those saints of course, like the Irish Brigid, were also originally pagan deities).

Madeleine · Post by **Madeleine** » Mon May 21st, 2012, 10:25 am

It must have been a fantastic moment when they realised the two stones fitted.

fljustice · Post by **fljustice** » Mon May 21st, 2012, 9:11 pm

Thanks, annis! I thought the article was horribly written, but the find sounded remarkable.

Alisha Marie Klapheke · Post by **Alisha Marie Klapheke** » Tue June 26th, 2012, 1:29 am

Cool! Hey, what is the approximate size of the stone?