Learn about Fife's Pictish past with Wemyss Caves virtual programme

A trench in Court Cave in front of some of the Pictish carvings

Tours of the Wemyss Caves may not currently be running due to the pandemic, however volunteers at Save Wemyss Ancient Caves Society (SWACS) have been busy dreaming up new ways of continuing their work.

Instead of a physical tour of the caves, which are famous for the ancient carvings that adorn their walls with many of them dating to Pictish times, they have already run a very successful virtual tour of the caves and a follow-up question and answer session.

Now they are preparing for their next event this weekend.

On Sunday, May 3 archaeologist Jo Hambly, of SWACS and SCAPE Trust, will give a talk online about recent archaeological discoveries at the caves, featuring the results from the 2019 community excavations.

Last summer a team of volunteers from SWACS in partnership with the SCAPE Trust, University of St Andrews and with contributions from the University of Aberdeen carried out archaeological excavations in the Court Cave, Doo Cave and Sliding Cave, and the promontory adjacent to MacDuff’s Castle.

The investigations have shed new light on the timing and nature of the activities in the caves during the period when the Pictish symbols may have been carved.

They have also revealed new information about the medieval uses of the caves and thrown up more mysteries to ponder.

The presentation can be viewed on the SWACS Facebook page on Sunday at 2pm

Further virtual events are planned by the volunteers in May, including a repeat of Jo Hambly’s talk on Sunday, May 17 and more virtual tours once a fortnight from Sunday, May 24 onwards.

The tours will be themed to explore various aspects of the caves, for example one concentrating on the Picts, one on local traditions and legends and one on the Victorian exploration of the caves.

To find out more, or to view the virtual tour or Jo Hambly’s talk on Sunday visit the SWACS Facebook page:

www.facebook.com/SaveWemyssAncientCavesSociety/

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