The Book of Deer

 The Book of Deer, the oldest Scottish illuminated manuscript, was written by monks of the Deer Monastery during the 10th century. The monastery, reported to be somewhere in Aberdeenshire, is now lost to antiquity and has been the subject of searches since 2008.

A decade after the search started in earnest a team working on excavations of ruins found a disk of stone. Markings etched on to the stone identified it as a gaming board. The design suggested it was used to play many of the games that were popular in Ireland and Scandinavia during medieval times. The board was carbon dated to 7th and 8th centuries.

Before it’s discovery there was little proof of any inhabitants in the area before the 10th century. And while it doesn’t prove the monastery is there it does prove there was civilization in the area leading up to the time line of when the monastery would have been inhabited and it is a wonderful piece of history itself.

Sourced from a BBC news article.