Abstract.
The Loch, or Sea, of Spynie was once very much larger than the mere remnant of today. Its importance to the early settlers in this part of the province of Moray is without question and has, over the years, been studied in some detail. However, its enormous importance to the development of religious communities, from the era of the Early Church, through the Mediaval Period, to the Reformation, is less well understood and has received little concerted study. Recent, highly-publicised, projects such as that at Portmahomack, have tended to divert the attention of academics and students elsewhere, to some, suggesting that the centre of Early Christian activity was not in Moray.
Here we present a series of notes and suggestions which seek to fill some of the gaps in the corpus of knowledge relating to Spynie Loch, which is now actively growing, and also to provide some pointers towards areas which deserve further study - particulary now that we have vastly more advanced research techniques at our disposal. In so doing, we hope to remind the research community that in both societal and ecclesiastical terms, the importance of this part of Morayshire should not be neglected and should become the prime focus of future studies.
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