Cat Stane

LocationEdinburgh

Coordinates55°57′17.28″N 3°21′52.2″W / 55.9548000°N 3.364500°W / 55.9548000; -3.364500

TypeMegalith

PeriodsBronze Age, Iron Age

The Cat Stane

The Cat Stane The Cat Stane in Scotland
Location	Edinburgh
Coordinates	55°57′17.28″N 3°21′52.2″W / 55.9548000°N 3.364500°W / 55.9548000; -3.364500
Type	Megalith
History
Periods	Bronze Age, Iron Age
Cultures	Votadini, Gododdin, Picts
Site notes
Archaeologists	Edward Lhuyd
Ownership	Edinburgh Airport
Scheduled monument
Official name	Catstane, inscribed stone and long cist cemetery 690m E of Carlowrie
Designated	18 August 1882
Reference no.	SM1183

The Cat Stane, or Catstane, is an inscribed standing stone near Kirkliston, on the outskirts of Edinburgh, in Scotland. It bears a fragmentary inscription dating to the fifth or sixth centuries and was part of a funerary complex consisting of the stone itself, a cairn and a series of cist burials.^[1]

The stone's Latin inscription is interpreted as a dedication to a deceased woman whose remains were interred near the stone. Dates have been ascribed to the stone and its inscription by considering the script used and the results of several excavations conducted in modern times.

The stone appears to have been erected in the Bronze Age while the inscription was added in the fifth or sixth centuries AD. During the latter period the area around modern Edinburgh was controlled by the nation known as either the Votadini or the Gododdin.

The Cat Stane now lies within the perimeter of Edinburgh Airport, making it impossible for the general public to access it. Nearby is the confluence of the Gogar Burn and the River Almond. The stone is a scheduled monument.^[2]