Monk’s Stone
One of the most tangible links to Shetland’s early Christian past is the Monk’s Stone found in the churchyard at Papil on Burra Isle, Shetland.
It probably dates from the eighth century (the time of St Bede and the Golden Age of Lindisfarne) and shows five monks, one on horseback and four on foot. The first one is carrying what looks like a portable altar or a gospel book. They are walking towards a carved cross which they would have set up to indicate a place to gather.
This stone is now in the Lerwick museum.