Portmahomack is a small fishing village in Easter Ross, Scotland. Situated about 10 miles east of Tain on the Tarbat Peninsula, Portmahomack has long been known to be on the site of early settlements. The original evidence of habitation was provided by "shell middens" pointing to settlement as early as one or two thousand years BCE.
Recently, excavations by Professor Martin Carver of York University, have revealed that Portmahomack is the site of the first Pictish monastry ever discovered. Evidence points to major religious settlement in the seventh century.
Today, Portmahomack is a tourist destination with its traditional harbour, swimming beach, golf, dolphin watching, fishing and other watersports.
The permanent population is between 500 and 600 residents.
There are the remains of an Iron Age broch a little to the west of the village, and aerial photography has revealed cropmarks of a large ditched enclosure centring on the former parish church.
Recently, excavations by Professor Martin Carver of the University of York, have confirmed Portmahomack is the site of a major Pictish monastery, probably a daughter house of Iona.
Some important Pictish carved stones from Portmahomack are on display in the Museum of Scotland, Edinburgh (replicas in the Tarbat Discovery Centre).
Portmahomack (Scottish Gaelic: Port Mo-Chalmáig) is a small fishing village in Easter Ross, Scotland.
Recently, excavations by Professor Martin Carver of the University of York (Carver, 2006), have confirmed Portmahomack is the site of a major Pictish monastery, probably a daughter house of Iona.
The unusually large elaborate late 17th/early 18th bell-turret on the west gable of the church is an unusual and distinctive feature.
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