Birnie Kirk

Before the construction of Birnie, the site was known to have been the original seat of the Bishops of Moray. Simon de Tosnay, the fourth bishop, was buried in the church in 1184. Birnie was a commune kirk of the Cathedral of Elgin. There are no remnants of the earlier church, but the oval churchyard suggests the shape of am early Christian enclosure. for weekly Evening Prayer and monthly Mass.

Birnie Parish Kirk is a rare 12th century Norman parish church located 4 km south of Elgin, in Moray, Scotland. Birnie is one of the oldest churches in continual use in Moray. It is thought that the Norman building was built to replace an earlier, 6th century, Celtic kirk. The presence of a Pictish symbol stone suggests Birnie had been a pre-Christian holy site from very much earlier. It is constructed of aislar (ashlar), a finely cut freestone. The building is rectangular with a square, short chancel, which is separated from the nave by a rounded Norman chancel arch. The nave was shortened in 1734 when the wall was rebuilt, and the kirk was later restored in 1891. In the chancel is what is…