Inchmarnock

The island's name is an anglicisation of the Gaelic Innis Mheàrnaig meaning Island of Marnock. Marnock, (Old Irish M'Ernóc, 'My [i.e. 'Saint'] Little Ernán) was a holy man who lived on the island in the 7th century and established a monastery. Alternatively, the name may simply be a dedication to Ernán and reflect the patron saint the monks on the island followed. He has also lent his name to a number of other locations: At the northern end of the island a Bronze Age cist contains the remains of a female skeleton, the Queen of the Inch. The remains were removed for carbon dating and are now displayed behind a pane of glass in their original position. A report in 2019 stated that the island…

The Inchmarnock Project was a seven-year study, commencing in 1999, of the archaeology and history of the island from the earliest times down to the Improvements of the late 18th and early 19th centuries. It was undertaken by Headland Archaeology and funded by Lord Smith of Kelvin, the owner of Inchmarnock. Within this long chronology of activity some periods are better represented than others, but the highlight of the project was the excavation in and around the medieval church which lies in the stack-yard at Midpark. Excavation to the north of St Marnock's church revealed the remains of what is interpreted as an early monastic enclosure, together with a number of workshops and an…