The Vacomagi were east of the Highlands and north of the Forth.
The Vacomagi were a people of ancient Scotland, known only from a single mention of them by the geographerClaudius Ptolemy (AD c.100–c.170).[a] Their principal places are known from Ptolemy's map c.150 of Albion island of Britannia – from the First Map of Europe.[1][Web 1]
The Vacomagi were a confederacy of smaller tribes, each one a separate polity with its own hierarchy of leaders. According to the data collected by Ptolemy,[b] the Vacomagi were spread over a wide area between the Moray Firth and the Firth of Forth; to the east of the Cairngorms and north of the Clyde–Forthisthmus.[c]
Name
Terminology
..."Warriors from Northern Briton fought naked and used narrow shields, a spear and a sword...[2]
The term Vacomagi was used by the Romans to distinguish between those Caledonians whose territory was in the lower plains to the east of the Grampian Mountains, from the Caledonii whose territory was in the Highland glens further west. Ptolemy's map is the only classical source to mention the Vacomagi by name; other classical sources generally used a generic term, for example Britons or Caledonians.[d]
Terminology — from 2nd century AD to 4th century AD:[e]
The Picts (descendants of the Vacomagi)[j] are reported to have believed in the magi – people with supernatural powers; for example the magus Broichan, who was alleged to have the ability to influence the weather.[k][l]
The principal places of the Vacomagi are known only from Ptolemy's map of Albion island of Britannia – from the First Map of Europe.[Web 1]
The historian Graham Robb has used scaling factors to compensate for the anomaly whereby Scotland appears to tip wildly into the North Sea,
in order to determine the possible locations:[n][o] Robb has calculated that Tamia and Bannatia were further south than previously thought,[p] probably on the Tay and Forth respectively. It might be expected that those settlements were near maritime navigation routes, since most of Ptolemy's data originated from seafarer's travel records.
It has in the past been conjectured that Tuesis was the Romano-British name for the River Spey,[r][s] however historian Graham Robb has calculated that Tuesis was further east, possibly the Burnfield camp on the River Deveron.[n]
Etymology
The name element esis (or isis) may derive from eíschusis (*eis-sis)[u] translated from Ptolemy’s ancient Greek text.[s]
The inscription is a list of the Roman fort's on Hadrian's Wall. The last fort on the list is Æsica (Great Chesters); the name derives from Esus (or Æsus).[ad]
A pottery mould that is believed to depict the Gaulish deity Taranis was found at the CoriaRoman fort near Hexham.[ae]
Similar moulds were used to create relief decoration for fine pottery.[af]
Tamia
The historian Graham Robb has calculated that Tamia was possibly near the city of Perth.[n] It has been conjectured that the Bertha Roman fort near the River Almond – Tay confluence was originally called Tamia, derived from a native name for the River Tay.[t]
Inchtuthil and Carpow
Inchtuthil and Carpow were both Roman legionary fortresses – based on the River Tay – the only legionary fortresses north of Hadrian's Wall, and therefore of strategic importance. However Inchtuthil was only occupied for a short while, and Carpow was occupied much later, from the late second century AD until the early third century AD. It is not known if there was a base at Carpow when data was collected for Ptolemy's map.
It has been conjectured that the name element Tam may derive from a Sanskrit word meaning "dark water".[ai][aj]
Another possibility is that Tam is the nickname of a Celtic god, goddess or deity. It is known that the Celts worshipped rivers, and gave votive offerings.[ak][al][am][an]
The Romano-British name for the Tay – Taus – may derive from Tanarus (Ta---us) – god of thunder.[ao][ap]
God of thunder
Taranis (or Tanarus) with wheel and thunderbolt, Le Chatelet, Gourzon, Haute-Marne, France
The name variant Tanarus (for the Gaulish deity Taranis) shows an interesting reversal of the letters 'R' and 'N' – a reconstruction that is possibly mirrored in several river names:[aq]
The name element Tam is possibly a contraction of Gaulishtaram ("thunder").[as]
There is a natural association between thunder – rain – rivers.
Votive offerings
Watery places – including rivers, lakes and wetlands – had a special significance for Celtic people in Western Europe during the Iron Age. Many precious objects, found in watery places, are believed to have been votive offerings – to gods and goddesses.[at][au]
Votive offerings may have been symbolic; possibly a shout for help:[av]
A shield may have been a request for help to defend the tribe from an aggressor.
A cauldron may have been a request for help to prevent a famine.
The Battersea Shield is possibly one of the most important examples of Iron Age art and craftsmanship ever found in Britain. It was found at an ancient crossing point of the Thames, and is believed to have been a votive offering.[aw][ax]
The Gundestrup cauldron, found in Denmark, is another outstanding example of Iron Age art and craftsmanship.
Interior plate C The bust of a bearded man, possibly Taranis, holding a broken wheel.
The internal plates depict imagery possibly associated with gods and deities:[ay]
Interior plate C – The Gaulish deity Taranis – god of thunder.[ba][bb]
The horned god Cernunnos is known primarily from Pillar of the Boatmen, which also includes a dedication to the Gaulish deity Esus – god of the river. Taranis and Esus were famously associated with the deity Toutatis in the poem Pharsalia by the Roman poet Lucan.[bc]
The area around Stirling was historically known as Manau (or Manaw Gododdin).[bh] This area has always been strategically important because of its location just north of the Clyde–Forthisthmus.[bi]
The Battle of Mons Graupius took place in 83 or 84 AD between the Roman army and a coalition of Vacomagi, Caledonii and other native tribes.[bj] The combined might of the Roman army resulted in a decisive victory for the Roman general Agricola.[bk]
The Mither Tap of Bennachie is possibly ? Mons Graupius.
The location of the battle ("Graupius mountain") has never been convincingly identified, however most historians agree that it was somewhere east of the Highlands and north of the Forth (in other words – Vacomagi territory – or thereabouts). Some historians believe that Bennachie, near Inverurie in Aberdeenshire, might have been a possible location.[bl]
During the previous years the Roman advance had destroyed farms and crops;[bn] this had probably been worse for the Vacomagi, whose territory was in the lower plains to the east – than for the Caledonii, whose territory in the Highland glens was more protected.[bo]
..."More than 30,000 armed men were now to be seen, and still there were pressing in all the youth of the country, with all whose old age was yet hale and vigorous, men renowned in war and bearing each decorations of his own. — Tacitus (AD c.56–c.120)[bq]
The Roman historian Tacitus gave us this account:
[br]
..."Having sent on a fleet, which by its ravages at various points might cause a vague and wide-spread alarm, he advanced with a lightly equipped force,[bs] including in its ranks some Britons of remarkable bravery, whose fidelity had been tried through years of peace, as far as Mons Graupius,[bt] which the enemy had already occupied.
..."For the Britons, indeed, in no way cowed by the result of the late engagement, had made up their minds to be either avenged or enslaved, and convinced at length that a common danger must be averted by union, had, by embassies and treaties, summoned forth the whole strength of all their states.[bj] ..."More than 30,000 armed men...
..."Meanwhile, among the many leaders, one superior to the rest in valour and in birth, Calgacus by name, is said to have thus harangued the multitude gathered around him and clamouring for battle...
— Tacitus (AD c.56–c.120)
A Roman altar found in Chester, AD 1653, may provide evidence that the Legio XX worshipped the Gaulish deity Taranis, but using the variant name Tanarus. There is a natural association between Tanarus – God of thunder – rain and rivers.[bv]
It is possible that the Water of Tanar – in Glen Tanar – derives its name from the Gaulish deity Tanarus. At the entrance to Glen Tanar is the Bridge o' Ess, suggesting that this part of the river was previously known as the Ess (or Esk, a common river name) possibly derived from the Gaulish deity Esus – God of the river.[aa] The Tanar rises on the north side of Mount Keen, the most easterly of the Scottish Munro's.
Mount Keen is in a geographic area known as The Mounth, an expanse of high plateau that extends west to east from the Cairngorms across to the North Sea coast. It forms a physical barrier to north-south travel – historians sometimes refer to The Mounth in the context of it being a geo-political border that historically separated the north and south of Pictland.[bw][bx]
Mount Keen is also part of a range of hills that defined the west to east boundary between the former regions of Grampian and Tayside.
The Mounth Road is a high level track that connects Glen Esk (south of the Mounth) with Aboyne on the River Dee (north of the Mounth). The track traverses the west flank of Mount Keen before descending down into Glen Tanar. Historically the Mounth Road connected the north and south of Pictland.
Monadh Caoin
It is possible that the people who gave Mount Keen its Scottish Gaelic name ("Monadh Caoin") had a good understanding of its human history. Important historic events were rarely recorded in written form but were regaled over and over in the form of stories or poems passed down from generation to generation.[by][bz]
See also Wiktionary:
Scottish Gaelic <monadh> ...Possibly borrowed from Pictish
The Vacomagi were a confederacy of smaller tribes, each one a separate polity with its own hierarchy of leaders. According to the data collected by Ptolemy, the Vacomagi were spread out over a wide area between the Moray Firth and the Firth of Forth; to the east of the Cairngorms and north of the Clyde–Forthisthmus. This area was also occupied by neighbouring tribes:
They were probably hunter-gatherer's who also kept animals and grew crops – it was reported that during the Roman advance, prior to the Battle of Mons Graupius, there had been destruction to farm land. They probably lived in traditional roundhouse dwellings.
3rd century
By the late 2nd century – early 3rd century, only two tribes are known (from classical sources) to have occupied the original territory of the Vacomagi:[ca]
It has been conjectured that the Vacomagi and other tribes realigned their allegiances towards two main polities, those of the Caledones and Maeatae, in order to better coordinate their defence against the Romans.[cc]
7th century
It was only by about the late 7th century that the descendants of the Vacomagi and Caledones became the contiguous group that we now know as the Picts, with a unique language, culture and identity, and ruled by a single Pictish king.[cd] The term Picti (first recorded AD c.297) was used in classical sources to distinguish between those Celtic Tribes in Northern Britain who were Romanised[ce] – from those who were outside the Roman rule of law.[cf]
Archaeology
Roman altar dedicated to Jupiter Tanarus
I · O · M · TANARO T · ELVPIVS · GALER PRAESENS · GVNTA PRI · LEG · XX V V COMMODO · ET LATERANO COS · V · S · L · M[RIB 1] — Inscription from altar
A red sandstone altar dedicated to Jupiter—Tanarus by the Legio XX Valeria Victrix was found in Foregate Street, Chester, 1653 AD.[RIB 1]
The inscription on the altar was in poor condition when it was found in 1653 and deteriorated further while being used as a garden feature before it was given to Oxford University in 1675.[Web 3]
Tanarus is believed to be a variant name for the Gaulish deity Taranis;[35][ch] one of the triad of Gaulishdeities mentioned in the poem Pharsalia by the Roman poet Lucan.[z][aa] Another example of a dedication on stone to Tanarus, by a Gaul named Vebroumarus, was found at Orgon, Bouches du Rhone, France.[36]
^Other classical sources did not mention the Vacomagi by name, but used a generic term, for example Britons or Caledonians. See Contents > Name > Terminology
^There has been much speculation about the locations of the places mentioned.
^Noble and Evans – The Picts... ..."The term Caledones – or the earlier Caledonii – does not occur frequently in the ancient era but the related adjective Caledonia, 'Caledonian', ...is common in classical sources...in relation to the inhabitants living north of the Firth of Forth...[4]
^ ab The term Picti was first recorded in AD c.297.[5]
^Neil Oliver – Ancient Britain ..."The Picts were descendants of those native tribes that had refused to co-operate with the Romans, preferring to fight and make mischief for the invaders instead...[6]
^Noble and Evans – The Picts... Chapter 4 – From pagan magi to early mediaeval saints ..."Columba battles with King Bridei's magus Broichan, who claims to be able to control the weather...the pagan magi are of course depicted in a less than glowing light...malicious, taunting, controlled by the "art of the devils" ...[7]
^See Broichan > ...Broichan used his magic to summon the weather against Columba
^Sally M. Foster – Picts, Gaels and Scots ..."Forts and coastal promontories...What may be one of the earliest power bases in Pictland is also the largest...the coastal promontory fort at Burghead, Moray...important naval base for the Picts from as far back as the late Roman period...it may even be Ptolemy's Pinnata Castra...[10]
^ abcdAlan G. James – The Brittonic Language... < *tew >..."Ptolemy’s Toúesis [eíschusis]...is not the Tweed, perhaps the Spey...
[11]
^ abTim Clarkson – Perth and Bertha ..."Roman fort at the mouth of the Almond...The original Roman name was probably Tamia, derived from a native name for the River Tay ...[Web 2]
^ See Esus > Name ...root *eis-, 'well-being, energy, passion'.
^ abMiranda Aldhouse-Green – Dictionary of Celtic Myth and Legend <Esus> ..."The Roman poet Lucan described in a poem, the Pharsalia
...the journey of Caesar's troops through southern Gaul and their encounter with three Gaulish gods: Taranis, Toutatis and Esus...(Pharsalia I, 444-6)...Lucan describes this triad as cruel, savage and demanding of human sacrifice...[13]
^Alan G. James – The Brittonic Language... < *Ẹ:s >..."Latinised as Esus, Æsus, Hesus....the fort-name Æsica or Esica...on Hadrian’s Wall at Great Chesters
...is pretty certainly formed from the Latinised name + the Celtic adjectival suffix –icā-...[11]
^P. H. Reaney – English Place Names ..."The earliest forms of Thames, Tamesa, Tamesis
...adopted by the Anglo-Saxons as Tamis, Temes..."The common ME Tamise is a French form, as is the modern spelling with the French Th– for T– (Thamis 1220) ...[15]
^P H Reaney – English Place Names ..."The name is considered to be related to the SanskritTamasa ("dark water"), the name of a tributary of the River Ganges
...[15]
^P H Reaney – English Place Names ..."That the Celts worshipped rivers is suggested by the name of the
French Marne, Gaulish Matrona 'mother'. The Matronae were the Gaulish mother-goddesses ...[16]
^P H Reaney – English Place Names ..."Dee, earlier Deva, is from Brittonic dēvā 'the goddess', 'the holy one', an interpretation confirmed by the Welsh name Aerfen 'the goddess of war'...[16]
^Noble and Evans – The Picts... ..."Indeed, Gildas, writing in the first half of the 6th century, stated that, in the past, people in Britain[17]
..."heaped divine honours on mountains, hills and rivers..."
Name and etymology ...The Gaulish word for thunder has been preserved in Gascon taram.
^ Alice Roberts – The Celts... ..."Its a world shrouded in mystery, where watery places held sacred significance – where swords and shields were thrown into rivers, huge cauldrons thrown into lakes, and the bodies of kings, slain as sacrifices, were consigned to bogs ...[19]
^ Neil Oliver – Wisdom of the Ancients ..."Tamasa...Thames...Its waters were made a final resting place for precious things –
weapons and jewellery sacrificed in the hope of kindness or reward from benevolent gods and goddesses ...[20]
^ Neil Oliver – Wisdom of the Ancients Battersea Shield..."It shows no signs of having being used in any fight and was, in all likelihood, made only as a votive offering by a warlord intent on giving thanks, or else asking for help...perhaps soon after some or other triumph, or in the face of disaster ...[21]
^ Neil Oliver – Wisdom of the Ancients
..."The artists who created the Battersea Shield worked in a world still in thrall to gods and goddesses. With their skill, they spun a story of their own,
written in flowing shapes and wine-dark stones ...[22]
^ Alice Roberts – The Celts... ..."One of the internal plates of the cauldron shows a god with antlers, perhaps the horned god Cernunnos, or Hern the Hunter. He sits cross-legged, and wears a torc around his neck ...[23]
^ Alice Roberts – The Celts... ..."Other images on the inner surface
...the bust of a bearded man holding a broken wheel ...[23]
^This area was later inhabited by the Maeatae tribe.
^Noble and Evans – The Picts... ..."the inhabitants of the Maiatai territory...continued to speak
...Brittonic – a P-Celtic language, from which modern Welsh...descended ..."The use of Brittonic as far north as the Ochils was perhaps due to...connections with southern neighbours...[24]
^ Keith Coleman – Áedán of the Gaels... ..."The area around Stirling comprised some of the land in the territory known as Manau[25]
^ Keith Coleman – Áedán of the Gaels... ..."The area of Manau and its surroundings was an area of immense strategic value, fought over repeatedly in the Early Medieval period by Britons, Scots, Irish and Picts...[26]
^ abAlistair Moffat – Scotland, A History... ..."It seems that the kindreds of Scotland beyond the Forth had come together to form a confederacy...[27]
^Guy de la Bédoyère – Roman Britain ..."At the Battle of Mons Graupius in AD 83 or 84,
Agricola had all, or most, of the IX and XX legions with him. Tacitus says that he also had 8,000 auxiliary infantry and 3,000 auxiliary cavalry...we have...11,000 legionaries...11,000 auxiliaries...The auxiliary cavalry were decisive...it was never necessary to order the legionaries to take part...[28]
^Alistair Moffat – Scotland, A History...
..."destruction to farmland and harvest caused by the Roman advance...[27]
^Alistair Moffat – Scotland, A History... ..."Unless they were surprised, sensible farmers and their families will have fled into the hills and high ground where their beasts were summering...[29]
^The Roman historian Tacitus (AD c.56–c.120) possibly exaggerated his estimate in order to emphasise the success of the Roman army:[27]
..."Already more than 30,000 armed men could be observed – Tacitus
^Alistair Moffat – Scotland, A History... ..."Probably in the summer of AD 83, a year after the attack on the IX Legion...Agricola led his army north...hoping to force the Caledonians into a pitched battle....[27]
^There is a river called Tanaro in north-west Italy, historically part of Gaul.
^Sally M. Foster – Picts, Gaels and Scots Glossary – Mounth ..."The traditional boundary between the northern and southern Picts...[30]
^Alistair Moffat – Scotland, A History... ..."As the 8th century opened...Bridei was succeeded by his brother Nechtan who reigned between 706 and 724 and probably established himself as Rex Pictorum, High King of all the kindreds north and south of the Mounth...[31]
^ Keith Coleman – Áedán of the Gaels... ..."Early professional story tellers were highly honoured and
peripatetic, carrying tales from one kingdom to another...The filíd, or poets, had to learn a rota of primary and secondary tales ...[32]
^ Keith Coleman – Áedán of the Gaels... ..."According to medieval Irish manuscripts, the highest grade of poets had to commit to memory 250 major tales and 350 minor ones...the audience for these primary tales were chieftains and kings. They were classified as:[32]
^ Sally M. Foster – Picts, Gaels and Scots ..."In the Classical sources at least two main internal divisions in this un-Romanised population are referred to:[33]
^ Noble and Evans – The Picts... ..."As elsewhere on Roman frontiers, one result of the Roman presence may have been the amalgamation of polities bordering Roman Britain, into fewer but larger units. While describing the major Roman campaigns ...north of Hadrian's Wall from AD 208–211 ...Cassius Dio ...noted that:[34]
..."the names of other British groups had been merged into these two main polities...
^Sally M. Foster – Picts, Gaels and Scots ..."If we follow James Fraser (2009), the political birth of the picts as a single people ruled by a single king does not take place until the late 7th century...[5]
^Neil Oliver – Ancient Britain ..."To the south were the Britons ...those tribes that had chosen to accept Roman rule. Their territory was spread between fortresses like Din Eidyn – Edinburgh – in the east
and Alt Clut...Dumbarton Rock, in the west ...[6]
^Sally M. Foster – Picts, Gaels and Scots ..."The appearance of the term Picti[h] cannot be used to infer that the Picts were a nation or uniform people prior to the end of the 3rd century...on the contrary, the Romans were simply distinguishing the inhabitants of Britain who had changed by becoming Romanised(Britones) from those to the north who had not...[5]
^Gerard Langbaine (1608–1658) ..."Thank you for communicating that inscription from Chester which I easily read thus
[Web 3]
..."jovi Optimo Maximo Tanaro...
^Roman-Britain – Chester (Deva) Roman Fortress Legio Vicesimae Valeria Victrix RIB 452 - Altar dedicated to Jupiter Tanarus Commentary ..."Clunia, in Hispania Tarraconensis ..."For photographs ...and a discussion of the cult of Tanarus/Taranis ...see Green...[35][Web 4]
^
A famous example of a conflation of deities is the Temple of Sulis–Minerva, part of the Aquae Sulis Roman Baths.
^Neil Oliver – Ancient Britain ..."The local goddess Sulis ...concerned with healing, wisdom and insight ...Roman deity Minerva ...medicine, wisdom and magic ...Romans combined the two – creating a goddess called Sulis–Minerva...[38]
