St Serf’s Church, Culross

St Serf’s Church, Culross

Although Culross only enters the written record in the 1200s, it is clear from archaeological evidence that a community had existed there long before that date. The burgh’s early religious history is associated with St Serf, an important local saint with dedications across Western Fife, Kinross and Clackmannanshire. Culross was the centre of his cult, with relics of the saint housed at the Cistercian Abbey (1217), and presumably the religious building that preceded the abbey. There are a number of conflicting legends surrounding the date of Serf’s life, ranging from the fifth to the eight centuries. Regardless of the accuracy of these various accounts, it is clear that a religious community of some form was located at Culross from at least the eighth century.

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tt27@st-andrews.ac.uk

Site

188

16/09/2021

1) Alan Macquarrie, ‘Vita Sancti Servani: The Life of St Serf’, Innes Review 44:2, (1993), 122-152, 2) Simon Taylor & Gilbert Markus, The Place-Names of Fife. Volume One. West Fife between Leven and Forth (Donington, 2006)

cm x cm x cm

current,56.058311834480335,-3.6252593993049236;

St Serf’s Church, Culross

TEXT

Building

1