Pre-Romanesque Irish chapels in Scandinavian Scotland: international building typologies and the pagan gap

ABSTRACT This paper will reconsider the evidence relating to ecclesiastical buildings in Atlantic Scotland which have been ascribed to various early medieval constructional dates on the basis of Irish comparanda and historical accounts associated with Scandinavian settlement. Critical discussion will consider how archaeological, architectural, historical, and independent dating evidence have been used at different times to present consistent narratives for these buildings, and how recent investigations at Teampull Ronain (North Rona) and St Columba’s Shrine (Iona) might inform these international typologies.