Kiln interior, detail of blocked door leading to granary.

Description Kiln interior, detail of blocked door leading to granary.

Date 16/3/1998

Collection Records of the Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Scotland (RCAHMS), Edinbu

Catalogue Number D 23985

Category Photographs and Off-line Digital Images

Copies SC 742341

Scope and Content Detail of blocked door in kiln leading to granary, Sibster Mains Farm, Highland Sibster Mains Farm has a large steading arranged around a square courtyard, dating variously from the late 18th century to the mid- to late 19th century and into the 20th century. It is thus a fine example of agricultural development through three centuries and is particularly notable for its 18th-century kiln barn. This shows the blocked door leading to the granary inside the kiln. The kiln has a later doorway to the outside so this was probably the original entry and was changed to make the kiln more efficient. 'Graddaning' was a more primitive method of drying corn where women set fire to ears of a handful of corn and extinguish them when the chaff (husks) had burned off. When enough had been done the heap were put into a tub, in which the women trod it with their feet and rubbed it with their hands. This method survived into the 19th century in places like Skye and the Uists. Source: RCAHMS contribution to SCRAN.

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