Field Visit

Date 9 November 2016

Event ID 1015688

Category Recording

Type Field Visit

Permalink http://canmore.org.uk/event/1015688

HES Special Survey 2016

This stone circle, which is situated on a natural terrace in rough peaty pasture immediately above and to the E of a gully confining the Wildshaw Burn, is oval on plan and measures 50m from NNE to SSW by 40m transversely. Twenty-three stones now define its outline, but only three remain standing (11, 13 and 21) and there are notable gaps in its circuit. Ten of the stones that have fallen lie below the present ground surface (9, 10, 12, 14, 16-19, 22), but like many of the others (4-8, 11, 13, 15, 20-21, 23) they are disclosed within cut-outs from the peat up to 0.25m deep. The upright stones vary between 0.3m (11, 13) and 0.5m (21) in height, while the fallen stones vary between 0.83m (2) and 1.8m (15) in length. All appear to be of the same fine-grained igneous rock, but their size and shape does not seem to be related to their position in the ring in any meaningful way. There is no indication as to how they were erected, but the small size of some and the fact that so many have fallen indicates that their sockets must be shallow. One of the stones has been deliberately split (5), which implies that the gaps in the circuit may result from robbing. The ring's interior, which slopes gently SW, is entirely featureless; and although it enjoys an extensive outlook clockwise from E to NW, the view is foreshortened elsewhere by the rising ground.

The isolated stones situated respectively 30m ENE and 260m NW of the stone circle were not located on the date of visit (Ward 1990c), but there seems no reason to suppose that they should be linked with it.

Visited by HES, Survey and Recording (ATW, GFG), 9 November 2016