Publication Account
Date 1985
Event ID 1016248
Category Descriptive Accounts
Type Publication Account
Permalink http://canmore.org.uk/event/1016248
The summit of Tun Law ends in a spectacular, precipitous cliff 150m above the sea. To say that the twin settlements are semi-oval, semi-circular or D-shaped is to ignore the likelihood of at least half of each structure lost through erosion-an indicator of the increasing attack of the sea over 2000 years and more.
The interior of the eastern enclosure, roughly 70m by 35m, is encircled by the remains of a single rampart with external ditch and an entrance at the west side. A further pair of ramparts was subsequently added, overridden in turn by a similar pair added to the western enclosure. This larger enclosure follows much the same pattern-a 55m diameter settlement perhaps, within a single wall (though apparently without a ditch), extended by the two further ramparts to a diameter of at least 80m.
Unlike the smaller settlement which provides no evidence of house sites, here traces have been found of at least nine circular stone foundations, all lying against the inner face of the innermost wall. Such stone-built houses often accompany Roman influence in south-east Scotland, and the evidence of excavated objects dated between 150 and 400 AD, suggests that Earn's Heugh, even if abandoned during the Roman period, was certainly occupied again until at least the late 4th century AD.
Coldingham Moor, commanding the coastal route north and south, has a high concentration of fortified settlements-at least ten within a 1.5km radius; there are other high concentrations along Bunkle Edge, commanding a fine prospect across the Merse and into Northumberland, and along the hills either side of Lauderdale, the even more important artery north.
Information from 'Exploring Scotland's Heritage: Lothian and Borders', (1985).
