Publication Account
Date 1985
Event ID 1016615
Category Descriptive Accounts
Type Publication Account
Permalink http://canmore.org.uk/event/1016615
Like the west flank of Hadrian's Wall, along the Cumbrian coast, the western flank of the Antonine frontier was protected by a series of stations along the south Clyde coast. The first was a fort at Bishopton, situated on the south bank of the Clyde opposite the end of the Wall at Old Kilpatrick; the second, and best preserved of the series, is this fortlet on Lurg Moor (for the third see Outerwards, no. 77). Rectangular on plan, the fortlet measures 43m by 49m over a turf rampart accompanied by an outer ditch; on the east and west where the defences are particularly well-preserved, the bottom of the ditch is up to 2m below the crest of the rampart. The single entrance lies on the south and, leading out of it for a distance of 100m, there is a causeway 4.5m wide, which probably represents the remains of the road leading towards the next fortlet at Outerwards (no. 77).
Although no excavation has been carried out on this site, several sherds of Antonine pottery have been found immediately outside the fortlet, and there is little doubt that it dates to the Antonine period. The internal arrangements were probably similar to those at Outerwards with a pair of wooden buildings providing accommodation for a small permanent garrison.
Information from ‘Exploring Scotland’s Heritage: The Clyde Estuary and Central Region’, (1985).
