Archaeological Evaluation

Date 2018

Event ID 1122535

Category Recording

Type Archaeological Evaluation

Permalink http://canmore.org.uk/event/1122535

HY 711 375 A large evaluation trench was opened over the western half of the Neolithic chambered tomb at Tresness, Sanday in 2018.

A well-preserved cairn was uncovered which appears to survive to a height of 1.5 metres. No material was excavated although there were a number of stone tools found on top of the cairn. The trench also incorporated the chamber, revealing the remains of a stalled chamber surviving to roof height but with the roof slabs displaced. The entirety of the chamber was filled with loose slabs which were excavated to a depth of approximately 1m. However, it became clear that to the south of the chamber there had been considerable interference - possibly the insertion of a souterrain in the Iron Age. In this area the walls and stalls of the chambered tomb had been removed. Running E-W across the chamber was a poorly-built wall. The presence of a souterrain at the southern end of the chamber would explain the remains visible on the ground, including the smashed stalls found in the eroding section to the south. The chambered cairn to the north, however, appears to be well-preserved.

Archive: NHRE (intended)

Funder: Orkney Islands Council

Vicky Cummings – University of Central Lancashire and UHI

(Source: DES Vol 20)