Ground Penetrating Radar
Date 4 March 2024 - 15 March 2024
Event ID 1193489
Category Recording
Type Ground Penetrating Radar
Permalink http://canmore.org.uk/event/1193489
NN 78153 01381 AOC Archaeology Group was commissioned to undertake an archaeological geophysical survey, using ground penetrating radar (GPR) to investigate the potential for buried archaeological remains at Dunblane Cathedral as part of wider research into the site. The survey area covers approximately 0.8ha covering all available areas of the graveyard and limited areas within the Cathedral.
Throughout the main survey area discrete responses indicative of burials have been detected. Additional, more amorphous areas of elevated response have also been noted. While of some of these appear to correspond with individual burials, other areas are more extensive suggesting a group of interments where individual burials cannot be determined. Some of the responses may be due to recumbent headstones.
In the southeast of the survey area trends suggests part of a possible enclosure extending SW-NE before turning and running southward on a NW-SE alignment. The orientation of this is comparable to that of the Tower and the Bishops Palace. Two groups of anomalies have been detected to the southwest and southeast of the Cathedral. Interpretation is cautious given the density of burials, but the possibility that these indicate remnants of structural remains cannot be excluded, particularly as their suggested alignment is broadly comparable to that of the tower and Bishops Palace. Immediately to the north of the Cathedral a group of unclear anomalies have been noted as having an unclear origin. These may simply be burials, but a structural origin cannot be wholly excluded. Survey within the Cathedral was limited due to time which resulted in only areas available at the time being surveyed. The hope was that significant responses crossing the survey areas would be detected. In the north of the Choir a well-defined response has been detected.
The limited survey width makes interpretation cautious but it suggests a possible linear feature aligned approximately NW-SE. However, whether this indicates structural remains associated with the earlier church, or simply a modern feature is unclear. A few additional discrete areas of increased response have been noted within the Cathedral. However, these have an unclear origin and could simply be due to natural / modern changes in the surface materials. Within the Choir strong parallel trends have been detected which are consistent with rebars or pipes.
Information from V. Hugget, M. Hall and S. Ovenden - AOC Archaeology Group.
OASIS ID: aocarcha1-524141
