Watching Brief

Date 20 November 2007

Event ID 575866

Category Recording

Type Watching Brief

Permalink http://canmore.org.uk/event/575866

NO 639 429 A watching brief was maintained on 20 November 2007 during the excavation of 18 postholes for a new boundary fence and the removal of an earth bank at the rear of the property. 0.6m of rich dark brown

garden soil was recorded in each posthole and the earth bank was composed of a similar soil, indicating that the site may have been levelled and landscaped using soil from the market garden that once existed in the area, following the destruction of a nearby cottage by fire in the late 20th century. The earth bank contained building debris from the demolished cottage including large, dressed sandstone blocks. Nothing of archaeological significance was found in the postholes.

A watching brief was undertaken February 2008 during excavations for a septic tank, a soak-away and a trench to connect the septic tank to the back of the museum. Up to 2m of dark brown silt and below this natural grey boulder clay were recorded to a depth of up to 3m. Nothing of archaeological interest was found.

A watching brief was also maintained during the exposure of a stone believed to be a Pictish symbol stone built into the external S wall of St Vigeans Church. A small amount of 15th-century wall fabric and lime mortar was removed from above and below the stone, revealing a carved surface over the underside and back edge of the stone. A deep groove in the extreme W edge of the stone indicated that the stone was a recumbent slab. This was also suggested by the uncarved rough upper face of the stone which would once have been face down in the ground, possibly against a wall with the carved back edge of the stone on display and possibly a wooden or stone upright in the deep groove. The stone was exposed to reveal the extent and character of the

carving but it was not removed from the wall.

Sarah Hogg 2008

Sponsor: Historic Scotland

Kirkdale Archaeology