Trial Trench

Date June 1981 - November 1981

Event ID 578190

Category Recording

Type Trial Trench

Permalink http://canmore.org.uk/event/578190

NS 904 795 to NS 906 795 In June and November 1981, the Wall and Military Way were traced by probing and supplimented by trenching from the embankment of the Edinburgh-Falkirk (Grahamstown) railway to the Callendar Park College lodge and were shown to follow a line different to that on current OS maps. The Wall was 4.5m wide and constructed of sandstone kerbs with a core of cut sandstone and natural cobbles and a superstructure of earth revetted by narrow turf cheeks 0.3m wide or slightly more.

L J F Keppie and J J Walker 1990; N B Rankov 1982.

NS 904 795 to NS 906 795 The Wall and Military Way were traced by probing from the embankment of the Edinburgh-Falkirk (Grahamstown) railway to the Callendar Park College lodge and were shown to follow a line different to that on current OS maps. The Military Way was excavated at two points. At the first it consisted of medium-sized cobbles bordered on the N by a carefully laid line if similar cobbles. A ridge of larger cobbles may mark its central line and suggests a width of c.6m, although it had been robbed away on the S. There was no flanking drainage channel. At the second point construction was similar, but there was no obvious or certain spine. Up to six post-settings 0.15m-0.25m wide and cut up to 0.1m into natural were found and appeared integral to the roadway. Their purpose is obscure. The road was about 15m from the Wall, though the former 'cut' the corner at the turn.

N B Rankov 1982.