Excavation

Date 2008

Event ID 578986

Category Recording

Type Excavation

Permalink http://canmore.org.uk/event/578986

This was the third year of the Viking Unst project which incorporates the excavation of Viking longhouses at Hamar, Belmont and Underhoull. Work at Hamar and Underhoull was drawn to a conclusion, with a further season proposed for Belmont.

HP 5734 0435 - Underhoull Upper House, Westings - This season assessment trenches excavated in 2007 were extended. It is now known that the Upper House is quite similar in plan to the original house excavated at

Underhoull (Small 1966), with two annexes on the southern (seaward) side of the building. Investigation of the structure showed that it was constructed with a stone frontage on the southern long wall and western gable, while the northern upslope side had a turf and stone construction with a gully running along the northern long wall. The southern side of the building faces down slope and towards the sea and so would be the most exposed face. The southern side is also the most likely direction of access to the structure. The two annexes flank the entrance on the southern side and there are areas of flagging here also.

The upper part of the house had a floor constructed partly of flagstones and partly of the natural bedrock. This was sealed by a deposit containing the highest concentration of artefacts on the site. This included a large quantity of steatite with fragments of large vessels, pottery fragments and an unfinished steatite lamp. The mid part of the building was largely sterile in terms of finds, though two line sinkers of steatite were found in this area. Lines of flagstones butting the long walls in this area suggest the possibility that there was a sprung timber floor.

The two annexes proved to have more than one phase, with multiple occupation surfaces sealing hearths in both rooms. Samples have been taken for archaeomagnetic dating. A turf-walled enclosure to the N of the building and connected to it externally was also investigated; small fragments of steatite and charcoal were the only finds recovered from this area. It is possible that this area formed a small yard or work space.

The peat growth which covered the flagging on the south side of the structure was also further investigated this year, with sampling for pollen, tephra and other analyses. The date and nature of this peat growth is still under investigation. Post-excavation work and dating of the Hamar and Underhoull structures is continuing.

British and Danish sponsors, funding bodies and support: European Agricultural Guidance and Guarantee Fund, Heritage Lottery Fund, Historic Scotland, Shetland Amenity Trust, Shetland Development Trust, Shetland Enterprise Company, Shetland Islands Council, The Viking Ship Museum in Roskilde, University of Aberdeen, University of Bradford and University of Copenhagen

J M Bond, A C Larson and V E Turner, 2008