Publication Account
Date 2007
Event ID 586945
Category Descriptive Accounts
Type Publication Account
Permalink http://canmore.org.uk/event/586945
NC91 3 CARN BRAN
NC/9420 1220 (NC/94202 12196 – GPS)
This broch in Loth, Sutherland, stands on a slight knoll in the centre of the flat floor of the narrow Glen Loth, and next to the north bank of the river (visited 12/7/63, 22/7/87 and 24/7/03). The valley bottom is here about one hundred yards wide. The huge pile of stones, 3.6m (12ft) high, conceals most of the structural features but the entrance is visible directly above the river bank. There is a massive drystone revetment immediately below the entrance and another lower down and a little to the west (upstream). The only way to get into the broch would have been by crossing the stream and climbing the steep bank, where doubtless there was once a flight of steps. The outer face of the broch can be traced in places and suggests an overall diameter of 17.0m.
The entrance passage faces south-west and one lintel can be seen in position near the inner end; this indicates that some 1.53 - 1.83m (5-6ft) of structure lie buried below the rubble here. Two door-checks can be seen below the lintel; the one on the left (looking in) is made of a slab on edge projecting from the wall and the one on the right appears to be built. This door-frame seems to be about 3.0m from the outer end of the passage. There is a suggestion of another door-frame at about 1.3m from the exterior but some clearance of rubble would be needed to verify this; the left wall is invisible at this point. The rubble filling the passage rises to within 30cm of the lintel .
At about 12 o'clock can be seen the built end of a long mural cell or gallery running clockwise from it – with one lintel in position; the doorway to the interior from this was apparent in 1963. This is likely to be the stair doorway and the long stair-foot guard cell [1, plan]. The inner face of a continuation of this gallery is traceable further round towards the south – from about 3-4 o'clock – and, since this is well above the lintel over the main entrance, it must be an upper gallery. The structure is therefore a definite hollow-walled broch. The rounded end of another cell or gallery, with a deep, corbelled overhang, is at about 9 o'clock. The 1976 O.S. observer thought he saw traces of a scarcement on the inner wallface around the southern arc [1] and there is a raised void in the inner wallface at about 4 o’clock.
At a distance of 5.49m (18ft) on the south-east is a curved outer wall 2.44m (8ft) thick with another a little further out. Traces of a curved outer wall are also visible on the north but there are no signs now of connecting masonry round the north-east and east sides.
Sources: 1. NMRS site no. NC 91 SW 2 and plan: 2. RCAHMS 1911a, 161-62, no. 468: 3. Pennant 1774, 356.
E W MacKie 2007
