Measured Survey

Date 2010

Event ID 633312

Category Recording

Type Measured Survey

Permalink http://canmore.org.uk/event/633312

NS 07557 84808 The lowering of the water level in Loch Tarsan to permit maintenance work afforded a rare opportunity to investigate settlements partially flooded by the creation of the hydroelectric reservoir. In the following description dimensions are external except where otherwise noted.

On the W side of Loch Tarsan, on the N bank of the Lonyle Burn at NS 07557 84808, is a dry stone house and yard. The house was already indicated as a ruin when surveyed by the OS in 1865. Uphill to the W of it is a large enclosure bounded by a dry stone wall, turfed over in part. The house is rectangular, with long axis E–W parallel to the burn, and has an attached yard on the N side. The house appears to have suffered a collapse, possibly as a result of being submerged when the glen was flooded; the foundations remain, obscured by the large mass of tumbled stones.

The main part of the house appears to have been a two-compartment structure of overall length c12m E–W and

width 5.8m N–S. The W compartment is 4m long. A third compartment on the W side 7.6m long shares a common S wall but is wider, 6m. The wall structure is double, of overall width 0.6m. There is an entrance in the S wall of the middle chamber. Adjacent to the NE corner of the house is a low rectangular foundation, 5m square, also with double walls. A large yard bounded by a curved wall 12m N–S by 16m E–W is attached on the N side of the house.

About 10m uphill to the W is the large enclosure running uphill, bounded by a dry stone wall of E–W length 23m,

covered in part by turf. It is 16.5m wide at the W end, narrowing to 9m at the E end.

David Dorren and Nina Henry