Archaeology Notes

Event ID 705819

Category Descriptive Accounts

Type Archaeology Notes

Permalink http://canmore.org.uk/event/705819

NS79SE 15.01 79536 90637

(NS 7954 9063) Bore Stone (NR)

OS 6" map (1958)

The Bore Stone, situated at the top of Brock's Brae, is described in 1859 as having been nearly circular, 3' in diameter and 2' thick, with a 3" wide hole in the centre. Nimmo's account made the width and depth of the hole about 4". Nothing is known as to the origin of the stone or the purpose of the hole, but the tradition that Bruce's standard was set up in it at the Battle of Bannockburn (NS89SW 11) does not appear on record before 1723 and seems improbable.

The stone, which had become broken into three larger pieces and a number of smaller ones, was in 1960 built into the top of a pedestal of granite setts about 3' high and is protected above by a heavy iron grille.

RCAHMS 1963, visited 1961; Name Book 1859; W Nimmo 1880; J Macky 1722

The fragments of the Bore Stone which were on display have been stolen, and there is little hope of recovering the loss.

Visited by OS Reviser (DH) 19 April 1967

NS 7954 9063 Following probing by the groundsman at Bannockburn (NMRS NS79SE 15), a small trial trench was excavated over the site of the original borestone to determine if anything survived in situ. Excavation revealed the remains of a concrete foundation that appears to have been for a low wall which surrounded the stone and is shown on photographs of the site. Nothing was found of the borestone itself, supporting the report that it had been removed in the 1960s and its pieces incorporated into the nearby cairn.

Sponsor: National Trust for Scotland.

D Alexander 2001