Archaeology Notes

Event ID 706460

Category Descriptive Accounts

Type Archaeology Notes

Permalink http://canmore.org.uk/event/706460

NS87NW 6 843 798.

(NS 843 798) Rough Castle (NAT) Roman Fort (R)

(Name: NS 8443 7990) Anexe (R)

(NS 8440 7987) Bath House (R) (site of)

OS 25" map, (1961).

For adjacent field-system, see NS87NW 12.

See also NS87NW 32.00 and NS88SW 57.

The fort at Rough Castle is now the best preserved of all the Antonine Wall forts. It is the property of the National Trust for Scotland and under guardianship of the DoE who are currently engaged in clearing operations and excavation work on the site. The Antonine Wall and Ditch are very well preserved along the N front of the fort, and the fort rampart and ditches and the annexe ditches are very clearly visible on the E, S and W sides. (See RCAHMS 1963 plan fig.38). Excavations in 1902-3 and 1932-3 identified the headquarters building, a granary and another stone building, possibly the officers' quarters, within the fort, and the bath-house in the annexe. In a hole (possibly the well) in the headquarters building were found three fragments of an inscribed tablet recording the erection of the building by the Sixth Cohort of Nervii, who also set up an altar to the goddess Victory which was found 200 - 300 yds S of the fort in 1843. These stones are in the N M A S. The small finds from here include some potsherds which seem to be of late 1st c date, suggesting that one of Agricola's small forts may have stood here. No remains of such a fort have yet been detected, but it has been suggested that its N front may have been protected by the series of ten rows of defensive pits (lilia) NW of the Antonine fort, which itself has been altered and modified at least once during its period of occupation.

R Stuart 1852; M Buchanan, D Christison and J Anderson 1905; G Macdonald 1933; G Macdonald 1934; RCAHMS 1963, visited 1958; A S Robertson 1973.

Resurveyed at 1:2500.

Visited by OS (JLD) 28 January 1957.

Excavations between 1957-61 with a view to long term conservation of the fort, produced neither pottery nor structural evidence of Flavian occupation. Parts of the Headquarters building, NE and NW quarters, and the defences were investigated.

S Cruden 1957; S Cruden 1959; I A Richmond 1959; S Cruden 1961.

An Alexandrian coin, probably of Maximian (286-305; 307-8) found in a drainage scheme in the neighbourhood of Rough Castle by an Irish labourer about May 1954 was submitted by T Morgan, 1 Neilson Street, Falkirk in 1955.

A S Robertson 1963.

Fort shown on APs.

Visible on RAF air photographs: F42 58/3544 0353; RCAHMS; J K St Joseph.

(Undated) information in OS archaeology records.

No change to previous reports. None of the excavated internal buildings is visible, although an area in the SW of the fort is still open, though overgrown.

The Military Way is clearly visible approaching the fort from W and E but no surface trace of the loop road around the fort was found.

Revised at 1/2500.

Visited by OS (JRL) 19 June 1980.

Full report of 1957-61 excavations (see S Cruden 1957; 1959; 1961) given.

I MacIvor, M C Thomas and D J Breeze 1981.

NS 8423 7986. Archaeological monitoring was undertaken on 21-22 May 1995 during the dismantling and removal of the electricity tower which had stood on the E bank of the Rowantree Burn, immediately W of this Roman fort. After removing the conductor and projecting crossarms, the tower was felled eastwards onto a protective covering, causing only minor and isolated superficial damage to the ground beneath the tower. The subsequent cutting of the tower foundations at a depth of 0.5m below ground level was monitored. Four small holes excavated around each tower leg foundation revealed only made up ground associated with the original erection of the tower. No archaeological deposits and features were identified. Adherence to a Methods Statement for the removal of the tower, agreed in advance between Historic Scotland and Scottish Power, ensured that no damage occured to the site.

The removal of the electricity tower had markedly improved the visual setting of Rough Castle fort.

Full details are in a report lodged with the NMRS.

Sponsor: Scottish Power plc.

A Dunwell and B Finlayson 1995; NMRS MS/726/73.

NS 843 798 A heavily-corroded Roman iron axehead was found at Rough Castle, apparently where it had been discarded in the course of illegal metal-detecting. The find-spot lies within the fort, between the Principia and the E rampart. The find was reported to the National Museum of Scotland and subsequently donated to Falkirk Museum.

National Museum of Scotland 1995

NS 8465 7985 A watching brief was conducted in the vicinity of Rough Castle Roman fort, during the erection of an electricity pylon. Four small trenches were excavated (2.0m by 0.50m) to facilitate the erection of the pylon. In addition, a watching brief was carried out when a c100m length of cable trench was excavated. This cable trench was close to the alignment of the Military Way, forming part of the Roman frontier works. During both monitoring operations, no archaeological features or deposits were located.

Sponsor: Scottish Power plc.

A Rees (CFA) 1995.

An axehead found by metal-detecting within the fort, E of the principia, is now in Falkirk Museum.

L J F Keppie 1996.

(MacIvor, Thomas and Breeze 1980, 271, no. 296). The well-preserved Roman fort of Rough Castle has formed a major element of the Antonine Wall defensive system. It probably housed the greater part of the cohors VI Nerviorum for two periods within the years 142 and 164 AD approximately, and is situated on a prominent N-facing escarpment in an area where industrial activity has greatly modified the landscape. The nearest navigable water was probably in the vicinity of the River Carron which, at its nearest point, is 1.5km to the N of the fort and at an altitude about 50m lower.

The later campaigns of excavation on the fort have recently been published. The existence of waterlogged deposits or conditions suitable for the preservation of organic remains is not discussed in detail and the provenance of many of the objects is not specified, although the majority are said to be unstratified.

Among the finds there is a 'paddle-like object' of oak which has apparently suffered from splitting. As it survives, it measures 0.34m in length over all, of which the blade (of elongated oval form) accounts for 0.23m, and the rectangular-sectioned stock or handle forms the remainder. The blade is incomplete, but appears to have been roughly oval; the asymmetrical shoulders taper into the shaft which measures 70mm by 20mm in cross-section and is set at right-angles to the blade; it terminates in a neat cut which indicates that the object is preserved intact.

Although the form of this object strongly suggests an identification as a paddle, its small size casts doubt upon its possible use for propulsion; it may have been a mill-paddle.

I MacIvor, M C Thomas and D J Breeze 1980; W S Hanson and G S Maxwell 1983; R J C Mowat 1996.

NS 851 797 An underground electricity cable trench was excavated in the vicinity of Rough Castle Roman fort. The cable route ran for 55m and lay to the S and W of the Antonine Wall and associated frontier works, close to the position of the military way. The watching brief in March 2001 demonstrated that no archaeologically significant remains were disturbed during the excavation of the cable trench.

Report to be lodged with the NMRS.

Sponsor: Scottish Power plc.

K Cameron 2001.

NS 8423 7984 Archaeological monitoring was undertaken in March 2003 during excavations intended to improve drainage on the Antonine Wall on the W side of the burn, immediately to the W of Rough Castle Roman fort. The excavation followed the path of an existing modern pipe, and no features or finds of archaeological significance were uncovered.

Archive to be deposited in the NMRS.

Sponsor: HS

G Ewart 2003.

(Schedule no. 8244). The Antonine Wall from Rough Castle to Lime Road, Tamfourhill, Falkirk is scheduled, together with the Rough Castle Roman fort and multi-period field-system.

Information from Historic Scotland, scheduling document dated 4 March 2005.

NS 8425 7990 An archaeological watching brief was undertaken in January 2006 at Rough Castle on the Antonine Wall while Historic Scotland personnel undertook minor excavations to investigate the location and condition of drainage channels installed during the 1950s and 1960s. The area of the fort subject to this exploratory work was near the NW corner of the fort and the defensive ditch of the wall. No features or finds of archaeological significance were encountered during these works.

Archive to be deposited in NMRS.

Sponsor: Historic Scotland.

Claire Shaw, 2006.

NS 843 798 Archaeological monitoring was carried out in April 2006 for Central Scotland Forest Trust in respect to upgrading and alterations to footpaths in the Rough Castle Woodland. These works lie in and around the Antonine Wall and Rough Castle Roman Fort, both scheduled ancient monuments. The monitoring was undertaken within the terms of the issued Scheduled Monument Consent. No archaeologically significant material was identified during the topsoil stripping and hand-digging of chicane postholes.

Report to Falkirk Archaeology Service, Historic Scotland.

Archive to NMRS.

Sponsor: Central Scotland Forest Trust.

Douglas Gordon, 2006.

NS 8425 7990 This work comprised the uncovering and recording of a stone-lined pit accidentally uncovered when railway sleepers used to cover it had given way. This Roman fort was excavated in 1957-61, and it was the stone-lined pit discovered during that excavation in the via principalis that was to be examined during these new works. The pit was recorded and photographed in June 2006 and was found to have survived much as described as in the 1981 report.

Archive to be deposited in NMRS.

Sponsor: Historic Scotland.

David Murray, 2006.