Publication Account
Date 17 December 2011
Event ID 922903
Category Descriptive Accounts
Type Publication Account
Permalink http://canmore.org.uk/event/922903
The camp at Kintore was first recorded by Captain E.H Courtney of the Royal Engineers in 1867, following receipt of a pamphlet by Mr Alexander Watt of Kintore entitled The Early History of Kintore (Watt 1865). The publication by Watt dates to 1865, but his notes about the Deer’s Den had been made some years before, probably in the 1810s (Courtney 1870: 389), although possibly slightly earlier. Courtney commented that the camp had been much reduced since Watt’s observations, noting that Watt’s measurements recorded the rampart at least 5.5m in width and up to 2.4m in height with a ditch some 3m in width. The potential accuracy of Watt’s measurements is indicated in the note that states that Watt recorded the west side as 800 yards long and Courtney as 809 yards (1870: 391n). Courtney also noted that the Aberdeenshire Canal passed through the east side of the camp (1870: 392), and this was also confirmed by excavation on the north side in 1984, indicating that it cut across the camp from northwestto south-east (Shepherd 1987: 205–6). The plan that Courtney produced of the north side, presumably derived from Watt, is fairly complete, which may suggest that Watt’s notes were made prior to the cutting of the Canal (from Aberdeen to Port Elphinstone, just south of Inverurie), which opened in 1805 and closed in 1854 (Graham 1968: 172–3). The loss of the earthworks of the camp continued, and by 1943 no trace of it could be seen on the ground (Crawford 1949: 114–15), although it has been recorded through cropmarkings since 1945.
The camp is located on the west side of the village of Kintore, on relatively flat land to the west of the River Don. The landscape covered by the camp has been under improved pasture and arable for a number of years, but this has been gradually converting to housing as Kintore has expanded, and the A96 road also cuts across it. The camp measures about 776m from NNW to SSE by about 600m transversely, enclosing 44.6ha (110 acres). Courtney did not record any gates, but entrance gaps with tituli have now been recorded in the centre of the NNW side and in the southern part of the WSW and ENE sides. The latter two have both been excavated (Alexander 2000; Dunbar & Cook 2004). There is a change of direction in the northern part of the WSW side where the camp is crossed by the road to Springburn according to Courtney’s plan (1870), and this probably represents a further entrance on that side; there is also a slight change of direction in the centre of the south side at the probable entrance gap.
The result of the expansion and development of Kintore in recent years has been a series of excavations of the majority of the camp (perimeter and interior). The widespread nature of the excavations has resulted in a wealth of material being uncovered. Over 200 features including ovens and pits have now been recorded in the interior of the camp from various excavations (Shepherd 1987; Alexander 2000; Glendinning 1998a; Hamilton & McGill 1997; Cook 2001; Cook 2002b; Dunbar 2003; Dunbar & Cook 2004; Cook & Dunbar 2008; Cook et al forthcoming). Radiocarbon dates obtained thus far indicate both Roman and post-Roman dates (Alexander 2000; Cook & Dunbar 2008), but cluster in the late 1st century ad. The first phase of the recent large-scale excavations at Forest Road has now been published (Cook & Dunbar 2008).
Excavations of the perimeter ditch have recorded that it measured up to 3.35m in width and 1.4m in depth in the north-east corner (Rees 1996), and around 3m in width and 1.5m in depth in the south-west corner (Cook & Dunbar 2008: 128–30). The site is currently unique in the Roman Empire; the wealth of internal features and finds from the camp are starting to provide valuable insights about the activities of the Roman army in the field (Cook & Dunbar 2008; Cook et al forthcoming; Cook in prep; see above, section 7f).
R H Jones.
