Excavation

Date 24 July 2011 - 7 August 2011

Event ID 964510

Category Recording

Type Excavation

Permalink http://canmore.org.uk/event/964510

NJ 131 675 A geophysical survey by Tessa Poller of Glasgow University revealed a previously unknown later prehistoric settlement in an area where various stray finds had been made (NJ16NW 12). An excavation was carried out, 24 July–7 August 2011, to investigate and characterise the site. One trench confirmed the presence of a substantial ring ditch roundhouse with a complex subsequent history; two (perhaps originally three) orthostats were set up around its margin and a dark soil layer was deposited in which were found two steatite lamps, an iron knife and an iron dagger. Over this was a stone building platform associated with an extensive and well preserved cobbled spread. A cup-marked stone had been reused in the building platform. Other finds from this trench included a Romano-British trumpet brooch and a Roman Iron Age massive-style openwork finger ring.

An area with unclear geophysical signals proved to have a series of stone-founded structures with very shallow foundations. This included the robbed remains of a substantial stone slab floor with a hearth and an earlier vestigial sub-rectangular building with remains of a hearth, but with shallow stone foundations at one end only. These structures lay in an old soil layer which overlay a series of negative features, including ardmarks. Finds from the palaeosoil included a Guido class 8 yellow glass bead and an iron projecting ring-headed pin.

An area of very high remnant magnetism proved to be an industrial area towards the edge of the site. A small trench produced substantial quantities of iron-smelting slag and bog ore, a series of stone-built hearths, and heavily vitrified crucible sherds from non-ferrous metalworking.

Preservation is good (including bone survival) on account of the preserved ancient soils; post-medieval sand-blows over this area increased the soil depth, and modern agriculture has had a relatively limited impact.

Funder: National Museums Scotland, Society of Antiquaries of Scotland and Ian Keillar

National Museums Scotland, 2011