Excavation

Date 14 November 2012

Event ID 994380

Category Recording

Type Excavation

Permalink http://canmore.org.uk/event/994380

NS 7899 9368 A record was produced on 14 November 2012 of an area of disturbed ground caused by the collapse of a hawthorn tree located close to the King’s Knot. The excavation was located against the NE edge of a low terrace which extends SW to meet the more pronounced NW and NE sides of a regular, well constructed bank. The latter appears to be in character with the more prominent elements of the King’s Knot, in contrast with the feature cut by this excavation – a lower and more ephemeral earthwork. The findings of the excavation suggest that this feature is a shallow and eroded terrace, affected by both the hawthorn roots and by water penetration. The latter appears to have been exacerbated by the stone wall which lies opposite and parallel to the terrace, to the NE. The wall and the terrace edge have created a ditch-like effect, mainly characterised by waterlogging.

Despite the limits of the work, the evidence suggests that the low terrace immediately adjacent to the hawthorn might be a relic of an earlier layout rather than part of the (more prominent) present King’s Knot, generally assumed to date from the early 17th century. In terms of construction, the terrace is essentially a single clay-rich deposit, possibly revetted and/or reinforced with unbonded stone fragments. On this basis, it is a ‘mineral’ rather than a horticultural feature, part of the fabric of a formal earthwork plan, of as yet unknown function, predating both the 17th-century layout, and the Victorian park (defined by the hawthorn).

Archive: RCAHMS (intended)

Funder: Historic Scotland

Gordon Ewart, Kirkdale Archaeology, 2013

(Source: DES)

OASIS ID: kirkdale1-311435