South Uist, Gortan
Burial Cairn (Prehistoric)
Site Name South Uist, Gortan
Classification Burial Cairn (Prehistoric)
Alternative Name(s) Tota MhÒr Na Leacaich
Canmore ID 10132
Site Number NF81SW 1
NGR NF 80985 14332
Datum OSGB36 - NGR
Permalink http://canmore.org.uk/site/10132
- Council Western Isles
- Parish South Uist
- Former Region Western Isles Islands Area
- Former District Western Isles
- Former County Inverness-shire
NF81SW 1 8103 1434.
NF 809 144 - Tota Mhor na Leacaich, near Gortan. A possibly chambered cairn about 50 feet diameter and 5 to 6 feet high, standing at a height of 300ft OD. A late 19th century building has been inserted at the north sector. Some slabs measuring 4ft by 2ft suggest the chamber capstones of a neolithic chambered tomb.
Information in telecommunication from I A Crawford, School of Scottish Studies, to OS 26 May 1965.
NF 8103 1434 The top of a natural green knoll is covered by a mass of stones measuring c.19.0m NE-SW by c.16.0m transversely with a maximum height of c.1.3m. In the northern half of the mass of stones are the remains of a sub-rectangular building. There is no visible evidence of a chamber or passage. Attached to the SW edge of the mound are the fragmentary remains of a later enclosure with at least two shielings nearby.
Visited by OS (W D J) 14 June 1965.
Publication Account (2012)
Tota Mhòr na Leacaich (Ust 33; NF81SW 1)
This site is situated on a rocky outcrop approximately 100m above sea level in rough grazing land. The cairn is placed about three-quarters of the way up a relatively steep hillside and has extensive views over the coast, Eriskay and Barra.
Henshall (1972: 529) described the site as an unclassified circular cairn that has been badly damaged by 19th century settlement clearance. This site might once have been a chambered cairn but there is no surface evidence to support this. There is no sign of a capstone and no in situ orthostats to indicate revetment, passage or chamber. Although a number of sizeable slabs are present, they have clearly been moved to create the walls of the 19th-century dwellings.
The landscape views from this site are undeniably impressive, and consistent with the other cairns on the island. The site is situated three-quarters of the way up a relatively steep hill on what is likely to be a rocky outcrop. The hills around the site are covered in large rocks and rocky outcrops. To the north, the views are relatively restricted, looking further up the hillside on which the cairn is placed. To the south, there are spectacular views of the southern coastline and Eriskay, Barra and other smaller islands in between.
This monument is not so easy to dismiss [as a Neolithic chambered cairn] as Tigh Cloiche. The site has been substantially disturbed by recent activity and this might have involved the removal of the principal structural stones but disturbance at the other cairns has tended to expose these stones, not remove them. The location is similar to other sites but not identical. The slope of the hill is much steeper than normal and the site is much higher in elevation. Two of us think it is not a cairn, one of us thinks it might be. Only excavation could resolve the issue.
Cummings, Henley and Sharples 2012, visited 1997 to 1999
