Cultalonie

NO05NE 84 0611 5811 and 0610 5810

Situated about 30m SW of hut-circle NO05NE 17.04 there are the remains of a building (NO 0610 5810) measuring 25.4m in length and varying from 6.3m in width at the WNW end to 5.3m at the ESE end over heather-covered wall footings. The E half of the interior is sunken and there is a probable entrance on the S; the centre of the building is crossed from NE to SW by a later bank. At the W end of the building there is what may be a small attached enclosure.

Situated upslope from this building, between it and the hut-circle (NO05NE 17.04), there are the remains of a second building (NO 0611 5811) defined largely by its sunken interior. It measures at least 14.5m WNW-ESE by a maximum of 3.4m transversely; no other details were visible on the date of visit.

Visited by RCAHMS (JRS) 19 April 1988.

RCAHMS 1990

RCAHMS surveyed the hut circles, field system and buildings at Pitcarmick (North) by self-reducing alidade and plane-table on 19 May 1988 at a scale of 1:1250. The resultant plan was redrawn in ink and published at a scale of 1:2500 (RCAHMS 1990, Fig. 154.4B).

A programme of survey and excavation was carried out over a small area of the long-lived settlement and agricultural activity recorded on the Pitcarmick estate above Strathardle. The fieldwork was carried out as a training exercise with students from Glasgow University in July 1993 and 1994.

The more northerly, and smaller, Pitcarmick-type house was excavated as part of a training exercise with students from Glasgow University. The walls of the building proved to have been constructed from turf laid directly on the old ground surface without stone foundation, although there was evidence of rough stone revetting of the wall on the downslope side. The entrance was positioned off-centre on the downslope side of the building, and was paved with a single layer of slabs. Substantial post-holes for a door were positioned either side of the paving.

The western part of the building was dominated by a large rectangular, stone-lined hearth. A rubble-filled soakaway was located in the eastern part. Other features within the building comprised several post-holes, and some pits.

The building is thought to be early medieval, and it is hoped to obtain C14 dates to test this supposition.

J C Barrett and J M Downes 1993.

Survey and excavation has continued here for a second season.

The total excavation was undertaken of a Pitcarmick-type building. The building lay E-W and was overlain by a field wall. It lay immediately S of a smaller Pitcarmick-type building which was half excavated in 1993. Internally the larger building enclosed an area some 26m by 6m. The building was terraced against the S-facing hillslopes. It had a long and complex structural history. Initially the building was constructed with irregular but massive stone foohngs at the two gable ends; the N wall was represented by a much eroded timber wall slot, the S wall by an eroded and irregular bank. The entrance was through the S wall facing down slope and placed slightly off centre to the W. It was stone lined and the doorway was marked by post holes. To the left of the entrance the interior was paved and contained a substantial stone-lined hearth; to the right lay a central soakaway running irregularly for the length of this part of the building.

A hiatus in the use of the building was indicated by a period of ploughing across the walls before a second structure was erected on its western end. This was an oval building enclosing 7.40m by 3.80m; it was placed immediately on the footings of the Pitcarmick type building; it was paved and re-used the original hearth which was now relined. A narrow entrance lay towards the centre of the southern wall of this smaller building. It is possible that the eastern end of the earlier building now functioned as a yard.

A large number of stone tools were recovered from around the second phase building which itself may, on the basis of two stratified pottery sherds, date to the 13th century AD.

Sponsors: British Academy, Glasgow University, Hunter Archaeological Trust, Society of Antiquaries London, Society of Antiquaries Scotland.