Lockerbie, Broomhouses

A timber hall excavated in advance of development on the northern outskirts of Lockerbie was photographed by RCAHMS at the request of Bruce Glendinning of CFA.

Information from RCAHMS (SPH) 22 May 2006

NY 134 827 An archaeological evaluation carried out in January 2006 at Broomhouses, Lockerbie, uncovered four concentrations of archaeological activity (Areas A-D). Further soil stripping was undertaken to identify the full extent of the features and they were then subjected to a programme of archaeological excavation.

Area A contained a large timber structure measuring c 27m N to S by 8m E to W. It was broadly rectilinear in plan with slightly curving ends at the N and S. The structure was divided into seven compartments by internal walls, which ran at right-angles from the external western and eastern walls towards the centre of the building, leaving a broad central aisle running almost the length of the building from N to S. The walls of the structure were defined by a combination of postholes, beam slots and bedding trenches. Neolithic pottery and lithics were recovered from a number of features. This structure is on a similar scale to the large Neolithic halls excavated at Balbridie (Aberdeenshire) and Claish Farm (Stirling).

Area B contained a segmented ditched enclosure with a diameter of c 25m. It consisted of four separate segments. The ditches were very superficial, only surviving to a depth of c 0.1m. A large gap on the NW side of the enclosure suggests that there may have been a fifth segment, which has now been ploughed out. Within the enclosure, there was a single small pit. There were no finds from this area.

Area C contained the remains of a large timber structure measuring 19m N-S by 8m E-W. This consisted of a main rectangular structure measuring 14 x 8m with a small annexe measuring 5 x 5.8m to the N. The annexe had been built over an earlier back-filled ditch, running E to W across the site. The walls of the structure were defined by a series of bedding trenches, with larger postholes defining the corners and entranceways. Two entranceways were identified in the main structure, one placed in the centre of the western wall and the other placed in the centre of the eastern wall. A doorway was also identified in the eastern wall of the annexe. Within the bedding trenches, there was evidence of post-pipes which would have held timber uprights. There were no datable finds within a secure context from this structure, but the ground plan suggests that it is of Anglian origin and probably dates to the 7th century AD.

Area D was situated at the top of a small knoll and contained a small Bronze Age cemetery and a medieval/post-medieval corn kiln. The Bronze Age cemetery consisted of three cremation pits and two probable inhumation pits. One of the cremation burials was in a collared urn, but the other two, one of which contained an archer's wrist protector, had been placed directly into small pits. The larger of the two probable inhumation pits measured 2.7m by 1.4m and had a very large stone in the top of the fill. A bronze dagger of the 'butterwick' type (A Sheridan, pers comm) and a barbed arrowhead were recovered from this pit, but no visible trace of human remains was identified.

The corn kiln had been cut into the top of the knoll and consisted of a stone-lined conical pit with a depth of 2.14m. It had an internal top diameter of 2.7m, narrowing down to c 1m at the base. To the S of the kiln was a large teardrop-shaped pit measuring 4.5 x 3m, which contained the fire pit and associated debris. The kiln was connected to the fire pit by a 3.5m long stone-lined flue, which had a height of 0.8m and a width of 0.5m.

Archive to be deposited in NMRS.

Sponsor: Dumfries and Galloway Council.

M Kirby 2006