Middleton Muir

NN14NW 21 centred 1293 4916

(NO 1347 4896) Cairns (NR)

OS 6" map, Perthshire, 2nd ed. (1901)

Centred at NO 1293 4916 are 3 hut circles (A-C), a contemporary field system, and a cairn.

'A' and 'B' are 12.5m in diameter with entrances in the SSE. A field wall radiates from the NW arc of hut 'A'.

'C' is 6.5m in diameter within a wall 1.2m thick. The wall is composed of an inner face of slabs on edge backed by rubble. It has a mutilated entrance in the SSE. A mutilated cairn at NO 1299 4908 lies on a slope to the S of and below the settlement. It is c.9.0m in diameter and 0.9m high with traces of a kerb visible in the E.

The field system is marked by stone clearance heaps, occasional lynchets, and traces of field walls. The cairns noted on OS 6" 1901 are stone clearance heaps.

Surveyed at 1:10 000.

Visited by OS (JM) 20 December 1974

A group of three hut-circles is situated within a field-system which extends along the ridge to the WNW of the OS triangulation pillar on Middleton Muir. The surrounding field-system comprises field-banks and scatters of small cairns, and is undoubtedly the result of several periods of use. Its principal component is a stony bank, which loops round the crest of the ridge and turns inwards to form what appears to be a trackway approaching a possible enclosure on the W side of hut-circle (1); the E bank forms a junction with the hut-circle, whose bank becomes markedly more stony to the S of this point, and it is likely that the trackway bank post-dates the hut-circle.

Traced westwards the W bank of the trackway can be followed to a point just short of hut-circle (2); although there is no visible junction, the W side of the hut-circle is consistently thickened by a band of stone, again probably representing the bank built against an earlier hut-circle. What may be the scar of this bank can be traced down the slope to the SSW of hut-circle (3).

Dropping down the slope immediately to the E there is a more obvious bank of earth and stones, which turn sharply E for a distance of about 100m before dropping back down the slope; it is probably much more recent in date but is still of some antiquity since it is cut by the hollowed trackways that traverse the site.

On the slopes below the hut-circles there is a scatter of cairns and short banks and further scatters of cairns extend up the ridge to the NW (NO 127 491 to 126 494); down the ridge to the ESE (NO 131 491 to 132 490); and over the foot of the knoll to the SE (NO 132 489).

1. NO 1297 4918 (OS 'A') The largest of the hut-circles lies on a local summit and is marked by a modern cairn. It measures 9.5m in diameter within a stony bank up to 2.8m in thickness by 0.4m in height. The entrance is on the S and the marker cairn stands on an earlier cairn which possibly overlies the bank of the hut-circle on the NE.

2. NO 1288 4919 (OS 'B') This hut-circle lies about 80m to the W on the S side of another local summit, which is also crowned by a modern marker cairn. It measures about 8.8m in internal diameter and the entrance is on the S. Its bank is about 0.4m high but it varies in thickness from 2.5m on the E to 3.3m around the W half.

3. NO 1286 4918 (OS 'C') The third hut-circle lies immediately to the WSW of (2) and a hollowed trackway runs between them. It is roughly circular, measuring about 6.5m in maximum diameter within a ruined wall. At least 20 boulders of the inner face survive and behind them there is a low bank of wall-core about 1.5m thick and 0.3m high. A possible outer facing-stone is visible on the W side of the entrance, which is on the S.

4. NO 1299 4914 About 30m SSE of (1) there are the slight remains of a rectangular building measuring 9m from NW to SE by 3m transversely within a low bank about 1.8m in thickness and 0.3m in height.

Visited by RCAHMS (SPH) 1 April 1987.

RCAHMS 1990.