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Lunanhead
Temporary Camp (Roman)
Site Name Lunanhead
Classification Temporary Camp (Roman)
Alternative Name(s) Suttieside
Canmore ID 33749
Site Number NO45SE 11
NGR NO 4685 5215
NGR Description Centred NO 4685 5215
Datum OSGB36 - NGR
Permalink http://canmore.org.uk/site/33749
- Council Angus
- Parish Forfar
- Former Region Tayside
- Former District Angus
- Former County Angus
NO45SE 11 centred 4685 5215.
(Centred NO 468 521) Ainslie (1794) shows a long narrow sub-rectangular "Roman Camp" with rounded corners, c. 2 1/2 furlongs (c. 503m) N-S, and extending from a line north of South Suttieside (NO 463 518) on the west to the alleged "camp" (NO45SE 16) on the east - a distance of c. 5 1/2 furlongs (c. 1106m). Knox (1831) adds a small rectangular enclosure in the SE interior. (Outlines approximately portrayed on annotated 6" map). Jamieson (1822) says that by 1822 most of the area had been planted and only one part of the earthwork could be seen distinctly. The ditch appeared to have been about 10' broad and was still 5' deep, and the "breastwork" was about 6' broad. In 1939 Crawford (1949) noted what he interpreted as Jamieson's earthwork running parallel to the railway from a large oval, perhaps natural, mound at Lunan Well (NO 4757 5195) and crossing the Brechin road immediately south of the railway bridge.
J Ainslie 1794; J Knox 1831; J Jamieson 1822; O G S Crawford 1949.
No trace was found of this camp, most of which was under crop, except a bank or wall foundation running from NO 4704 5190 to NO 4723 5194. This feature appears too slight to be of any defensive value, and is probably an old field bank. No trace was found east of the road towards the mound, a natural swelling at Lunan Well.
Visited by OS (JLD) 14 August 1958.
A short length of cropmark noted in 1969 was excavated and found to be that of a V-shaped ditch of Roman type. Subsequent reconnaissance has revealed 1,400' of the north side and the rounded NW corner. This appears to be a camp of the 63 acre class in approximately the position noted by Ainslie (1794).
J K St Joseph 1973.
An archaeological evaluation and desk assessment commissioned by RPS Cairns on behalf of Ritchies was carried out by Headland Archaeology Ltd on the proposed development site at Suttieside, Forfar in order to determine the nature of any archaeology present.The site covers around 2.5 ha which was under cultivation for corn and potatoes at the time of the survey. As part of the desk based assessment this already known site was included in the evaluation. The report describes the site as above, the site is not in the proposed development area. After completion of field and desk based assessment no archaeological remains were recorded inside the boundaries of the development area. Therefore the report recommends no further action.
Sponsor: R P S Cairns for David Ritchie (Implements Ltd)
NMRS MS/899/81 (Headland Archaeology Ltd 6/8/1998)
Field Visit (March 1978)
Lunanhead NO 468 521 NO45SE 11
The crop-marks of part of a Roman temporary camp have been recorded W of Lunanhead and it is probable that the camp is about 25ha in area.
RCAHMS 1978, visited March 1978
(Ainslie 1794; St Joseph 1973, 224; DES, 1974, 7)
Publication Account (17 December 2011)
The camp at Lunanhead, north of Forfar, was depicted on Ainslie’s Map of the County of Forfar or Shire of Angus, published in 1794. On this map, a long rectangle running from west to east is shown, labelled ‘Roman Camp’, much of which is lying in a wood.
Jamieson referred to the site as a ‘Pictish Camp’, noting that only part of it could be seen, the majority being covered by the wood (1822: 23). Crawford recorded that parts of the north and south sides of the ‘Pict’s Camp’ could be seen (1949: 137–8). The Ordnance Survey noted a low bank on the south side in 1958, but commented that this was probably an old field boundary (OS Recorder 1958). St Joseph recorded parts of the north side and the northwest corner from the air in 1969 (1973: 224).
The site lies on gently undulating land, with the dismantled railway line that ran from Forfar to Arbroath cutting through its southern part, and various roads, including the Old Brechin Road (the B9134) also crossing.
The exact position of the alleged camp is unclear. Linear cropmarks are visible for some 530m in the south, possibly indicating that side of the camp. If Ainslie’s map is correct, then the camp would measure up to 1,400m from west to east by 620m transversely, enclosing 86.8ha (214 acres), but this would make it by far the largest camp in Scotland. It is highly likely that the stylisation of Ainslie’s map has led to a distortion. Nevertheless, some of the linear cropmarks recorded at Lunanhead correspond with the location of the north and south sides of the camp as depicted by Ainslie, although the actual camp perimeter cannot currently be established with any certainty.
St Joseph apparently recorded parts of the north side and the north-west corner from the air in 1969, although the photographs could not be identified, and he placed trenches on the north side in 1971 and 1972, noting a V-shaped ditch, 0.9m in depth and 1.4–1.7m in width (St Joseph 1973: 224; RCAHMS St Joseph Collection: Notebook 6).
R H Jones.
