Williamson Street

NS 88994 79770 (centred) Mitigation works were carried out, from 28 February to 30 April 2019 prior to residential development. An initial phase of trial trenching revealed the remains of a possible metalled trackway and a ditch containing Roman amphorae sherds. Subsequent monitoring and excavation revealed the Roman trackway and the partial remains of a ring ditch with an intact, inverted early Bronze Age cremation urn.

Archive: NRHE (intended)

Funder: JR Group

Maureen C. Kilpatrick and Eduardo Perez Fernandez - GUARD Archaeology Limited

(Source: DES Vol 20)

OASIS Id: guardarc1-339414

NS 88994 79770 (centred on) An excavation at Williamson Street, Falkirk uncovered the partial remains of a ring ditch and a cremation pit (Canmore ID: 367476). The full extent of the ring ditch was not revealed due to the limits of the excavation area; however, it is estimated to be 10.8m in diameter. The morphology of ring ditches is variable, and as the full extent of the ring ditch at Williamson Street was not uncovered, we do not know whether the ring was complete or if it had an entrance. The cremation pit that lay within the circumference of the ring ditch was not centrally located. This is not unusual within ring ditch sites in Scotland, and it could be speculated that further funerary remains were placed within the unexcavated half of the ring ditch, or in the vicinity.

The ring ditch was found to be sterile; however, the cremation

pit contained evidence of substantial burning activity taking place in the area. This juxtaposition may indicate that the ring ditch was constructed after the cremation burial took place. All the charcoal identified both within the fill of pit and within the cremation was oak. The fill of the pit also contained a small amount of cremated bone as well as one of the bone beads, indicating that the cremation pyre was either in the pit or near it.

The cremation urn was inverted and is an Early Bronze Age Collared Urn. It is unusual in that it is complete, likely due to the depth of the pit and is the only recently excavated example in the Falkirk area. Due to the soot marks present on the interior, it is speculated that the cremated remains were interred whilst still hot. The pot likely had an organic lid to secure the remains whilst it was inverted, but no evidence of this was identified.

The cremation consisted of two individuals, a male and a female both of which were adults. It is unlikely that this multiple burial is the result of curation of one individual as the bone fragments indicate the cremation of fleshed remains. This is in line with other examples of multiple cremation burials in Scotland. Multiple burials seem to tend toward the combination of an adult and child however, this could be due to these combinations being easier to identify due to the disparity in sizes. Various blood or social relationships could explain these burials but without further evidence, study, and DNA analysis, we cannot speculate.

A number of pyre goods were found during the excavation and analysis of the cremated material including three points/pins and three beads. Pins are a relatively common pyre good and it is likely they represent fastenings for clothing or shrouds worn by the cremated individuals. Beads are less common, although as speculated this could be due to lack of identification or the beads not being collected from the funerary pyre. In fact here, one of the bone beads was found in the fill of the pit, rather than within the urn, indicating that this item was perhaps not gathered for inclusion in the burial urn.

The pyre goods also included a small quantity of burnt animal bone the majority of which is likely to be sheep/goat. Additionally a small piece of possible canid caudal vertebrae (dog tail) was tentatively identified within the assemblage.

Additional features uncovered on site include a small curvilinear ditch, which is likely to be Roman in date. It contained four sherds of a single amphora vessel as well as carbonised cereal grain consistent with the Roman period. The cereal grain evidence indicates a degree of domestic cooking or small-scale cereal drying activity taking place nearby.

Archive: NRHE (intended) Funder: The JR Group

Christina Hills – CFA Archaeology Ltd

(Source: DES Vol 22)