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Loch Coille-bharr
Crannog (Period Unassigned)
Site Name Loch Coille-bharr
Classification Crannog (Period Unassigned)
Alternative Name(s) Loch Kielziebar; 'the Cairn'; Knapdale
Canmore ID 39078
Site Number NR78NE 8
NGR NR 7788 8949
Datum OSGB36 - NGR
Permalink http://canmore.org.uk/site/39078
- Council Argyll And Bute
- Parish North Knapdale
- Former Region Strathclyde
- Former District Argyll And Bute
- Former County Argyll
NR78NE 8 7796 8946
For paddle found to E of the crannog, see NR78NE 14.
(NR 779 894) The submerged crannog in Loch Coille-Bharr is called 'the Cairn' by local fishermen. It was covered by 1' of water in 1867, when investigated by divers, who found it to be made of living rock, and very well made walling; the interior made up of smaller stones to form a level platform 25' in diameter. No timber was seen in its construction. A paddle, bone tools, and beams, possibly from a rampart or a building on the crannog, were found by the divers, but disintegrated on exposure. The site is surrounded by deep mud.
R J Mapleton 1870; M Campbell and M Sandeman 1964.
NR 7798 8948. There is no sign of this crannog from the shore but a small island is visible just below the surface on air photographs.
Visited by OS (IA) 29 May 1973.
NR 7796 8946. Although this crannog is not visible above the surface of the loch, its extent appears to be defined by an area of reeds and small bushes.
It seems to have measured about 11.0m N-S by 5.0m transversely. A few timbers can be seen protruding from the water, but these are merely modern fence posts.
Surveyed at 1/10,000.
Visited by OS (BS) 24 January 1977.
Field Visit (2003)
NR 7788 8949 This site is completely submerged and is not visible above the water level. The previously supplied grid reference is inaccurate, and the reed patch and fence posts noted by the OS in 1977 do not mark anything of archaeological significance. The site referred to by Mapleton (PSAS, 1870, 322) is located at the end of a submerged bedrock shoal which continues underwater off the southernmost headland of the small bay in the SE corner of Loch Coille-Bharr. The site rests upon this bedrock spar, utilising a flattened area close to where the bedrock drops off sharply into deep water. It comprises a stone mound with a basal diameter of 11m; the flattened platform area on top of the site is c 5m in diameter, and measures c 1.6m in height from the lowest to the highest points. It is located 14m from the nearest dry land shore at the end of the rocky headland.
The 'well made walling' referred to by Mapleton is visible in two places - at the SE and SW corners of the site - where the walls act as revetments for the main stone mound. These revetments are well constructed, consisting of angular slabs averaging 0.7m in length, and are best preserved in the SW area, where the walling is six courses high and fills a V-shaped cleft in the bedrock reef. The walling in the SE corner supports the boulder mound at a point where the bedrock drops away sharply to deep water. The character of the site behind the retention walling contrasts greatly, with the boulders seemingly having been dumped without placement on the site. Generally, the stones in the main area of the site are smaller than those utilised in the revetment walls, though several very large boulders, over 1m across, were observed around the edges of the mound. The top of the mound is rough and uneven, and shows no trace of any stone superstructure. No timbers were noted.
Full report has been lodged with the NMRS.
Sponsors: Dr J N Marshall (Isle of Bute) Memorial Fund, CBA Challenge Funding, University of Nottingham.
M G Cavers 2003
Condition Survey (10 January 2009 - 12 January 2009)
NR 7788 8949 A condition survey of the crannog site in Loch Coille Bharr (NR78NE 8) was undertaken, 10–12
January 2009, in advance of the introduction of the European beaver into Knapdale. The site was dived on, surveyed and photographed, and samples of the aquatic flora on and around the site were taken for identification. The site was in generally good condition, with no immediate threats to its structural integrity.
Archive and Report: RCAHMS (intended)
Funder: Historic Scotland
Graeme Cavers – AOC Archaeology Group
