Castle Hill, Merkland

NS52NE 6 5881 2630.

(NS 5881 2630) Motte and Bailey (NR)

OS 25" map (1960)

At the end of the promontory known as Castle Hill, there is a circular, flat-topped motte, 46' in diameter and 68' high. Immediately in front there is a lesser mound, and at its base beyond there is a square enclosure, 66' x 66', strongly protected on the W by a parapet of earth and boulders. On the opposite side this bank has long disappeared, probably by a landslide, and there is an almost perpendicular drop into the River Ayr below. This enclosure is probably the bailey associated with the motte. It has been proved that the flat summit of the motte has very dark soil of occupation and a clay floor at a depth of 2'. Part of the W margin of the summit has been carried away by landslide into the Hole Burn, exposing a continuation of the parapet from the bailey as well as a refuse heap beyond the wall. From this exposure the writer has collected from a mass of red burnt ash, charcoal and pieces of slag, bones, teeth, etc. Only a preliminary examination has been made. The motte is approached from the N, along a high, narrow ridge.

A Fairbairn 1927

Castle Hill, a natural spur, prolonged to the N, has been scarped in places to form a motte, almost circular, some 11.0m in diameter across its almost level top. To the N, a narrow, stone-lined neck of land with precipitous slopes on either side forms an entrance causeway. The S scarp of the motte is steep and artificial, 4.0m high, and a ditch lies between it and the smaller mound to the S. The purpose of this mound is not known; it is 2.0m high. The bailey is formed by an earthen bank 0.5m high internally and 2.0m high externally, of approximate rectangular form curving on the W. No trace of the refuse heap mentioned by Fairbairn was seen although the ground is cut away by a landslide as stated. The whole feature is thickly overgrown, making photography and accurate survey difficult. It occupies a very commanding position.

Visited by OS (JFC) 11 June 1954

No change to the previous report.

Visited by OS (BS) 21 July 1978