Abbey Knowe

NT14SE 25 1902 4055.

(NT 1902 4055) Abbey Knowe (NR) supposed (NAT) Tumulus (NR)

OS 6" map (1908)

Abbey Knowe is said to have belonged to Melrose Abbey at one time, and from its general appearance and proximity to the Roman camp (NT14SE 4) is supposed to be a tumulus. There has been no exhumation, however, to support this belief.

Name Book 1856

A natural gravel mound.

Visited by OS (DWR) 24 May 1971

NT 1902 4055 In July 1998 archaeologists from Biggar and Peebles undertook a rescue excavation on Abbey Knowe (NMRS NT14SE 25), a small glacial knoll near Lyne Kirk, after the discovery of a cist on the actively eroding edge of an old gravel quarry. A second undisturbed cist was discovered during the excavation, also near the edge of the quarry face and vulnerable to erosion. The two cists may have been part of a larger cemetery that has been destroyed as the knowe was quarried away.

Two neatly constructed cists were aligned roughly E-W on what remained of the top of the knowe. They were about 0.3m in depth and formed of edge-set slabs, two at both ends and two slabs forming each side. The larger cist measured 1.1 x 0.3m; the smaller 0.65 x 0.25m. Thin slabs of rock formed lids to the graves: six in the case of the larger cist and two for the smaller. The interiors of both cists tapered from the W end to the E. Both cists were full of fine gravels that had percolated down through the gaps between the cover stones, and there was no surviving skeletal material.

The Lyne cists share the form of construction of other excavated long cists but, relatively, are very small, leading to the suggestion that they may have been for a baby and a child. The burial rite is likely to have been Christian, with extended inhumations placed in the grave with the head at the W end.

The Peebles Archaeological Society will be adopting and maintaining the monument to create a local visitor attraction. A display panel will be installed to interpret the cists, the fine earthworks of the nearby Roman Fort, and Lyne Kirk.

Sponsors: Biggar Museum Trust, Peebles Archaeological Society.

S Corder, D Cowley and T Ward 1998

NT 1902 4055 In February 1999 further work on the site of two long cists (NMRS NT14SE 25) excavated in 1998 (Corder, Cowley and Ward 1998) was undertaken following removal of a tree, and in advance of consolidation of the cemetery for display. A third long cist was discovered directly under the tree and had suffered some root penetration. Its form differed slightly from the other two, its long sides formed by three and five edge-set slabs, rather than two. However, in common with the adjacent previously excavated cist, six thin slabs covered the grave, which contained no finds or skeletal material.

Two of the side slabs were of tooled pink sandstone and are likely to have been robbed from the nearby Roman fort. Re-examination of the other excavated cists identified a further slab of sandstone amongst the covers of the large cist; in addition, one surface of a side slab in this cist was worn very smooth and may have been a threshold stone, perhaps also from the fort. The remainder of the top of the knoll was cleaned back but failed to reveal any further features.

The support of Lady Elizabeth Benson, Weymss and March Estates, and Messrs Waddel of Lyne Farm is gratefully acknowledged. The Peebles Archaeological Society are maintaining the monument to create a local visitor attraction, and a display panel will be installed to interpret the cists, the nearby Roman fort and Lyne Kirk.

Sponsors: Biggar Museum Trust, Peebles Archaeological Society, Weymss Estates.

S Corder, D Cowley and T Ward 1999