South Uist, Barp Frobost

Chambered Cairn, Barp Frobost.

About 1000 yards east of the fifth milestone on the road going north from Lochboisdale and some 70 yards from the right bank of the burn flowing down from Rudba Greannach, in the angle formed by the junction of another stream from the north-east, is a chambered cairn, Barp Frobost, occupying the summit of one of the numerous rocky knowes between the stream and the hills to the east, the elevation being about 50 feet above sea-level.

The cairn is much dilapidated, many stones having been removed, especially from the north side, and on the north and western margins are ruined shielings. It has been a circular cairn, the outline being marked by a number of upright slabs, of which four, measuring at most 2 feet 9 inches in height above the surface, remain on the eastern side and two on the west. The diameter is about 80 feet, and the height above the boundary stones is now only 10 feet. The chamber, which lies near the centre of the structure, has been opened, and is now full of earth and stones; the displaced cover stone, a large flag of irregular shape, measures 8 feet 4 inches in length, 5 feet 5 inches in breadth, and 11 inches in thickness. There is nothing to indicate the position of the entrance passage.

RCAHMS 1928, visited 20 August 1914.

OS map: South Uist lv.

Standing on top of a heather-grown ridge, this chambered cairn is as described and planned by Henshall. The heather has been burnt off recently and some of the stones are now blackened and scorched. The cairn has been heavily disturbed, especially on the E, and the footings of several subrectangular shieling huts are disposed around its base. At least eight slabs of the peristalith can still be seen, and the passage, though not visible, is presumably on the SE. Just to the E of the centre of the cairn, the large upright slabs that form the chamber are partly exposed, and the slightly displaced capstone rests on two flat stones that overlie the side-slabs on the SW. The chamber is set relatively high in the cairn, but its position is dictated by the crest of the underlying ridge, which enhances the height of the cairn where the ground drops away more steeply.

Visited by RCAHMS (ARG,SPH) 3 March 2010

The site has been disturbed and is quite badly damaged on the west and east sides. Some cairn material is visible, but the mound is mostly covered in grass. This site seems to be in much the same state as when Henshall found it.

Henshall (1972: 499) identified eight stones in the peristalith, but only six of these are now clearly visible. Other possible kerb stones can be seen around the edge of the original cairn, but most are heavily overgrown and it is difficult to tell whether these are in situ kerb stones or part of the cairn material. The diameter of the cairn, as defi ned by the surviving kerb stones, is approximately 25m.

A possible displaced capstone is visible on the top of the mound, slightly to the east of the centre. The capstone measures 2.50m by 1.65m. The tops of some large orthostats are visible in the centre of the mound and seem to suggest that although much of the cairn has been robbed, the chamber deposits may survive more or less intact. From the positioning of these chamber stones it seems likely that the entrance to the chamber might have been to the southeast.

Cummings, Henley and Sharples 2012, visited 1997-1999