Castle Menzies, Garden

SUAT Ltd and CFA Archaeology Ltd were commissioned by the BBC to conduct a programme of archaeological fieldwork to the east of Castle Menzies, Aberfeldy. The investigation was to form the basis of a BBC pilot programme. Aerial photographs taken by of the Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Scotland (RCAHMS) and by David MacLeod of English Heritage indicated the presence of a rectilinear feature in the fields immediately to the east of the castle. Geophysical survey comprising both Fluxgate Gradometer and Resistivity survey was conducted. The results these surveys largely colluded with the map evidence and the aerial photographic evidence. Four trenches were excavated across anomalies chosen from the aerial photographs and the geophysical survey results.The results of the excavation indicate that this area was indeed the site of a walled garden as depicted on the Pont Map of 1580.

SUAT 2001