Balgonie

NO11NE 61 1877 1761

(NO 187 175) Aerial photography (RCAHMS 1977) has revealed the cropmarks of what may be a ditched enclosure on the left bank of the Nethy Burn 600m NW of Balgonie steading. The features recorded coincide with a boundary that partly enclosed the old steading of Innernethy; this is depicted on the 1st edition of the OS 6-inch map (Perthshire 1866, sheet cx) as a line with a row of trees, and a scatter of trees, probably an orchard, is shown within it. At that time, the steading comprised five buildings, three of them forming the sides of a yard; a covered horse-engine was attached to the building on the NW side of the yard. By the date of the 2nd edition of the map (1901, sheet cx.NE) only two roofed buildings remained but these have also been removed since.

Vertical aerial photographs taken in 1946 demonstrate that, although all the buildings had been removed by that date, the tree-lined enclosure to the N of the burn still survived. It is in comparatively modern times, therefore, that the levelling of the features which have produced the cropmarks has taken place. Further, at least a dozen sandstone steps from a circular stair, possibly from the farmsteading, have been built into the W revetment of the farm track, where it crosses over the Nethy Burn (NO 1886 1759).

Visited by RCAHMS (JRS), 11 December 1996

A farmstead comprising one unroofed, five roofed buildings, one of which has an attached roofed horse-gang, four enclosures and a tree lined field is depicted on the 1st edition of the OS 6-inch map (Perthshire 1866, sheet cx). A partially enclosed field is shown on the current edition of the OS 1:10000 map (1987).

Information from RCAHMS (SAH) 3 March 1998