Ruighachail

Plane table survey

A township comprising 10 buildings located on the E bank of the Gelder Burn. To the NW is a large raised area of dry grassland in an otherwise heather or boggy landscape. The raised area is enclosed by a head dyke of rough field stone standing to a height of 1m high in places.

The Ordnance Survey Name Book of 1868 records the site as being in ruins, and remarks: “A small number of ruins, which were formerly dwelling houses but they are a long time unroofed and the cultivated ground adjoining is now rough pasture. They are situated in a hollow in a sharp angle of the Gelder Burn. The name means Kail Shieling.”

Building A

This is a substantial rectangular building with rounded external corners, built from roughly dressed field stones with a rubble core; it stands 3 courses 0.6m high in places. The wall is buttressed at the N end. The SE edge of the house is scarped into a natural hummock. There is a later small enclosure built on one end.

At the N end on the W face a later square outshot has been added, built of well-dressed stone with a clay-bonded rubble core and fairly square corners both inside and out. The walls are unusually thick, at 0.8-1.0m wide. There was probably an entrance in the N W face but its exact location is not clear; a substantial 1.5m long finely-dressed granite stone, probably a lintel, rests on the collapsed wall.

Building B

This rectangular building is of roughly dressed coursed field stone with a rubble core; the walls stand to 1m high. The corners are rounded externally and square internally. The entrance is in the S face. There is a small building to the S W.

Building C

This is a rectangular building of 2 compartments, the dividing wall being contemporaneous with the external walls. It is constructed of field stones, some very large, with a rubble core; on the N side the walls are exceptionally wide at 1m. There are opposing entrances located on the lower (W) section, and on the upper (E) section and a platform in the N W corner of the E section. The walls stand to an average height of 1m high except at the E end which is 1.5m. The building stands on slightly raised ground, which is a continuation of a mound running to the E adjacent to Building A.

Enclosure 1, Structures (a) and (b)

This is a large enclosure on the field side of the boundary wall. At least 2 structures abut the enclosure on the E side, neither one tied in to the enclosure wall; it is difficult to tell whether enclosure or structures were built first.

The structures are built on a slight platform. Structure (a) is crudely built. Structure (b) is well built, with walls standing to 4 courses 1m in height and is unusually square in plan.There is a possible entrance in the W wall with a ramp running down to the E of Structure (b)

The enclosure wall is made mainly of large stones, single thickness. It stops short of the N W corner of Building C, creating an entrance.

Building D

This is constructed of rough field stones with rubble fill; the walls stand to 0.8m in height, excepting the S E corner has been robbed to ground level. There is an inserted internal partition wall and possibly 2 opposing entrances, that on the W side later blocked off with orthostats.

Building E

This building is a kiln barn partly scarped into the natural bank. The kiln bowl in on the N, uphill, side and has an external diameter of 4m. The bowl is largely infilled with collapsed rubble and clearance. The barn has internal measurements of 3.2 x 3.2m with an entrance on the E side. It is a drystone construction of rough field boulders and rubble infill standing up to 3 courses.

Building F

This building is of drystone construction using field boulders with rubble infill. The walls stand 3 courses high at most and the corners are rounded. There is a possible entrance on the N side. A drystone wall of large boulders abuts the SW corner of the building and stops just short of the SE corner forming an enclosure of approximately 8 x 4m.

Building G

This is a 2 section rectangular building with an outshot to the SE. It is aligned NW/SE on the long axis. The walls are built of rough field stones, and stand to a maximum of 0.9m high. The corners are rounded both internally and externally. There are entrances on the E face of each section, and a wide entrance on the E face of the outshot. Its internal dimensions are:

N end 4.7 x 2.3m, S end 5.7 x 2.4m Outshot 5.1 x 2.4m

Building H

This is of drystone construction using rough field boulders with rubble infill. It is aligned NW/SE on the long axis. The walls stand 2 courses high at most and the corners are rounded on the outside but near square on the inside. The internal dimensions are 7.5x2.3m and there is a possible entrance on the E side.

Building I

This is of drystone construction using field boulders with rubble infill. The long axis is aligned N/S. The walls stand 5 courses high at most and the corners are rounded. When viewed from the inside there appears to have been an entrance on the W side which has been blocked up with stones. However the stonework on the outside face of the wall appears to be uninterrupted. There is an outshot on the S side of the building of the same construction.

Building J

This is of drystone construction using rough field boulders with rubble infill. The long axis is aligned N/S. The walls stand 2 courses high at most and the corners are rounded. The internal dimensions are 5.7 x 2.2m and there is a possible entrance on the W side.