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Castledykes - Bothwellhaugh - Balmuildy (?)
Quarry Pit(S) (Roman), Roman Road (Roman)
Site Name Castledykes - Bothwellhaugh - Balmuildy (?)
Classification Quarry Pit(S) (Roman), Roman Road (Roman)
Canmore ID 72139
Site Number NS94SW 39
NGR NS 9200 4458
NGR Description From NS 9277 4424 to NS 9124 4499
Datum OSGB36 - NGR
Permalink http://canmore.org.uk/site/72139
- Council South Lanarkshire
- Parish Carstairs
- Former Region Strathclyde
- Former District Clydesdale
- Former County Lanarkshire
NS94SW 39.00 from 9277 4424 to 9124 4499. RR 5.
Formerly RR 78b.
NS94SW 39.01 9264 4429 Roman Road; Excavation
Leaving Castledykes fort (NS94SW 7.01) by the W gate, traces of this road may be seen through the woodland strip forming the avenue connecting Corbiehill with the public road. Emerging from the wood some 500m W of the fort rampart, slight traces may be discerned in the contour of the adjacent field. It crosses the road from Ravenstruther to Hyndford Bridge (A70) just S of its junction with the Westbank farm-road, along the S margin of which traces of the causeway may be seen beneath the hedge and fence. From this point its course is still fairly clear. It cuts across the corner of the Westbank farm steading and picks up the farm-road again beyond it, where its course is marked by a row of beech trees between some cottages. The line is well marked by a dilapidated fence between two fields of the adjacent farm of Huntlybank, and again by a dry-stone dyke, which is crossed S of the farm. It maintains the line of the farm-road as far as the Ravenstruther-Lanark road (A743) then passes along the SW side of the Silvermuir Wood, till a marshy hollow is reached; this is avoided by a slight curve, then the line is resumed as far as the railway, where there is a slight change in direction as far as sheet edge.
W Roy 1793; RCAHMS 1978; Visited by OS (RD) July 1968.
Two superimposed Antonine roads lay under the modern cart-track through the Antonine gateway of Castledykes fort. The upper road (Antonine II) was very close to the modern surface and had been uprooted at many points. It was 20ft wide, flanked by gutters 3ft wide and had a hard gravel surface over cobble-bottoming. It was traced westwards for almost 80ft and even in that short distance was found to be inclining towards the NW. It lay on 1ft of earth below which was the Antonine 1 road, which had a surface of large cobbles and gravel, and rested on the natural sand. The Flavian W gateway lay 15ft S of the Antonine.
A S Robertson 1964.
NS 9277 4424 - NS 9240 4435 Farm road on line.
NS 9240 4435 - NS 9222 4445 No trace.
NS 9222 4445 - NS 9124 4499 Parish boundary, field dykes and farm road on line, otherwise no trace.
Aerial photography has revealed a number of quarry-pits to the N and S of the road from NS 927 441 to NS 923 444.
RCAHMSAP (RHM) 28 July 1994
During a watching-brief in advance of house-building 150m W of the W gate of the fort, the stone bottoming of a road running E-W was plotted, overlying a buried plough soil. Its date remained unclear.
L J F Keppie 1994
Site recorded during an archaeological evaluation conducted on 30 alternative route elements, with a combined length of c84km, for a proposed road linking the M8 near Whitburn, Lothian Region with the M6/M74 near Douglas, Clydesdale District.
NS94SW 39 Roman road
An illustrated report will be deposited with the NMRS.
Sponsor: Roads Directorate of The Scottish Office Industry Department, managed on its behalf by Historic Scotland.
A J Dunwell and R J Strachan 1995.
Aerial Photographic Transcription (29 July 1994)
An aerial transcription was produced from oblique aerial photographs. Information from Historic Environment Scotland (BM) 31 March 2017.
