Description

The monument comprises the remains of an enclosed settlement of prehistoric date represented by cropmarks visible on oblique aerial photographs.

It lies in arable farmland at around 230m OD. The monument comprises a sub-rectangular enclosure with sides measuring at least 60m N-S by 35m E-W, and ditches approximately 5m wide. The ends of the enclosure are indistinct. It is sub-divided by at least two ditches running E-W.

The form of the enclosure is not closely paralleled by other sites in southern Scotland although the massive nature of the ditches and rectilinear form suggest that the site may be related to the Later Iron Age tradition of rectilinear enclosed settlements.

The area to be scheduled encompasses the visible remains and an area around them in which traces of related activity may be expected to survive. It is rectangular with maximum dimensions of 130m N-S by 80m as marked in red on the accompanying map.

Source: Historic Environment Scotland

Statement of Scheduling

The monument is of national importance because of its potential to contribute to our understanding of prehistoric settlement and economy. The unusual form of the enclosure suggests that it may have a specialised function within later prehistoric settlement patterns of the region. There may be surviving evidence of the sub-division of economic activities within the separate segments of the enclosure.

Source: Historic Environment Scotland

Sources

Bibliography

RCAHMS records the monument as NT 46 SW 35.

Source: Historic Environment Scotland