Description

The monument comprises the remains of a promontory fort, visible as cropmarks on oblique aerial photographs. The fort dates to the Iron Age (800BC – 400AD), and evidence suggests it had two phases of occupation. The site is located on the western shore of Cults Loch, a small inland loch lying around 25m above sea level, around 5km from Loch Ryan in the southwest corner of Scotland.  

The fort survives as buried archaeology with multiple curvilinear defensive ditches up to 5m wide and 130m long enclosing a low hillock that forms a promontory around 130m long extending into Cults Loch. Excavation of the site has revealed the well-preserved remains of a complex defensive system of ditches, ramparts and palisades.

The scheduled area is irregular. It includes the remains described above and an area around within which evidence relating to the monument's construction, use and abandonment is expected to survive, as shown in red on the accompanying map.

Source: Historic Environment Scotland

Statement of Scheduling

The national importance of the monument is demonstrated in the following way(s) (see Designations Policy and Selection Guidance, Annex 1, para 17):

a.  The monument is of national importance because it makes a significant contribution to our understanding or appreciation of the past, or has the potential to do so as a multi-phase prehistoric fort. It adds to our understanding of later prehistoric society in Scotland and the function, use and development of coastal forts and other defended sites.

b.   The monument retains structural, architectural, decorative or other physical attributes which make a significant contribution to our understanding or appreciation of the past. In particular, the partially waterlogged nature of the site means there is a high potential for the preservation of organic material relating to the site's construction and use that rarely survives outside of such contexts.

e.   The monument has research potential which could significantly contribute to our understanding or appreciation of the past, in particular the interrelationships between contemporary sites of a similar nature.

f.   The monument makes a significant contribution to today's landscape and our understanding of the historic landscape as part of an extensive group of prehistoric sites in the southwestern corner of Galloway. 

Assessment of Cultural Significance

This statement of national importance has been informed by the following assessment of cultural significance:

Intrinsic characteristics (how the remains of a site or place contribute to our knowledge of the past)

This monument has been recorded as cropmarks on aerial photographs and survives as buried deposits below the ploughsoil. The monument comprises the remains of an inland promontory fort, with a series of defensive features enclosing an area around 0.4 hectares in size. Excavation and geophysical survey in combination with the visible cropmarks, has identified a complex of seven ditches and palisades, some with ramparts, enclosing the site. The excavations have dated the main period of activity on the site to around 610BC – 250BC. The excavations of the site have not identified any other major interior features, however, there is a reasonable probability of the survival of additional features within the fort. In addition, the discovery of timber within waterlogged deposits demonstrates that these areas of the monument have a high potential to preserve significant archaeological remains, including organic material relating to the construction and use of the site that would be highly unlikely to survive outside of the waterlogged conditions.

Archaeological monuments often contain features that are not visible in aerial photographs and can have well preserved stratified layers of archaeological deposits. There is therefore potential for the survival of archaeological features and deposits, including occupation and abandonment debris, artefacts and environmental remains such as charcoal or pollen within the enclosures and within the ditches. It has the potential to provide information about the function and date of the features and their relationship to each other. Study of the monument's form and construction techniques compared with other promontory forts would enhance our understanding of the development sequence of this site.

Contextual characteristics (how a site or place relates to its surroundings and/or to our existing knowledge of the past)

The monument is one of many forts found across Scotland, including over 200 recorded in Dumfries and Galloway alone. The majority of such sites are believed to date to the Iron Age (800BC-400AD). It is unusual in that it is an inland promontory fort with few comparable examples. The only others in Dumfries and Galloway are Drummoral (scheduled monument SM1934, Canmore ID 63063) and Glenhead of Aldouran (scheduled monument SM1983, Canmore ID 60845).

This example lies on the western shore of Cults Loch in the southwestern corner of mainland Scotland, and the surrounding area contains numerous other prehistoric sites. These include roughly contemporary examples such as at least two crannogs at Cults Loch (SM7502, Canmore ID 276321), another at nearby Black Loch (SM7492) and a palisaded settlement on the opposite side of Cults Loch (SM7494), along with other prehistoric sites such as the major Neolithic and Bronze Age complex at Dunragit (SM5852). The interrelationships between the various prehistoric sites found in this part of Galloway are of potentially high significance and interest, and the monument has significant potential to add to our understanding of contemporary socio-political relationships.

Associative characteristics (how a site or place relates to people, events, and/or historic and social movements)

There are no known associative characteristics that contribute to the site's national importance.

Source: Historic Environment Scotland

Sources

Bibliography

Historic Environment Scotland http://www.canmore.org.uk reference number CANMORE ID 61697 (accessed on 05/10/2023).

Local Authority HER/SMR Reference MDG1752 (accessed on 05/10/2023).

Cavers, G. and Crone, A. (2010) Cults Landscape Project: Site 4 Excavation, Data Structure Report. Loanhead: AOC Archaeology Ltd.

Cavers, G. and Crone, A. (2018). A Lake Dwelling in its Landscape, Iron Age settlement at Cults Loch, Castle Kennedy, Dumfries and Galloway. Oxbow Books.

Canmore

https://canmore.org.uk/site/61697/

Source: Historic Environment Scotland