Description

The monument comprises a group of prehistoric and early medieval settlements which are visible as cropmarks and survive as buried archaeological features below the plough soil. There are three enclosed later prehistoric settlements, and these may span a period from the late Bronze Age to late Iron Age (around 1000BC to 400AD). In addition, there is an unenclosed roundhouse of Bronze or Iron Age date and two sunken floored buildings which are likely to date to the early medieval period (around AD 400 to 1000). A substantial ditched feature with what appears to be an entrance is also present and may be a contemporary land boundary.  The various elements are visible as dark patches on the aerial photography and the separate features are clearly definable. The monument is located in low lying arable land at around 10m above sea level.

The enclosed settlements are likely date to the late Bronze or Iron Age periods (1000BC – 400AD). The most northerly settlement, at NX 10866 56142 is trapezoidal and measures 21m from east-northeast to west-southwest by up to 19m transversely within a ditch about 1.5m in breadth. There is a gap in the ditch, probably an entrance, towards the northern end of the west-southwest side. To the south of this enclosure lies a ditched feature which runs for around 170m with what appears to be an entrance midway along its southern extent. This may be contemporary land boundary or the remains a larger enclosure. Around 50m southwest of the most northerly settlement and immediate south of the land boundary is a palisaded enclosure. It is roughly circular with an internal diameter of around 25m and an entrance on the east-southeast. What may be an early medieval sunken floored building is located about 6m northwest of this palisaded settlement. The feature is visible as a broadly trapezoidal dark mark measuring around 8m from northwest to southeast by about 4m transversely.

A third prehistoric settlement is situated at NX 10919 56000 on a low-lying terrace overlooking the Piltanton Burn, around 115m south of the northernmost settlement. It is roughly circular on plan and measures up to 30m in diameter within a ditch approximately 3m in breadth. There is a possible entrance on the west-southwest and a gap on the east, but it is unclear if this is a second entrance or due to differential cropmark formation. In the southeast arc, a second ditch is visible outside and roughly concentric to the first. A roundhouse, visible as a dark circular cropmark measuring about 8m in diameter, is visible about 44m to the northwest. Some 17m to the east northeast of this, a broadly trapezoidal dark mark measuring about 8.5m from north to south by about 4.5m transversely may represent the remains of another sunken floored building.

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. All modern fences are specifically excluded from the scheduling to allow for their maintenance.

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. The monument is an important indicator of later prehistoric and early medieval settlement and associated activity in southwest Scotland.

b.   The monument retains physical attributes which make a significant contribution to our understanding or appreciation of the past. In particular, this monument contains multiple different forms of prehistoric settlement as well as early medieval sunken floored buildings, suggesting an extended period of occupation in this location.

d.   The monument is a particularly good example of a group of prehistoric and early historic settlements located in relative proximity and is therefore an important representative of this monument type. 

e.   The monument has research potential which could significantly contribute to our understanding or appreciation of the past and specifically, information about the changing nature of settlement, agriculture, economy and population during later prehistoric and early historic periods.

f.   The monument makes a significant contribution to our understanding of the historic landscape by providing evidence of settlement patterns, density, and size of individual settlements; landuse and extent of human impact on the local environment over time.

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 three different forms of enclosed later prehistoric settlement, unenclosed later prehistoric settlement in the form of at least a roundhouse and two early medieval sunken floored buildings. A substantial land boundary is also present which may be the remains of a large prehistoric enclosure. Additionally, there are a scattering of pits and other miscellaneous cropmarks which may be contemporary. The various elements are visible as dark patches on the aerial photography and the separate features are clearly definable.

Cropmarked 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 settlements, roundhouse, within the ditches of the enclosures and as fills in the various pits close by.

Settlements are the most common monument type that survive from the Bronze Age (c.2400 BC – 800 BC) and Iron Age (c.800 BC -AD 400). The group of settlements here are significant because of the surviving deposits indicated by the cropmarked evidence and the potential for the survival of additional buried features, and also because they form a rare grouping of enclosed and unenclosed settlements of differing types. Study of these monuments together could add to our knowledge of construction techniques and chronology. There is also good potential (as seen in excavated examples) for the survival of a rich assemblage of artefacts such as cattle and sheep bones, plant material such as the grains from oats and barley and pollens associated with an agricultural landscape as well as pottery fragments and tools. Finally, the presence of a small sunken floor buildings likely to date to a later period and reuse of the site, is significant for the structure, materials and artefacts surviving in the ground. It indicates occupation of the site over a longer time period. Taken together these remains can help us understand much more about population, settlement, agriculture and economy in the area during later prehistoric and early historic periods.

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

Settlements are the most common monument type dating from the later prehistoric period, however, it is unusual to have a concentration of enclosed and unenclosed settlement of different types within a single location. The monument represents the types of unenclosed and enclosed settlement and related activity found in southwest Scotland during the later prehistoric and early medieval periods. The monument is located in an area that is rich in prehistoric settlement remains such as Several Hill, palisaded settlement (Canmore ID 61275: 200m east northeast), Barsolus, fort (scheduled monument SM7447: 315m north), Barsolus, prehistoric enclosures (Canmore ID 61227: 330m northwest) and East Galdenoch, enclosures (scheduled monument SM7347: 515m southeast). This concentration of monuments appears to demonstrate a sequence of use involving enclosed and unenclosed forms of settlement.  Longer term use of this location for settlement is evidenced by the presence of the early medieval sunken floored buildings.

The monument is located on gently sloping ground between the Piltanton and Allivolie Burns and is likely positioned to take advantage of relatively fertile soils. It is a good representative example of its class and a component of the wider contemporary settlement and agricultural landscapes, occupying low lying ground around Loch Ryan and Luce Bay. It therefore has the potential to help us understand more of the nature, development and the spatial relationships of prehistoric settlement and activity in southwest Scotland.

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 IDs 78933/ 78934/ 78935 and 78936 (accessed on 05/09/2023).

Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments, 1997. Eastern Dumfriesshire: an archaeological landscape. Edinburgh. RCAHMS

Wilson D R (2000). Air Photo Interpretation for Archaeologists. Tempus, Stroud.

Canmore

https://canmore.org.uk/site/78933/
https://canmore.org.uk/site/78934/
https://canmore.org.uk/site/78932/
https://canmore.org.uk/site/78935/
https://canmore.org.uk/site/78936/
https://canmore.org.uk/site/78937/

Source: Historic Environment Scotland