Description

The monument comprises the remains of a stone circle of prehistoric date, which lies on the south shoulder of a ridge 120m NNE of Cairnfauld Farmhouse.

The monument was first scheduled in 1925, but the original documentation is missing and the area is inadequately defined. The monument is being re-scheduled to clarify the extent of the protected area.

The stone circle measures approximately 21m in diameter, although only three of the five stones now visible are in situ. Two of them stand within the thickness of a consumption dyke. The tallest of the stones stands about 1.8m high and lies to the S, with those to the SW and E measuring 1.5m and 1.3m in height respectively. A fourth stone, originally erected to the W, lies prostrate immediately W of the SW stone; and a fifth, which now lies across the circumference of the circle, may have been re-erected to the N in c.1877. Human bones were discovered near the centre of the circle in the 19th century.

The area to be scheduled is a circle 40m in diameter centred on the centre of the circle, to include the remains of the stone circle and an area around in which traces of activities associated with the construction and use of the monument may survive, as shown in red on the attached map.

Source: Historic Environment Scotland

Statement of Scheduling

The monument is of national importance as the remains of a prehistoric stone circle and one of a cluster in the local vicinity. It has the potential to provide important information about prehistoric ritual activity in this area.

Source: Historic Environment Scotland

Sources

Bibliography

The RCAHMS number is NO 79 SE 1.

Source: Historic Environment Scotland