Description

The monument consists of a burnt mound, a prehistoric cooking place, situated on a promontory on the NW side of Loch of Niddister. The burnt mound is substantial, measuring about 17m by 14m and standing 1.7m high. It is of characteristic crescentic plan, with the concave side facing the water. On this side are several large earthfast slabs, probably the remains of the water trough normally found in this location.

The area to be scheduled is irregular, consisting of the promontory on which the mound stands, bounded on the NW by a line linking the head of two small bays and elsewhere by the edge of the loch. This area measures a maximum of 70m E-W by 45m N-S, to include the burnt mound and an area around it in which evidence relating to its accumulation and use may survive, as marked in red on the accompanying map.

Source: Historic Environment Scotland

Statement of Scheduling

The monument is of national importance as a good example of a burnt mound, probably of Bronze Age date, which has the potential, through excavation and analysis, to provide information about prehistoric domestic economy.

Source: Historic Environment Scotland

Sources

Bibliography

RCAHMS records the monument as HU 27 NE 12.

Reference:

RCAHMS (1946) No. 1372.

Source: Historic Environment Scotland