Description

The monument consists of remains of a prehistoric settlement buried beneath sand and shingle deposits, and partly overlain by coast defences, at the SW end of Dalmore Bay.

The settlement, which was partly examined in 1983-4, consists of the fragmentary remains of one or more structures, perhaps houses, set in a sedimentary layer rich in artefacts (pottery and bone predominantly) indicating a later Neolithic and early Bronze Age provenance for the site. Coast defences were constructed in 1984-5 over part of the site, sealing it beneath a built-up layer and behind sheet-piled walling. At one location, where a small stream cuts through to the coast, archaeological material continues to be sporadically revealed in the gap between two sections of the sheet-piling.

The area to be scheduled includes a portion of the upper beach and a portion of the platform created by tipping behind the recent coast defences, to encompass the identified focus and spread of archaeological deposits. This area is irregular on plan, measuring some 150m ENE-WSW and from 40m to 45m transversely. It is defined on the NNW (seaward) side by the mean high water mark of spring tides, and on the WSW by a rock face, and is marked in red on the accompanying map.

Source: Historic Environment Scotland

Statement of Scheduling

The monument is of national importance as an example of a rare settlement type of proven date and artefactual richness in a part of Scotland where settlement evidence of the period is much less common than ritual and funerary monuments. It has tested potential to contribute important information about later Neolithic and early Bronze Age domestic organisation and material culture.

Source: Historic Environment Scotland

Sources

Bibliography

RCAHMS records the monument as NB24NW 4.

Source: Historic Environment Scotland