Description

This monument comprises a section of the Antonine Wall which crosses Peel Park from the area of Camphill Avenue to the NE gate and Peel Brae. It includes the site of one of the Antonine Wall Roman forts, and also the earthworks of a medieval castle.

This proposal forms part of a programme which is intended to update the scheduling of the Antonine Wall, and extends the protected area along this part of the line of the Wall.

The Antonine Wall at this location consists of the rampart, the ditch, the berm (area between rampart and ditch) and the upcast mound. The Antonine Wall has been flattened although it is likely that substantial traces will survive under the topsoil. A small excavation has uncovered the remains of a short stretch of the foundations of the Antonine Wall and these are now preserved within a fenced enclosure in the NW of the Park.

There is a long history of finds of Roman coins, pottery and dressed building stone from this area, and excavations in the Park found the post-holes of timber buildings, road surfaces and drains, dated by artefacts to the second century AD. These remains indicate the presence of a fort in this location, although excavations indicate that the ditches which would have surrounded the fort mainly lie outside the scheduled area and have been largely built over.

The medieval castle earthworks, probably dating to the twelfth century, consist of a rectangular mound with a broad ditch still surviving on the south and east sides. Double walls of dressed stone cemented together with lime mortar were reported to be visible in the eighteenth century.

The area to be scheduled includes the Antonine Wall rampart, berm, ditch and upcast mound, the fort in so far as it is not built over, the castle earthworks and an area to the N and S where traces of activities associated with the construction and use of these various structures may survive, as shown in red on the accompanying map extract.

The boundary of the scheduled area follows the park boundary on the E, S and W sides, and on the N follows the N edge of the playground. At the NE the scheduled area extends out into Peel Brae for a maximum of 15m beyond the War Memorial gate. The top 50cm of the surface of the playground and of the paths within the scheduled area is excluded from the scheduling to enable minor repair and alterations to these areas without the need for scheduled monument consent.

All modern above ground structures are also excluded from the scheduling, including the boundary fences and walls, the drinking fountain, the bandstand, the War Memorial, and the playground equipment.

Source: Historic Environment Scotland

Statement of Scheduling

The monument is of national importance as a major Roman frontier system which has the potential to increase considerably our understanding of Roman frontier policy and military organisation. The Antonine Wall is also the most substantial and important Roman monument is Scotland. The fort is one of at least 18 Roman forts on the Antonine Wall military frontier, and is of particular importance because the interior of the fort has not been built upon. The medieval occupation of the site in the form of the castle is also of considerable interest.

Source: Historic Environment Scotland

Sources

Bibliography

Reference:

McBrien, K. et al (1995) 'Some excavations on the line of the Antonine Wall 1985-93', in PSAS 125, 601-671.

Source: Historic Environment Scotland