Description

The monument comprises a single, large monolith of likely Bronze-Age date. It survives within a mixed-woodland clearing at approximately 80m above sea level. It is located on relatively low-lying ground nearly 2km south of the River Don.

The earthfast whinstone measures around 1.3m wide by 1.1m deep, standing around 3.25m high and leaning slightly to the south-east. Soil poaching at its base has revealed what may be packing stones and a number of stones of similar size to these have been placed on the monolith's top surface. An antiquarian suggested the stone had been worked into a shaped form because of its geometric shape and angled corners, but no tool marks are visible.

The area to be scheduled is circular on plan, to include the remains described and an area around them within which related material may be expected to be found, as shown in red on the accompanying map.

Source: Historic Environment Scotland

Statement of Scheduling

Cultural Significance

The monument's cultural significance can be expressed as follows:

Intrinsic characteristics

This is a prominent standing stone that apparently still stands where it was erected in prehistory. Buried deposits are likely to survive in the immediate area, as evidenced by the number of possible packing stones now visible at the base of the monument. Such deposits may also give us valuable information about the purpose of the monument, the people who created and used it, the methods used in its creation, dating evidence for its erection, and for any later activity associated with the stone.

Contextual characteristics

This monument has the potential to contribute to a better understanding of standing stones, particularly those of the Strathdon area. This example is one of an extensive number in the area, where there has been a long tradition of the erection of standing stones and related monuments, such as stone circles and burial cairns. This not only suggests a preference for settlement in the area in prehistory, but also provides us with an extremely important opportunity to assess the distribution and relationships of such sites. The position of such monuments in the landscape is an apparently important factor in their location, as is their connection to other similar monuments. This particular example stands just to the south-east of the crest of a ridge running roughly E-W. The current surrounding landuse for forestry makes it difficult to determine the relation of the monument to the further landscape in this case. Comparing and contrasting this monument with other examples of its type can give us valuable information on how and why the Bronze-Age peoples of the area placed such monuments in the landscape. This can help us understand Bronze-Age ritual monuments throughout Scotland, as well as in the Strathdon region.

National Importance

The monument is of national importance because it has an inherent potential to contribute to the understanding of the past, in particular Bronze-Age standing stones and the part they played in ritual beliefs and practices. Spatial analysis between this and other contemporary monuments may reveal valuable information on the layout and patterns of Bronze-Age ritual sites within the landscape. The loss of the monument would impede our understanding of the placing of such monuments and the nature and purpose of their construction and use.

Source: Historic Environment Scotland

Sources

Bibliography

RCAHMS record the monument as NJ72SW 2. Aberdeenshire Council SMR records the site as NJ71SW0002.

References:

Coles F R 1902, 'Report on stone circles in Aberdeenshire (Inverurie, Eastern Parishes and Insch Districts), with measured plans and drawings, obtained under the Gunning Fellowship', PROC SOC ANTIQ SCOT, 36, 86-7.

RCAHMS 2007, IN THE SHADOW OF BENNACHIE: THE FIELD ARCHAEOLOGY OF DONSIDE, ABERDEENSHIRE, Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Scotland.

Source: Historic Environment Scotland