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Latitude: 59.3341 / 59°20'2"N
Longitude: -2.9823 / 2°58'56"W
OS Eastings: 344213
OS Northings: 1050164
OS Grid: HY442501
Mapcode National: GBR M402.0KR
Mapcode Global: XH8K8.GNH4
Entry Name: Rack Wick bay, kelp working site, Westray
Scheduled Date: 29 January 2015
Source: Historic Environment Scotland
Source ID: SM13459
Schedule Class: Cultural
Category: Industrial: kiln, furnace, oven; Secular: boat-shaped setting
Location: Westray
County: Orkney Islands
Electoral Ward: North Isles
Traditional County: Orkney
The monument comprises the remains of an extensive kelp production site dating from the late 18th to 19th centuries AD. It survives as many short lengths of low drystone dyke running in parallel inland from a natural shingle bank, a series of kelp-burning pits, and other remains associated with the collection, processing and storage of kelp, together with a group of boat noosts. The monument is located on the W coast of northern Westray and extends over an area of foreshore up to 600m long and over 50m wide in places.
The scheduled area is irregular on plan to include the remains described above and an area around them within which evidence relating to the monument's construction, use and abandonment is expected to survive, as shown in red on the accompanying map. The seaward extent of the scheduled area is the mean high water spring mark; the landward extent is marked by the northern edge of the adjacent track.
Source: Historic Environment Scotland
The monument is of national importance because it has an inherent potential to contribute to our understanding of the past, in particular, the industrial processing of kelp in Orkney in the 18th and 19th centuries. It is an extensive and unusually well-preserved site, notable for the scale and readability of the remains, which exemplifies a significant phase in the exploitation of coastal resources in Orkney. Archival and documentary sources attest to the scale of kelp production in Westray, which was one of the main Orcadian production areas. The loss of this monument would impede our ability to understand the scale and development of kelp production and agricultural diversification in Orkney in the 18th and 19th centuries.
Source: Historic Environment Scotland
Bibliography
Other information
RCAHMS records the monument as HY45SW 16.
References
Fenton, A 1997, The Northern Isles: Orkney and Shetland. East Linton. Tuckwell Press limited.
Moore, H and Wilson, G 1998, Orkney Coastal Zone Assessment 1998. Unpubl typescript report.
Thomson, W P 1983, Kelp making in Orkney. Kirkwall. The Orkney Press.
Source: Historic Environment Scotland
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