Description

The monument comprises the remains of a prehistoric or early historic barrow (a burial monument) and an unenclosed settlement dating probably from the Iron Age (around 500 BC to AD 500). The remains lie buried beneath the ploughsoil and are visible as cropmarks captured on oblique aerial photographs. The monument lies on a slight rise in undulating ground at around 20m OD. The monument was first scheduled in 1994, but the documentation did not meet modern standards: the present amendment rectifies this.

The barrow lies in the southern part of the site and is defined by a circular ditch some 2m wide and 15m in diameter. There is no apparent break in the ditch. Dark cropmarks within the interior are likely to represent the remains of one or more burials. To the N is a series of dark cropmarks that appear to represent the remains of an unenclosed settlement. The visible features are interpreted as pits, parts of souterrains (underground storage chambers) and a probable sunken-floored house.

The scheduled area is rectangular on plan measuring 95m NNW-SSE by 60m transversely 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 scheduling specifically excludes the above-ground elements of a post-and-wire fence.

Source: Historic Environment Scotland

Statement of Scheduling

The monument is of national importance because of its potential to make a significant addition to our knowledge and understanding of prehistoric burial and settlement. The survival of a barrow with clear evidence for internal features in close proximity to settlement features is relatively rare in its regional context. The cropmarks indicate that the barrow is a good example of its type and that significant buried remains can be expected. The importance of the monument is greatly enhanced by its association with the wider landscape of prehistoric settlement to the N of the Montrose Basin. Our understanding of the distribution and character of prehistoric settlements and funerary sites would be diminished if this monument was to be lost or damaged.

Source: Historic Environment Scotland

Sources

Bibliography

Other Information

RCAHMS records the monument as NO76SW 33. The Angus Sites and Monuments Record reference is NO76SW0033.

References

RCAHMS Aerial Photograph AN5650

Comparable excavated sites:

Alexander, D 2005, 'Redcastle, Lunan Bay, Angus: the excavation of an Iron Age timber-lined souterrain and a Pictish barrow cemetery', PSAS 135, 41-118.

Driscoll, S T 1997, 'A Pictish settlement in north-east Fife: the Scottish Field School of Archaeology excavations at Easter Kinnear', Tayside Fife Archaeol Jour 3, 74-118.

Pollock, D 1997, 'The excavation of Iron Age buildings at Ironshill, Inverkeilor, Angus', PSAS 127, 339-358.

Canmore

https://canmore.org.uk/site/36367/

Source: Historic Environment Scotland