Description

The monument is the remains of two cairns dating probably to the Bronze Age (between about 2000 BC and 800 BC). They are visible as low stony circular mounds, some 100m apart and aligned NNW-SSE. The northernmost cairn measures 11m in diameter and is composed of small boulders. The kerb stones are best preserved around the W and N; elsewhere the cairn is mainly turf-covered. The southernmost cairn measures 13.5m in diameter. Its perimeter is formed by a well-defined kerb of large rounded boulders, best preserved on the S arc. The cairns are situated close to the summit of Gallow Hill at around 210m above sea level, with commanding views to the S and E. The monument was first scheduled in 1935, but the documentation did not meet modern standards: the present amendment rectifies this.

The scheduled area comprises two circles, the northernmost measuring 25m in diameter and the southernmost 28m in diameter, 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.

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 the past, particularly the design and construction of burial monuments, and the nature of belief systems and burial practices during the Bronze Age in Angus. Ritual and funerary monuments are important for enhancing our understanding of Bronze Age society, its organisation, economy, religion and demography. These two cairns are particularly significant because they are upstanding and apparently associated, and they occupy a prominent position within the landscape. Despite disturbance in the past, much of their original form survives and there is high potential for the survival of important buried remains, including human burials, artefacts and palaeoenvironmental evidence. The loss of the monument would significantly diminish our ability to appreciate and understand death, burial and funerary practice in prehistoric times.

Source: Historic Environment Scotland

Sources

Bibliography

Other Information

RCAHMS records the monument as NO46SW 4 and the Angus Sites and Monuments Record records the monument as NO46SW0004.

References

Coutts, H 1970, Ancient Monuments of Tayside, Dundee, 11.

Ordnance Survey (Name Book) Object Name Books of the Ordnance Survey (6 inch and 1/2500 scale), Book no 82, 59.

Canmore

https://canmore.org.uk/site/33914/

Source: Historic Environment Scotland