Description

The monument is a grass-covered mound that probably contains the remains of a broch, a complex stone-built substantial roundhouse, dating from the Iron Age (between 600 BC and AD 400). The mound is located about 7m above sea level, 20m inland from the shore of Dunnet Bay.

The mound is approximately oval in shape, measuring around 25m in northwest-southeast by 14m transversely and 2.7m in height. The shape of the mound has been modified by construction of a wall and track on the north side and by ploughing to the south. Many small stone slabs are visible protruding through the turf.  In 1786 a Norse burial was found on top of the mound, comprising a skeleton accompanied by two brooches, a jet armlet and a bone pin.

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. On the northeast side the scheduling extends up to but excludes a stone wall. The scheduling specifically excludes the above ground elements of a post and wire fence that runs parallel with the wall. The monument was first scheduled in 1962, but the documentation did not meet current standards: the present amendment rectifies this.

Source: Historic Environment Scotland

Statement of Scheduling

This monument is of national importance because it can make a significant addition to our understanding of the past, in particular of Iron Age society in northern Scotland and the construction, use and development of brochs. The size of the upstanding mound indicates this monument is likely to retain its structural characteristics to a marked degree, with potential for significant survival of walls and features such as intramural cells.  There is high potential for a complex sequence of buried remains; brochs were often modified and remodelled during the period of their use and often attracted later settlement. The Norse burial found at this monument is an important and rare example of the later use of a broch site for burial. The monument's importance is enhanced by its association with other brochs located to the east and southeast of Thurso. The loss of the monument would diminish our ability to understand the development and use of brochs in Caithness and their role in the Iron Age settlement pattern.

Source: Historic Environment Scotland

Sources

Bibliography

Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Scotland: http://www.rcahms.gov.uk/canmore.html CANMORE ID 8383.

The Highland Council Historic Environment Record reference is MHG1496.

Canmore

https://canmore.org.uk/site/8383/

HER/SMR Reference

http://her.highland.gov.uk/SingleResult.aspx?uid=MHG1496

Source: Historic Environment Scotland