Description

The monument comprises the remains of an enclosed settlement of prehistoric date represented by cropmarks visible on oblique aerial photographs.

The enclosure is hexagonal in shape, each side measuring approximately 30m. It is defined by a ditch of irregular width, measuring up to a maximum of approximately 6m on its SE side. It has a NW-facing entrance at the point where the visible remains of the enclosing ditch are at their narrowest, approximately 2-3m wide. Centrally situated in the interior of the enclosure is an annular ditch representing the remains of a circular-plan building approximately 8m in diameter.

The shape of the enclosure and the highly variable width of the ditch combine to set this site apart from the majority of known later prehistoric settlements in southern Scotland. Its location too, on an area of level arable land, is unusual for a later prehistoric settlement site. These factors suggest that this site may represent a functionally distinct, and potentially highly significant, element in the later prehistoric settlement landscape.

The area to be scheduled encompasses the visible features and an area around them in which traces of associated activity may be expected to survive. It is rectangular with dimensions of 160m WNW-ESE by 60m as marked in red on the accompanying map.

Source: Historic Environment Scotland

Statement of Scheduling

The monument is of national importance because of its potential to contribute to our understanding of prehistoric house construction and economy. The internal deposits may be expected to contain evidence for the construction and occupation of a substantial domestic structure. The patterning of deposits within the enclosure can also be expected to provide information on the organisation of the settlement and its economic base.

Source: Historic Environment Scotland

Sources

Bibliography

RCAHMS records the monument as NT 46 NE 15.

Source: Historic Environment Scotland