Scheduled Monument

Castle Findlay,fortSM3087

Status: Designated

Documents

Where documents include maps, the use of this data is subject to terms and conditions (https://portal.historicenvironment.scot/termsandconditions).

The legal document available for download below constitutes the formal designation of the monument under the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Areas Act 1979. The additional details provided on this page are provided for information purposes only and do not form part of the designation. Historic Environment Scotland accepts no liability for any loss or damages arising from reliance on any inaccuracies within this additional information.

Summary

Date Added
28/12/1971
Last Date Amended
20/11/1992
Supplementary Information Updated
11/12/2018
Type
Prehistoric domestic and defensive: fort (includes hill fort and promontory fort)
Local Authority
Highland
Parish
Nairn
NGR
NH 88807 51406
Coordinates
288807, 851406

Description

Castle Findlay is a fort with outworks on a knoll in the fork of two burns. The fort is approximately oval in plan and measures 33m N-S by 16m E-W. The wall of the fort survives as a turf-covered bank of rubble stones spread to 6m wide in which occasional burnt stones and a few small pieces of vitrified stone can be seen. The inner earthwork defences of the fort are surrounded at a lower level by a ditch, which averages 3m wide and 1m deep. This ditch is scarped into the slope and has an outer mound forming a rampart 3.5m wide and 1m high. This outer defence is broken in two places - in the E where there is a declavity leading down the slope from the fort to a water- hole and in the N. The entrance almost certainly lay to the N of the fort and outside the N gap in the outer rampart is a horn-shaped earthwork which protected the entrance. The area to be scheduled measures a maximum of 145m N-S by 110m E-W, to include the fort and an area around it in which traces of activities associated with its use will survive, as shown in red on the attached plan.

Statement of National Importance

The monument is of national importance as a well preserved example of a prehistoric fort. The rampart is partially vitrified and contains information on the construction and destruction of the fort. Traces of buildings associated with the fort will survive in its interior. This settlement evidence will be capable of providing important information on the economy and domestic life.

References

Bibliography

RCAHMS record the site as NH85SE 7.

About Scheduled Monuments

Historic Environment Scotland is responsible for designating sites and places at the national level. These designations are Scheduled monuments, Listed buildings, Inventory of gardens and designed landscapes and Inventory of historic battlefields.

We make recommendations to the Scottish Government about historic marine protected areas, and the Scottish Ministers decide whether to designate.

Scheduling is the process that identifies, designates and provides statutory protection for monuments and archaeological sites of national importance as set out in the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Areas Act 1979.

We schedule sites and monuments that are found to be of national importance using the selection guidance published in Designation Policy and Selection Guidance (2019)

Scheduled monument records provide an indication of the national importance of the scheduled monument which has been identified by the description and map. The description and map (see ‘legal documents’ above) showing the scheduled area is the designation of the monument under the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Areas Act 1979. The statement of national importance and additional information provided are supplementary and provided for general information purposes only. Historic Environment Scotland accepts no liability for any loss or damages arising from reliance on any inaccuracies within the statement of national importance or additional information. These records are not definitive historical or archaeological accounts or a complete description of the monument(s).

The format of scheduled monument records has changed over time. Earlier records will usually be brief. Some information will not have been recorded and the map will not be to current standards. Even if what is described and what is mapped has changed, the monument is still scheduled.

Scheduled monument consent is required to carry out certain work, including repairs, to scheduled monuments. Applications for scheduled monument consent are made to us. We are happy to discuss your proposals with you before you apply and we do not charge for advice or consent. More information about consent and how to apply for it can be found on our website at www.historicenvironment.scot.

Find out more about scheduling and our other designations at www.historicenvironment.scot/advice-and-support. You can contact us on 0131 668 8914 or at designations@hes.scot.

Images

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Printed: 18/04/2024 11:30