Scheduled Monument

Loch of Breck,settlement 360m SSW of LiradaleSM6158

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
20/02/1995
Type
Prehistoric domestic and defensive: field or field system; hall; settlement (if not assigned to any more specific type)
Local Authority
Shetland Islands
Parish
Walls And Sandness
NGR
HU 20965 48385
Coordinates
420965, 1148385

Description

The monument comprises the remains of a prehistoric settlement of at least one house together with the remains of contemporary fields.

The settlement is located on a NE-facing slope overlooking Loch of Breck. A single oval house has been revealed by peat-cutting. It measures some 6m by 4.5m internally, with walls up to 2m thick. The entrance has been from the SE, where a curving wall foundation suggests a porch or windbreak. Within the house, alcoves can be traced in the inner face of the wall on the NE side. To the N and NW of the house small squarish terraces probably represent contemporary fields, and there are a number of small cairns, perhaps of field cleared stones, in the area.

The area to be scheduled is irregular on plan, bounded on the NE by a modern fence, which is itself excluded. It measures a maximum of 95m NE-SW by 90m, to include the house, fields and cairns and an area around them in which traces of activities associated with their construction and use may survive, as marked in red on the accompanying map.

Statement of National Importance

The monument is of national importance as a small prehistoric farming settlement which has the potential, through excavation and analysis, to provide important information about prehistoric domestic architecture and subsistence economy.

References

Bibliography

RCAHMS records the monument as HU24NW 42.

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

There are no images available for this record, you may want to check Canmore for images relating to Loch of Breck,settlement 360m SSW of Liradale

There are no images available for this record.

Search Canmore

Printed: 26/04/2024 05:35