Documents

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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.

• Type

  Legal Documents

  Title

  SM6369_Legal Doc

  Download(https://portal.historicenvironment.scot/document/600012257)

Summary

Description

The Danes Dike is a substantial linear earthwork which at one time probably enclosed at least the promontory of Fife Ness. Its name derives from a popular tradition that the dike was erected by Viking invaders (Danes or Norwegians) in the 9th century AD. The monument is probably early medieval in date but could be prehistoric in origin.

The dike survives as an upstanding monument over a stretch of some 400m. It runs from the coast just N of a natural mound known as Long Man's Grave, in a northwesterly direction almost as far as Craighead Farm. It is best preserved along its SE-most section (from NO 6353 0945 to NO 6338 0962) where it survives as a substantial grass-covered flat-topped bank, some 4m wide and up to 2m high.

It is revetted with drystone walling on its N side. At NO 6338 0962 (about halfway between the coast and Craighead Farm), the dike has been cut through and damaged by a junction of two tracks. From NO 6338 0962 until just S of the farmhouse, the dike survives as a broad low bank gradually reducing in height, with a farm track running along its top. The dike disappears beneath the farm buildings and golf course to the N.

Geophysical survey and field observation on the golf course N of Craighead Farm strongly suggest that the dike continued NNW across the golf links as far as NO 6290 1054 where all traces of it disappear. The W face of the feature is faintly discernible on the ground surface over part of that distance as a low ridge. Geophysical survey in 1995 located parallel linear features which probably represent the remains of the dike beneath the golf course.

The area to be scheduled encompasses the upstanding remains of the dike to the S and its line as attested by geophysical survey to the N. The upstanding dike is c. 4m wide; geophysical survey indicates that the remains of the dike to the N are spread across c. 8m.

The corridor to be scheduled is 40m wide, allowing a margin of some 15-18m on either side of the dike along its whole length of approximately 1400m in which traces of any activities associated with its construction and use may be expected to survive. The area to be scheduled is marked in red on the attached map.

The legal documents for this Scheduled Monument were amended on 25 March 2011 to exclude the above ground elements of all buildings, modern boundaries and utilities infrastructure as well as the top 300mm of modern surfaces, to allow for their maintenance.

Statement of National Importance

The monument is of national importance as the only surviving linear earthwork in Fife and, along its southernmost section, one of the best preserved linear earthworks in the country. At one time, it almost certainly enclosed the whole Fife Ness peninsula and must have provided a formidable barrier.

It is traditionally associated with the Vikings and with King Constantine in the 9th century AD, but could be prehistoric in origin: the enclosed area of Fife Ness includes Constantine's Cave, which contains Roman Iron Age occupation levels of at least the 2nd century AD and Early Christian carvings dating to about AD 800-1000.

References

Bibliography

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.