Scheduled Monument

The King's Cairn,chambered cairn and cairn to W of Water of DeughSM1046

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
28/02/1927
Last Date Amended
10/01/1996
Type
Prehistoric ritual and funerary: cairn (type uncertain); chambered cairn
Local Authority
Dumfries And Galloway
Parish
Carsphairn
NGR
NS 55421 01154
Coordinates
255421, 601154

Description

The monument consists of two cairns, separated by some distance and set in clearings in forestry planting.

The larger cairn, the King's Cairn, is circular on plan. It has been robbed to the level of the chambers, and was cleared and excavated in 1928. It is of the Bargrennan group, with a diameter of 19m. It contains two chambers at least, each being 3m long and lying on the same NW-SE axis.

The second cairn lies 330m to the SW. It is round, 10m across and 0.7m high, with a small modern cairn on its E side. It appears to be unexcavated.

The area to be scheduled is in two parts, corresponding to the clear area at each cairn. At the King's Cairn, a circle 30m in diameter, and at the SW cairn a circle 20m in diameter, to include the cairns and a small area around each in which evidence relating to 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 pair of cairns in close proximity, one of which may be unexcavated. Each has the potential to provide information about prehistoric burial practices and ritual beliefs, and comparison between the two may be illuminating as regards the variety of cairn-building practised in the late Neolithic and early Bronze Age periods.

References

Bibliography

The monument is recorded in RCAHMS as NS 50 SE 5 and NS 50 SE 1.

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: 01/04/2026 16:26