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

  SM12117_Legal Doc

  Download(https://portal.historicenvironment.scot/document/600014177)

Summary

Description

The monument comprises the remains of a large cairn, visible as a mound of stone and earth. The cairn is Bronze-Age, likely to date to the second millennium BC, and forms part of a wider pattern of early prehistoric ritual and funerary monuments. It lies on Holmains Moor, at 240m above sea level.

The cairn is nearly circular in shape and was disturbed during an antiquarian excavation in the 19th century. It measures 27m in diameter and 2.5m in maximum height and covers the summit of Hound Hill. A hollow in the middle of the cairn marks the location of a cist, from which the excavators recovered a jet button and human bones. A whetstone was found near the cairn in 1968.

The area to be scheduled is circular on plan, to include the remains described and an area around them within which related material may be expected to be found, as shown in red on the accompanying map.

Statement of National Importance

Cultural Significance

The monument's cultural significance can be expressed as follows:

Intrinsic characteristics

Visible as a prominent turf-covered mound, the monument is a well-preserved example of a burial cairn, likely to date to the second millennium BC. Its condition indicates the potential for good preservation of archaeological remains within the cairn, despite antiquarian diggings before 1878. Given the site's current and historic use as pastureland, it is likely that archaeologically significant deposits relating to the construction, use and abandonment of the cairn remain in situ. In addition, it is likely that deposits survive that could provide data relating to the prehistoric environment. The monument has considerable potential to enhance understanding of Bronze-Age ritual and funerary activity.

Contextual characteristics

We know of over 300 burial cairns in SW Scotland and at least 70 round cairns in this part of eastern Dumfries and Galloway. The majority are found on marginal or high ground between 150m and 300m above sea level and Hound Hill cairn is therefore a typical example. The commanding location of Hound Hill, overlooking the Solway and Nith estuaries, suggests that visual prominence was important to its builders. Hound Hill cairn is relatively large and insights may be gained from studies that consider it alongside smaller cairns, which form the majority. There are several smaller cairns and a possible Bronze-Age mortuary enclosure on Rockhall Moor, which lies immediately to the west of Holmains Moor. In addition, Hound Hill cairn lies just over 1km W of the Iron-Age forts of Range Castle and Moss Castle. Together, these monuments can provide insights into the nature of Bronze-Age funerary practices and the changes that took place within society over the final two millennia BC.

The survival of grave goods and an inhumation, as at Hound Hill, is unusual for SW Scotland. Information gained from this site can be used to enhance our understanding of Bronze-Age burial practices across Scotland.

Associative characteristics

The cairn is marked on the 1st edition of the Ordnance Survey map as 'Cairn (Supposed)' and on the second edition as 'Cairn'. The evidence for an excavation before 1878 also indicates an early awareness of the monument's antiquity.

National Importance

The monument is of national importance because it has an inherent potential to make a significant addition to the understanding of the past, in particular the nature of burial practices during the Bronze Age in SW Scotland. This potential is enhanced by the survival of marked field characteristics and the monument's proximity to other Bronze-Age ritual and funerary monuments. Funerary remains from burial cairns have the potential to tell us about wider prehistoric society, in particular ritual and religious practices. The old ground surface sealed by the cairn may provide information about the nature of the contemporary environment and the use prehistoric farmers made of it. The loss of this example would significantly impede our ability to understand the Bronze Age both in eastern Dumfries and Galloway and across Scotland.

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.

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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.