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.

• Type

  Legal Documents

  Title

  SM1392_Legal Doc

  Download(https://portal.historicenvironment.scot/document/600004143)

Summary

Description

The monument is the remains of three mounds, interpreted as burial mounds or barrows dating probably from the Bronze Age (between about 2000 and 800 BC). The three turf-covered barrows are made of earth and lie in a row aligned roughly NW-SE. The barrow to the NW measures 13m in diameter and stands up to 1.2m high; a hollow, most likely from a previous excavation, is visible on its ESE side. The second barrow lies about 130m to the SE: it measures 12m in diameter and stands to around 0.7m. The third barrow is situated some 90m to the SE: this is the largest surviving barrow in the group, measuring 19m in diameter and standing 1m high. A steatite vessel is recorded as having been found in one of the mounds in 1890. The barrows sit on a SW-facing slope at about 50m above sea level, overlooking the Loch of Bosquoy some 1450m to the SW. The monument was first scheduled in 1949, but the documentation did not meet modern standards: the present amendment rectifies this.

The scheduled area is three circles on plan, centred on the three barrows, to include the remains described above and an area around them within which evidence relating to the monument's construction, use and abandonment is expected to survive, as shown in red on the accompanying map.

Statement of National Importance

The monument is of national importance because of its inherent potential to make a significant addition to our understanding of funerary practice in the Bronze Age. Earthen barrows form an important and relatively widespread element of Orkney's Bronze Age landscape. Despite minor excavations in the late 19th century, the barrows at Kingshouse retain high potential to preserve human burials and associated evidence, such as mortuary structures, funeral pyres and related activities, as has been discovered at similar sites elsewhere in Orkney. Orkney's Bronze Age barrows are unusual in Scotland, and important within a British context, because the majority are mainly earthen mounds as opposed to stone-built cairns. They provide evidence for the significant changes which took place in society and funerary practice in the Bronze Age in Orkney. The significance of the surviving barrows at Kingshouse is enhanced by their association with other barrows nearby and their place in the wider prehistoric landscape. The Harray area is exceptionally rich in Bronze Age burial monuments, including an impressive barrow cemetery at Knowes of Trinnawin. Our understanding of the dating, form, function and distribution of Bronze Age barrows in Orkney would be diminished if this monument was to be lost or damaged.

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.