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

  SM5807_Legal Doc

  Download(https://portal.historicenvironment.scot/document/600011704)

Summary

Description

The monument is a dun, a late-prehistoric fortified settlement with later, possibly medieval, building remains, situated on a steep rocky tidal islet to the SW of Groatay.

The dun takes the form of a massive wall, 4m thick and still standing up to 1m high, on the upper part of a rocky tidal islet. This wall is particularly well-preserved to the N and W of the circuit. As this is the most accessible side, it may always have been more substantial here. A gap in the wall just N of W may mark the original entrance.

A later occupation, possibly in the mid 17th century, is attested to by the foundations of a large rectangular building with walls 1.8m thick: the building is 7.2m by 4.8m internally, and stands at the E end of an enclosure some 16m long by 4m wide. Traces of at least three small oval foundations also survive: these resemble shieling

huts but this seems unlikely in this location.

The area to be scheduled is the entire area of the tidal islet above mean high water mark, with maximum dimensions of 65m NW-SE by 50m, as marked in red on the accompanying map.

Statement of National Importance

The monument is of national importance as a high-status settlement of the Iron Age and also of the later Medieval period, in a location which emphasises the strongly maritime nature of power along the W coast of Scotland for most of the past. It may contain evidence, accessible to excavation and analysis, relating to Iron Age society and domestic and defensive architecture, and also equivalent evidence for the Medieval period.

Its remote location means that it is unlikely to have been occupied continuously from the Iron Age to the Medieval period, although this possibility cannot be wholly discounted. Neither can the possibility that this site, along with other similar sites in the Uists, may represent a class of dun which is post-prehistoric in origin rather than of the Iron Age date which is customarily assumed.

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.