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

  SM6286_Legal Doc

  Download(https://portal.historicenvironment.scot/document/600012175)

Summary

Description

The monument consists of a ruinous seventeenth century tacksman's house built within the remains of an Iron Age fort which occupies the summit of an elongated knoll on a small coastal promontory, on the E side of the Sound of Mull.

The fort has been defended by two walls; the innermost encloses a D-shaped area measuring c. 50m (WNW-ESE) x 20m (NNE-SSW). The best preserved section is in the W, where the wall is visible as a stony bank (c. 2m thick). The entrance is situated in the NW, the outer jambs are comprised of two massive blocks. Although it has suffered much from robbing, the outer wall can be discerned crossing the level neck of the promontory at the foot of the knoll and following a natural crest line round its perimeter. The dwelling house, built over the foundations of the eastern portion of the fort, is of rubble probably robbed from the fort. The three-storeyed, rectangular house measures 16.3m (NW-SE) x 5.4m (NE-SW) within walls 0.9m thick.

The ground floor is sub-divided into three apartments, the entrance in the SW wall opening into the central room. The upper floors were accessed by a projecting stair turret, now ruinous, also in the SW wall at the SW angle of the central apartment. Only the SE portion of the building remains to its full height the remainder standing to no more than first-floor level. The SE portion of the house contained the residential block, suggested by the provision of fireplaces and large windows. The NW end, lit by small splayed windows, presumably held the kitchen and stores. An enclosure or annexes adjoined the NW wall. 30m to the N of the fort's entrance is a rectangular, internally divided, dry-stone building probably contemporary with the house.

The area to be scheduled is irregular, measuring a maximum of 170m (NW-SE) x 70m (NE-SW), to include the entire fortified promontory and the dwelling house.

Statement of National Importance

The monument is of national importance as a defended site of Iron Age, re-occupied in the seventeenth century when a substantial residence, thought to have been the work of Allen M'Evan vic Ewin Maclean, recorded as tacksman of Killundine in 1671 and 1675, was constructed within the inner defences of the fort. As a site of diachronic complexity, the monument provides evidence and is likely to provide further evidence, through a combination of historical research and archaeological excavation, which may lead to clarification of the precise chronology and nature of settlement during the Iron Age phase of occupation; and latterly for the analysis of the forms and social functions of post-medieval domestic architecture in 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.

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.