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

  SM6828_Legal Doc

  Download(https://portal.historicenvironment.scot/document/600012600)

Summary

Description

The monument comprises the remains of a tower house of 16th century date, situated at the E end of the steading of Colmslie Farm, some 200m NE of Waterside House, 250m from Hillslaps Tower and about 400m WSW of Langshaw Tower.

The lands of Colmslie were owned by Melrose Abbey, and before the Reformation they were tenanted by the Cairncross family; William Carncros de Cowmislie is mentioned in a charter of 1536.

The monument comprises the remains of a tower measuring some 12.9m E-W by about 8.4m N-S. It is built of roughly coursed rubble, with freestone quoins. The few surviving windows also have freestone dressings, heavily chamfered. No entrances are visible in the lowest floor; the entrance must have been in the floor above, facing N, although its position cannot be identified precisely as the N wall of the tower has been breached.

The first floor appears to have been divided into two rooms, the E one being the kitchen with a fireplace in the gable with a sink at the back and an oven in the N jamb. The kitchen had a single window to the S, the E jamb containing an aumbry. In its NE corner rose a turnpike stair serving the upper floors. The W chamber served as a living chamber with 2 windows facing S and a fireplace in the W gable.

This arrangement of dividing the first floor into a kitchen and hall can be seen at several other Scottish tower houses dating from the 15th to mid 16th century, in particular Newark Castle (Selkirkshire), Elphinstone (East Lothian) Colmongon (Dumfriesshire) and a group of towers along the Clyde Coast including Little Cumbrae, Skelmorlie, Fairlie, Saddell and Law.

The second floor has a single fireplace in the E gable. The side walls each have two large windows, three of which have stone seats. Between the two S windows are a mural chamber and a garderobe, the latter having a flue descending within the thickness of the S wall.

The area to be scheduled encompasses the visible remains and an area around them in which traces of associated activity may be expected to survive. It is irregular in shape with maximum dimensions of about 20m N-S by about 25m E-W as marked in red on the accompanying map.

Statement of National Importance

The monument is of national importance as an example of a 16th century tower house. The archaeology of this monument has the potential to contribute to our knowledge of later medieval domestic architecture. The monument may be expected to relate to nearby Hillslap Tower, Langshaw Tower, and Waterside House.

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.