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

  SM12121_Legal Doc

  Download(https://portal.historicenvironment.scot/document/600014181)

Summary

Description

The monument comprises a Neolithic or Bronze-Age burial cairn. It lies in a low-lying field of pasture in the southern part of Strathdon, at a height of around 115m above sea level.

The cairn survives as a stony, turf-covered mound, measuring around 14m in diameter and standing to a height of around 1.5m. The prehistoric shape of the cairn is quite difficult to establish due to what appears to be grass-grown field clearance on the NE side, giving the monument an elongated appearance, and stone removal and soil poaching has damaged the cairn's edge.

The area to be scheduled is circular on plan, centred on the top of the mound, to include the remains described and an area around within which evidence relating to the mound's construction and use may survive, 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

The monument is visible as an upstanding feature; the presence of later field clearance suggests it has been out of cultivation for some time. While stone removal damaged the edges of the cairn, the centre appears undisturbed. This suggests a high potential for the survival of primary burials beneath the cairn. The mound is likely to seal a buried land surface and this could provide evidence of the environment during the Neolithic or Bronze Age when the monument was constructed and used. The monument has the potential to further our understanding of Neolithic or Bronze-Age funerary practices, as well as inform our knowledge of the structural features of this type of cairn.

Contextual characteristics

This monument belongs to a diverse group of around 165 surviving Neolithic or Bronze-Age burial cairns in the Strathdon area. Of these, about half survive as upstanding monuments. This particular example has a very unusual location, as cairns are rarely found on low-lying ground. This presents an excellent opportunity to ascertain more about such monuments being placed in an uncharacteristic setting. Spatial analysis of this cairn and other burial sites may further our understanding of funerary site location, the structure of society and the Neolithic or Bronze-Age economy.

National Importance

This monument is of national importance because it has an inherent potential to contribute to an understanding of the past, in particular Neolithic and Bronze-Age burial architecture and practice. It also fits into a distinctive pattern of prehistoric burial and settlement in the Strathdon area. Skeletal remains and artefacts from such burials have the potential to tell us about wider prehistoric society, how people lived, where they came from and who they had contact with. The old ground surfaces sealed by the monument can provide information about what the contemporary environment looked like and how the prehistoric peoples who interred their dead here managed the surrounding landscape. The loss of this monument would impede our ability to understand the placing of such monuments within the landscape, as well as our knowledge of Neolithic and Bronze-Age social structure and economy.

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.