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

  SM12465_Legal Doc

  Download(https://portal.historicenvironment.scot/document/600014260)

Summary

Description

The monument comprises the cropmarked remains of at least seven roundhouses of probable Iron-Age date (late 1st millennium BC/early 1st millennium AD). They are sited in pasture to the west of the A96 trunk road at Kintore, and lie around 60m above sea level and around 1.2km west of the River Don.

The remains of the roundhouses are not visible on the ground, but are clearly defined as cropmarks on aerial photography of the site. They vary from around 5m to 10m in diameter. Numerous other features can be noted in the area related to the roundhouses, including what appear to be postholes surrounding one example.

The area to be scheduled has two parts, one irregular on plan and one a cropped circle, to include the remains described and an area around within which evidence relating to their construction and use may survive, as shown in red on the accompanying map. Specifically excluded are the above-ground elements of all stone dykes and post-and-wire fences, to allow for their maintenance.

Statement of National Importance

Cultural Significance

The monument's cultural significance can be expressed as follows:

Intrinsic characteristics

The monument represents the cropmarked remains of at least seven roundhouses and related features. A further two roundhouses which were formerly part of this site, and noted by the RCAHMS on the site, formerly lay where the A96 is now located. The number of buildings visible and the overlapping nature of some of the examples suggests this site was also in use for a number of years, and that not all the roundhouses are contemporary with each other. The potential for the survival of buried deposits is high given the clarity of the cropmarks visible on aerial photography. Such deposits may give us valuable information about the creation, use and eventual abandonment and demolition of the roundhouses at this site, as well as their relationship with each other and the wider social and economic landscape and culture of the time.

Contextual characteristics

The monument is a representative of a relatively rare class in Strathdon. At least 187 hut-circles are visible as standing remains, but there are far fewer roundhouses visible as cropmarks in the region. Even fewer of these are found as unenclosed settlements, making the survival of this example all the more fortuitous as a potential settlement site. The importance of this particular example is enhanced by its location, immediately adjacent to the site of Kintore Roman camp. This provides excellent potential to reveal information about the social and economic interaction between the Romans and the native peoples occupying these houses at around the same time. In addition to this, other roundhouses have been previously excavated in the Kintore area, suggesting that the area was a significant area for settlement in the Iron Age. Numerous other types of prehistoric remains, both contemporary with this site and pre-dating it, exist in the surrounding area. Together with other lowland roundhouses, these examples can contribute to our understanding of the nature of later prehistoric settlement and the chronological, economic and social relationship to similar settlements in the uplands.

National Importance

The monument is of national importance because it has an inherent potential to make a significant addition to the understanding of the past, in particular Iron-Age society and the nature of later prehistoric domestic and agricultural practice. The lack of recent cultivation of the site and the high quality of the cropmarks enhance this potential. The loss of this example would significantly impede our ability to understand later prehistoric societies in Aberdeenshire in particular and Scotland in general.

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.