Scheduled Monument
Caves of Kilhern, chambered cairn 760m SSW of DranigowerSM1928
Status: Designated
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.
Summary
- Date Added
- 12/01/1938
- Last Date Amended
- 28/03/2023
- Type
- Prehistoric ritual and funerary: chambered cairn
- Local Authority
- Dumfries And Galloway
- Parish
- New Luce
- NGR
- NX 19840 64410
- Coordinates
- 219840, 564410
Description
The monument comprises the remains of a type of prehistoric burial monument known as a chambered long cairn, thought to date to the period between 4100 to 2500BC. The cairn is visible as the disturbed remains of four stone lined burial chambers and a further four features which may represent additional burial structures as well as the remains of the overlying cairn material. The four stone lined chambers each include a pair of transverse portal stones. It is located in rough pasture on a terraced area between a higher ridge to the west and northwest and lower boggy ground to the east, to the north northwest of Kilhern, at approximately 130m above sea level.
The cairn is roughly trapezoidal aligned east northeast to west southwest. It is approximately 35m in length by 12m in width at its narrowest extent and 22m at its widest. At least four, possibly five, internal chambers are visible, defined by large lining stones. One of the stone-lined chambers retains a capstone and there is evidence of stone kerbing within the overall structure.
The scheduled area is rectangular on plan measuring 55m by 40m. It includes the remains described above and an area around within which evidence relating to the monument's construction, use and abandonment is expected to survive, as shown in red on the accompanying map.
References
Bibliography
No Bibliography entries for this designation
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.
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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).
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