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

  SM5621_Legal Doc

  Download(https://portal.historicenvironment.scot/document/600011519)

Summary

Description

The monument consists of the remains of an 18th-century church which are likely to overlie the remains of an earlier church.

The parish of Dundurcas appears to have evolved prior to 1244. Around 1274 it is on record as a vicarage. It was subsequently annexed to the Hospital of Rathven. In 1445 the joint revenues were used to found a prebend in Aberdeen Cathedral. At the Reformation, the parsonage remained annexed to the benefice of Rathven. Its revenues were then utilised to support a staller in Aberdeen and six bedesmen

of the hospital.

Dundurcas appears to have been quite wealthy as the Abbey of Kinloss also received certain revenues from the fruits of this church. The present building and graveyard are located on the summit of a naturally mounded site which may have been utilised as a defensive site in the past, as there is a slight ditch on the SW side of the mound. The church is rectangular-plan, rubble-built, with a bellcote on the W gable. It measures 15.6m ENE-WSW by 8.1m NNW-SSE over walls 0.7m thick. The church was suppressed in 1782, its lands being divided between Boharm and Rothes.

The area to be scheduled is rectangular, extending 3m from the exterior walls of the church, measuring a maximum of 21.6m ENE-WSW, by 14.1m NNW-SSE, to include the upstanding remains of the church and any buried structures, as shown in red on the accompanying map.

Statement of National Importance

The monument is of national importance as an example of a well documented parish church. As the majority of evidence suggests that the sites of parish churches were resued in the Middle Ages, the present edifice is likely to be the latest of a series of churches occupying this site, the earliest of which is thought to date from the 13th century. Of additional importance is the fact that the church and graveyard are likely to occupy an earlier site of evidence, through excavation, which is likely to increase our understanding of parish evolution, ecclesiastical architecture, settlement history and material culture during the Middle Ages and possibly earlier.

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.