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

  SM5983_Legal Doc

  Download(https://portal.historicenvironment.scot/document/600011878)

Summary

Description

The monument comprises the remains of a roundhouse, a rectilinear enclosure and an arc of pits. The roundhouse and enclosure date probably to between 1800 BC and AD 400, while the arc of pits may be Neolithic in date (4000 BC to 2000 BC). The remains lie buried beneath the ploughsoil and are visible as cropmarks captured on oblique aerial photographs. The monument is located in the Lunan Valley, on level ground 750m SW of the Lunan Water at around 40m above sea level.

The roundhouse is indicated by the cropmark of a penannular ditch that lies towards the NW of the scheduled area. The penannular ditch measures around 12m in diameter and is about 1.5m wide on the W side, but over 3m wide to the E. A pit lies inside the roundhouse and other pits and gullies lie immediately to the NE. To the SW, the rectilinear enclosure is formed by a ditch measuring from 1.5m to 2m wide that bounds an area measuring 22m NNE-SSW by 20m transversely. The entrance appears to be near the S corner. Further SW, the arc of six or more pits is semi-circular in shape and measures 22m in diameter, the largest individual pit measuring about 2m in diameter.

The scheduled area is irregular on plan as shown in red on the accompanying map. It includes the remains described above and an area around them within which evidence relating to the monument's construction, use and abandonment is expected to survive. On the N side, the scheduled area extends up to but excludes a post-and-wire fence. The monument was first scheduled in 1994, but the documentation did not meet modern standards: the present amendment rectifies this.

Statement of National Importance

The monument is of national importance because of its potential to add to our understanding of prehistoric house construction, domestic organisation and settlement. The survival of a roundhouse in close proximity to an enclosure and a potential pit circle is rare. The monument's importance is greatly enhanced by its association with nearby prehistoric ritual and funerary monuments and settlements in this part of the Lunan Valley; it is an important component of the wider landscape of cursus monuments, unenclosed settlements and barrows found on the S bank of the Lunan Water around Boysack. Our understanding of the distribution and character of prehistoric settlements would be diminished if this monument was to be lost or damaged.

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.