Latest Miscellany

Culled from www.archaeology.ie

1986 Excavation
The monument, an undifferentiated passage tomb in a semi-circular kerbed mound, is at the edge of a sea-cliff, 5m high. The kerbed mound, 20m in diameter E-W, was assuredly originally circular, its northern half now lost to the sea. The tomb, facing SF, is 4.5m long and scarcely more than 1m wide, and stands 2.5m inside the eastern edge of the kerb. Prior to excavation, its N side and back survived intact, but only two stones (one broken) of its S side.

Within the tomb, 0.5m from the front, a sill-stone was visible. Because of its proximity to the cliff edge, about 0.2m at one point, the tomb is under threat and so an excavation, at the request of, and funded by, the National Monuments Branch of the Office of Public Works, was undertaken at the site over a five week period during September and October 1986.

The excavation was largely confined to an area 4m wide extending eastwards from the back of the chamber to and beyond the kerb. The grass-grown mound, which extends for some 5m outside the kerb, is made up of earth and stones, some quite sizeable.

A large kerbstone directly in line with the tomb is positioned slightly inside the circumference described by its fellows, and at either side, as if to highlight it, are two smaller stones. The kerbstones are rounded or oval in shape, the latter type set with a long side on the ground, and, where necessary to prevent toppling, supported by small rounded beach stones. Almost the entire tomb area was excavated, revealing, in addition to the sill-stone visible before excavation, two others between it and the back of the tomb, while across the front of the tomb two stones set side by side formed a double sill. The sills divide the tomb into four compartments, from the front approximately 0.5m, 1m, 1m and 1.8m in length. A large stone with smaller stones alongside served as a floor covering in the second compartment from the front. Between the kerb and the front of the tomb, stones had been laid flat on the ground to form what appears to be a pavement. A considerable quantity of fragmented bones, some pieces with charcoal attached, was found in the tomb. The bones were dispersed throughout the earthen fill and extended under the bases of the sills and in the case of the two inner compartments to the level of the uneven underlying rock. Objects found include a small number of flint scrapers, some pieces of chert, some small sherds of prehistoric pottery, three fragments of a single stone bead found close together, a broken length of bone bearing concentric semicircular scores, a possible decorated pin, and a miniature stone axe-head, 5cm long.

Eamon Cody, Ordnance Survey, Dublin

1987 Excavation
A second and final season’s excavation was undertaken at this site over a six-week period during September-October 1987. The work was carried out at the request of the National Monuments Branch of the O.P.W. who also funded it. The monument is an undifferentiated passage tomb standing towards the eastern side of a kerbed cairn sited on a sea-cliff. The cairn measures 20m east-west but only 10m north-south as its northern half has been lost to the sea. Three cuttings were made in the cairn and, in addition, excavation of the tomb area (the focus of the 1986 season’s work see Excavations 1987) was completed. A cutting, 19m long, was made from the back of the tomb to the west along the cliff edge and was continued for 8m beyond the kerb. The other two cuttings, parallel to each other and 4m apart, both 2m wide, ran approximately north-south. The more westerly of these was 10m long and extended inwards for 4m and outwards for 6m from the kerb, while the other, 12m long, extended inwards for 4m and outwards for 7m. Both of these cuttings crossed a grass-grown trackway that runs east-west just outside the kerb at the south side of the cairn. This trackway had been formed by a levelling of the extra-revetment material. At the west and south sides of the cairn two kerb-stones and parts of two others were exposed. These form part of a contiguously laid setting of large blocks of local stone.
The cairn body, under a sod cover some 0.15m thick, is of stones and intermixed loose brown earth to a depth of some 0.5m. The stones in its upper 0. lm are small and do not exceed Olin in maximum dimension while below them there are large slabs as much as 1J.8m across and 0.2m thick along with occasional water-rolled boulders. Under the cairn there is a compact layer, on average 50mm thick, of sticky earth, brown to blue-grey in colour, with small stones. This layer contained flecks of charcoal and occasional fire-reddened stones, reflecting pre-cairn activity. Finds made were confined to this layer and consist largely of waste flakes of flint and other stone. One of the few recognisable types is a leaf-shaped flint arrowhead, 30mm long.
Eamon Cody, Ordnance Survey, Dublin

Excavation licence number 00E0544
The two proposed houses were located to the west of Bundoran, in the townland of Magheracar, Co. Donegal. Both sites are close to an existing dwelling. The first was within the walled paddock to the west of an old house, and the second was a replacement to existing outbuildings to the north of the older structure. Owing to the presence of four significant archaeological sites in the vicinity, a passage tomb, a wedge tomb and the sites of two standing stones, the surrounding ground has been scheduled by Dúchas The Heritage Service.
The testing of the two proposed sites uncovered nothing of archaeological significance. Indeed, it proved that previous groundworks in the paddock field and scarping in the yard to the north of the existing house had removed all archaeology in these specific areas. In the paddock, the over-deepened soils at the southern end of the field allowed for the insertion of a closed sewerage system without the need to disturb subsoil. Other services were likewise brought to site without the requirement for any subsoil disturbance.
The second house, located in the yard to the rear of the existing cottage, was to be found on the footprint of existing outbuildings, the floor levels of which are lower than the severely scarped exterior ground. Sewerage will be via a pipe to an existing outflow, the route for which has been tested and found to be clear of all archaeological deposits. All other services will either use this cleared line or be above ground from the existing cottage.
The visual impact of the two houses on the nearby megaliths will be minimal, since both houses have been designed on a small scale, using traditional materials, and will ultimately form part of an existing cluster of traditional buildings. (Excavations Bulletin 2000)
Eoin Halpin, ADS Ltd, Unit 48, Westlink Enterprise Centre, 30-50 Distillery Street, Belfast BT12 5BJ.

Excavation licence number 00E0895
The proposed house is located to the west of Bundoran, in the townland of Magheracar, with existing dwellings to the south, west and north and access to a new development running along the east side. Owing to the presence of four archaeological sites in the vicinity, the surrounding ground has been scheduled by Dúchas The Heritage Service, which led to an archaeological condition for site testing being placed on the planning permission. A series of test-trenches was excavated covering the proposed foundations, driveway and service routes. Nothing of archaeological significance was uncovered.(Excavations Bulletin 2000)
Eoin Halpin, ADS Ltd, Unit 48 Westlink Enterprise Centre, 30-50 Distillery Street, Belfast BT12 5BJ.

Excavation licence number 01E0683
Testing, monitoring and excavation took place in advance of a twenty-house development at Magheracar, Bundoran, on the Leitrim/Donegal border. The proposed development site lies within an archaeological complex that includes a passage tomb, a wedge tomb and two standing stones. All of these monuments will be protected by the requisite buffer zones and will not be affected by the proposed development.
Geophysical surveying had revealed a number of anomalies that may indicate subsurface archaeological features. These were investigated through the manual excavation of four 20m by 20m areas. Two of these cuttings revealed possible archaeological features in the form of burnt areas and linear cut features. These cuttings were extended to discover the full extent of these features before excavation. At the same time, the remainder of the site was stripped of its topsoil, under supervision. Upon excavation, the cut features in Cutting C were interpreted as possible furrows of unknown date. There were no associated finds.
The burnt areas in Cutting D were further exposed and excavated, revealing a large corn-drying kiln with two flues. The kiln was stone-lined and exhibited evidence of extensive burning. One of the flues extended north outside the area of excavation, while the other extended southwards for a distance of almost 13m. No finds came from the kiln, although charcoal and bone samples may be able to provide a 14C date. The southern flue of the kiln cut a small pit, 0.2m deep, which contained a charcoal-stained fill and several large pieces of prehistoric pottery from at least four different vessels. They are likely to be Neolithic (some simple decoration is evident), but have yet to be examined by a pottery expert. The topsoil-stripping of the remainder of the site revealed two other areas of archaeological activity. An isolated collared urn filled with cremated material, completely intact and situated upright, was uncovered and barely missed by the machine. It was removed in a block of soil, relatively in one piece, and is in the process of being excavated in the lab by a conservator. Approximately 20m east of the urn, the remains of a circular stone platform were uncovered. Approximately 6m wide, this semicircle, comprising three concentric rings of flat stone slabs, was set in a low earth and stone mound. The northern half of this feature appears to have been removed without trace sometime in antiquity. Nothing was found within the circle or the mound except for two small blue glass beads and a few pieces of struck chert. A Bronze/Iron Age date for the feature is likely although its purpose has yet to be fully explored. A number of stray finds came from the topsoil across the site, most of which comprised struck chert and flint. A single hollow-based limestone arrowhead and a stone axe were included in the finds. (Excavations Bulletin 2001)
Christopher Read, North West Archaeological Services, Cloonfad Cottage, Cloonfad, Carrick-on-Shannon, Co. Leitrim.

References:

1. Borlase, W.C. 1897 The Dolmens of Ireland, 3 vols. London. Chapman and Hall, London.
2. Fagan, B.K. 1845-8 Ordnance survey, Hill Drawing Antiquity Books. Ms. Books 1-25. Compiled 1845-8 by Thomas Fagan. National Archives.
3. Herity, M. 1974 Irish Passage Graves. Dublin. Irish University Press.
4. Holly, D. 1976 Megalithic monuments at Tullaghan. Journal of Cumann Seanchas Breifne (Breifne Historical Society) 5 (17), 121-39.
5. Killanin, M.M. and Duignan, M.V. 1962 Shell Guide to Ireland. London. Ebury Press.
6. Killanin, M.M. and Duignan, M.V. 1967 (2nd ed.) The Shell guide to Ireland. London. The Ebury Press.
7. Killanin, M.M. and Duignan, M.V. (3rd edition; revised and updated by Harbison, P.) 1989 The Shell Guide to Ireland. Dublin. Gill and Macmillan.
8. Lockwood, F.W. 1901 Some notes on the old Irish sweat houses at Assaroe, Ballyshannon, and Kinlough, Co. Leitrim, and on several rude stone monuments near Bundoran and Ballyshannon. Ulster Journal of Archaeology 2nd Series, 7, 82-92.
9. Ó Nualláin, S. 1989 Survey of the megalithic tombs of Ireland, vol. 5, Co. Sligo. Dublin. Stationery Office.
10. Wood-Martin, W.G. 1887-8 The rude stone monuments of Ireland, parts III to VIII. Journal of the Royal Society of Antiquaries of Ireland 18, 50-94, 118-59, 254-99, 367-81.

A piece of land formerly appropriated to the use of Macdonalds Bards, it is situated to the south east of Kensaleyre and is the property of Lord Macdonald. It signifies, Bards field.

Scotland’s Places

I rang up Wayside Stores this afternoon, to see whether access was still possible. They told me that, as of this year, they no longer hold a key. Apparently Cadw are running occasional open days though.

K x

This is the entry on archaeology.ie:
Class: Stone row

Townland: COOLASNAGHTA

Scheduled for inclusion in the next revision of the RMP: Yes

Description: Marked ‘The Ninestones’ on the 1839 OS 6-inch map. On the E side of the pass between Slievebawn and the Black Banks and Mount Leinster. Nine low stones set in alignment orientated E-W (L 11.5m; distance between stones 1m-1.2m; H of stones 0.38m – 0.63m). According to OS Field Namebooks, erected to commemorate nine men murdered and buried nearby.
While the extant remains are hardly sufficient to permit classification as a stone row with certainty the remains bear close resemblance to many monuments of this class. In light of the tradition recorded by the OS the interpretation given must be regarded as tentative and a proper elucidation of the monument must await further investigation.

Compiled by: Claire Breen

Date of upload: 19 August 2011

The shoreline of Loch Awe, one of The Highlands’ largest, most wondrous inland lochs, is blessed with some fabulously sited monuments: the chocolate box Kilchurn Castle at the extreme north-east, the peerlessly located Port Sonachan chambered cairn, Innis Chonnell, Archdonnell chambered cairn etc... In my opinion, the small fortified enclosure of Dun Toiseach, overlooking the extreme southwestern extremity of the loch, is very much in the same class. Yeah, the map suggested this would be a good way to end the day and Dun Toiseach did not disappoint. Neither did the notoriously fickle Scottish weather, for that matter.

Visitors approaching from the wonders – ha, now there’s an understatement – of Kilmartin Glen should take the minor road north from Ford and begin to skirt the ‘far’ bank of Loch Awe. In short order, Dun Toiseach will be seen crowning a rocky knoll rising above the small hamlet of Torran. It is by no means an extensive fortress, Canmore describing the site as:

‘a severely ruined dun measuring about 16m by 13m within a wall which has been some 4m thick. (Campbell and Sandeman 1964)’.

By all accounts the entrance was to the north-east of the D-plan enclosure. To be honest I reckon the ‘severely ruined’ status is, relatively speaking, a little unfair. I’ve seen a lot worse and enough remains to leave the visitor in no doubt that this would have been a tough little nut to crack for any raiding party. Worth the effort for the archaeology alone, perhaps? If not, just come for the views and that sense of being ‘somewhere else’, if you know what I mean?

This is from the Tipperary Archaeological Inventory:

Situated on the summit of a natural rise, close to the W edge of a gradual fall, overlooking a valley at the base of the slope. The site consists of a flat central area (14.3m N-S; 15m E-W) enclosed by a compact earthen bank (Wth 2.3m; int. H 0.35-0.55m; ext. H 0.18-0.35m), less visible at S. An entrance gap (Wth 3m) is visible at ESE. There is a small standing stone (TN039-011002-) in the interior in the SW sector with a second stone (TN039-011003-) standing at the entrance at ESE, in line with the outer edge of the bank.

[Notes from 19th Sept 2014... deleted at the time after causing a farcical furore but resurrected following a visit to the cairn surmounting nearby Trichrug at Easter]:

Carreg Cennen. An evocative name to the (somewhat protruding) ears of an Englishman first brought here by his father during 1983 (Cestyll ‘83, as I recall), a boy with a head filled with incoherent images of ‘something’ that perhaps existed before what was quickly becoming, to him, the childish fallacy of organised religion... the hymns we were forced to sing at school.... but took subconscious delight in defying. Even then. Something burning within, something subsumed deep in the folk memory. Ancient Britains. Not desert people. Christianity irrelevant.

I arrive today, in the pouring rain, with more than an eye on re-visiting the not so distant (incredibly undervalued) hill fort of Garn Goch. Do so if you can. Parking in the rather busy car park, I wonder if it is actually a good idea to revisit times past? Would the somewhat cynical mind of the 45 year old render the magical experience of the initiate superfluous? In short, er, no. I purchase my ticket and ascend the track to the fortress perched upon its eyrie. The medieval fortifications are easily retrieved from my psyche... their imprint seared upon my impressionable mind years ago. Not so the very attractive lady – with an idiosyncratic canine companion and perfect figure – engaged with capturing the vibe for posterity upon her DSLR. Pure class. Superlatives come as standard at Carreg Cennen, the mind thrown into overdrive, with carnal base thoughts vying for attention with those upon an altogether higher plane. Unfortunately, the words do not flow from my brain to the tongue in any coherent manner.... as usual.

So... a rather steep flight of steps descend to a dark passage – lit by loopholes – to access the entrance to (one of) the caves which permeate this carboniferous limestone crag. This is something special, however. Really special indeed. The rough-hewn steps vanish into a more-or-less unfathomable gloom below.... so careful now. The eyes adjust a little, revealing a medieval outer wall, fashioned into ‘pigeon holes’ to accommodate, well, pigeons – funnily enough – to supplement the castle food supply. Within, a naked gash within the cliff face represents the threshold beyond which a torch will be required. To be fair I’ve been here before, feeling my way to the cave’s terminus in utter darkness during the early 90’s. Forgot a torch. And humans so need to appreciate where they are going, do they not? Ok, appreciate, if not necessarily understand.

I’ve borrowed the Mam C’s torch today..... and advance down the narrow, undulating passage toward the very underworld itself. The thought that pre-Ice Age people were laid to rest within here, a proto-chambered tomb if ever there was one, blows my mind, the floor of the cave suddenly descending to afflict a stumble, walls as luminescent as marble, as apparently hydrated as a cascade, yet ironically dry to the touch. I reach the endpoint of the cave, my heart pounding as if in homage to New Order’s iconic Oberheim DMX drum machine, my breath clouding my vision as upon a sub-zero December morning, my camera lens overwhelmed with vapour. Here, upon the right-hand flank, has been fashioned a small pool of water, inexorably replenished from water dripping from the roof. I extinguish the torch and eat my lunch in utter darkness, struggling to comprehend how such sensual deprivation can have such an opposite effect?

The flanks of the cave are engraved with graffiti, some inspiringly celebrating love, some utter moronic bollocks. The human experience, then? The instinctive baseline and the sublime. I refrain from recording my passage, of course, leaving behind merely a trace of my exhaled carbon dioxide and spilt coffee. Well, distant ancestors were laid to rest here, it has to be said. I ponder for a while and suppose I can see the reason why. Yeah, this place is not really that different from the Pavilland Cave visited earlier this year. If I’m anything to go by, the perceptive visitor’s brain appears able to retrieve a fragment of what went before.... sorry, but I can’t articulate any more than that. So come and experience for yourself.

Thanks for the head’s up here to Carl. The overwhelming scale of the defences of this massive hill fort is not at first apparent owing to the overgrown nature of the site. OK, distant views are very limited; however when the flora includes the seasonal magnificence of bluebell carpets to complement sunlight filtering through the tree canopy... well, I can live with that.

Unlike Carl, I headed east along the northern flank with the towering multi-vallate banks to my left, prior to heading through the interior of the enclosure to the western entrance. This is pretty impressive, it has to be said, although not suggestive of any complex defensive features. I found the southern flank more difficult to interpret owing to brambles etc, but there you are.

Note that, upon crossing the mighty River Usk, via an impressive bridge, and locating Lodge Road.... I then struggled to identify Lodge Hill. For reference, this is the road opposite the hospital. Lodge Hill terminates at ‘The Paddocks’ where it is possible to park roadside. A private road accesses the church, the gate to the latter’s car park locked at the time of my visit. An old man tending the adjacent church garden appeared aghast that I had dared to stray from the path to view the ramparts. Always good to see how your loving Christian establishment welcomes all, isn’t it? Rather than confront I choose to simply ignore. Saves time.

Having been away from the hills since last October, a visit to this superbly sited cairn – following on from several hours at the magnificent Carnau’r Garreg Las to the south – is something to savour. A chance to breathe new life into a psyche run ragged in the interim by Brexit, right-wing nationalists, evil far left anti-semitism and the lunacy of Corbyn... not to mention the serious damage inflicted upon the cause of those who care for this planet by the self-righteously hypocritical, simplistic adolescents of ER. I really do despair. Hence the need for some solace. And this unfrequented corner of western Y Mynydd Du is as good a location to achieve this upon an Easter Monday as any I know of.

Positioned right upon the lip of the western escarpment edge below and to the north of the OS trig point surmounting Carreg Yr Ogof, the old red sandstone stone pile, contrasting sharply with the fragmented limestone landscape of the higher cairns, possesses a wondrously sweeping view toward a distant, iconic Carreg Cennen... not to mention numerous other upland cairns prominent upon their respective summits/ridges.

The calming influence is palpable, things seemingly put back into perspective. At least for a couple of hours. Hey, surely we can work things out, gain consensus through dialogue. Like adults. Can’t we? Following a sojourn at Carn y Gigfran the battery is recharged for another attempt.

As indicated, Carn y Gigfran can be incorporated within a visit to the superb Carnau’r Garreg Las if the traveller sees fit to approach from Cwm Sawdde to the north-west. It is possible to (carefully) leave a car by the crossroads at approx SN756228, south of Penmaen.

A pair of substantial, grassy round cairns gracing the southern apex of Mynydd Llanllwni. Coflein (J.Wiles 01.10.03) has their dimensions as:

Northern cairn:
“A much robbed & mutilated round cairn, 30m in diameter & 1.9m high, showing possible kerb stones on the N side...”

Southern cairn:
“A centrally mutilated round cairn, 21m in diameter & 1.6m high”

I approached from the minor road to approx southwest near the farm of Clyniau. Note that the cairns can not be seen from the road so I’d suggest a compass bearing would be a good idea in misty weather. Better safe than sorry.

Coflein has the dimensions of this substantial round cairn as:

“22m [c72ft] diameter and 1.6m [c5ft] high” (J.Wiles 01.09.04). It was excavated during 1907 (RCAHM 1917 (Carmarthenshire), 173 [519]), “when a second mound, was said to have been removed”. (source Os495card; SN53NW1)

At the time of posting note that the official roadside parking indicated upon the map is conspicuous by its absence... although technically possible upon the rough verge. Fortunately, I had opted to walk across Mynydd Llanllwni from the excellent Crugiau Giar cairns (c3.5 mile ‘round trip). There is the massive, albeit very denuded, circular footprint of another cairn to the north across the road.

The remains of a very substantial cairn with several smaller ones, at the bottom of the eastern slopes of Dod Hill, which is an obvious focal point.

Pastscape description:

Although severely robbed, the surviving rim of this round cairn shows it was originally about 23.0m overall diameter.

An arc of earthfast kerbstones is visible around the S side, but the entire NE quadrant has been destroyed by robbing. Standing to a maximum height of 1.3m on the W side, the original height of the cairn was probably at least double this, judging by the large rubble heaps and sheepfolds nearby.

Six metres S. of the cairn, is a compact sub-circular earth and rubble mound about 5.0m in overall diameter and about 1.0m high. It appears undisturbed and cannot be regarded as spoil from the larger mound. Possibly a small satellite cairn, but one cannot be certain on ground evidence.

Remains of a further 4 round cairns, between 3.5 metres and 5 metres in diameter and up to 0.5 metres high, can be seen to the south and east.

A mile to the southeast was a massive cairn, which yielded finds but is now gone. From pastscape:

(centred NU 039470) A tumulus of water-worn stones, about 26 feet high and 50 feet diameter, stood about 250 yards from High Water Mark, on the very extreme limit of the cultivated land, on the left of the road from Cheswick to the beach. When opened in 1826, it was found to contain several secondary inhumations, and, at its centre, a primary burial in a cist, 5 feet x 2 feet 6 inches, together with a bronze knife-dagger, now in the B.M.

No trace of a cairn in the area.

Canmore description of the fort/settlement site:

This fort is situated at an elevation of some 250ft OD, and occupies the NW end of a rocky knoll which rises some 40ft above a cultivated field.

It is enclosed by a single earth-and-stone rampart which follows the contour on three sides and crosses the summit on the fourth. In the interior are several rather indefinite foundations, and apparently a circular one on the right of the entrance and another nearer the centre. There are also a number of mounds and hollows of indeterminate character outside on the slope from the SE, probably due to quarrying.

The remains at this site are those of a probable two-phase settlement overlain by a farmstead. In the first phase the settlement measured 40m by 24.5m internally; subsequently it was extended on the NW by 13m. The enclosing bank is spread to a width of about 3.3m, except on the SE, where it is considerably thicker, with traces of an external ditch. The gap on the SE is probably associated with the farmstead, and the original entrance may have been on the N. The remains of the later farmstead are situated within the wall of the settlement. The buildings appear to have been ranged around a yard which was open on the SE. The most prominent feature is a building platform measuring 13m from NW to SE by 4.2m transversely set against the SW wall of the earlier settlement.

As well as the fort there is an intervisible prehistoric settlement site to the NW at NT 9083 6863. Canmore description:

This roughly rectangular settlement, measuring about 44m by 28.5m within a wall (0.6m high and spread to a thickness of 3.7m) occupies the rounded summit of a hill due S of Pettico Wick Harbour, (at an elevation of 105m OD). The S corner of the interior has been incorporated into what is probably a secondary enclosure containing the turf-covered footings of two circular houses. Within the settlement there are footings of two houses with internal diameters of 6.2m and 7m respectively.

There are two distinct groups of barrows on Brean Down, located on the eastern and western summits of the ridge. Pastscape descriptions:

Eastern group

Seven mounds are contained within the eastern field system on Brean Down. One of these is a round barrow, centred at ST 29325 58814. It is most likely to be the site that Skinner, writing in the early 19th century, found Roman pottery and human bones on the surface, and recorded that the primary deposit had been removed. The barrow lies just to the south of the Roman temple (ST 25 NE 6) and appears to overlie part of the field sytem. The NW side of the barrow has been damaged by ridge and furrow cultivation. A small hollow at the SE corner of the barrow represents the remains of a small building, visible on aerial photographs taken in 1948. Four small depressions on the W and E sides of the mound and to the S of the barrow probably mark the position of ApSimon’s trial trenches.

The mound centred at ST 29135 58925 may be a burial cairn. It is portrayed thus on a map of 1821. Silty clay has been dumped on the W end of the mound, obscuring its original form.

The remaining mounds are all small and are most likely to be clearance cairns or modified field banks. The mound centred at ST 2932 5881 is larger than the others, measuring 15m in diameter, has been interpreted as a round barrow or cairn which may be Bronze Age or Roman in date.

The other four mounds are centred at ST 2911 5893, ST 2913 5892, ST 2921 5889 and ST 2924 5887. They are predominantly sub-circular except for the largest mound and range in size, measuring between 3m in diameter and 7m by 10m. The largest of the mounds has been interpreted as a Bronze age burial mound. The other mounds may be clearance cairns which are possibly later in date.

Western group

Six mounds are contained within the western field system on Brean Down. Two of these are most likely to be small, Bronze Age burial cairns. The cairn at ST 28412 50920 is a low, circular, stony mound, close to a field bank. The cairn at ST 28519 59010 is a circular, turf-covered mound. Both of these cairns are shown on Colt Hoare’s map of 1821 as burial cairns.

The large, flat-topped, sub-rectangular mound at ST 28487 59007 is surmounted by an OS trig. pillar. The hollow and small mound by the pillar suggest that the mound has been dug into. The field system may have incorporated an earlier cairn, or it may have been altered by the addition of a large burial cairn. The mound may have been augmented by field clearance. The present day appearance of the mound suggests that it may have been used as a beacon during the post medieval period.

The small rectangular mound on top of a field bank at ST 28647 58955 appears to be of recent construction. The mound at ST 28695 58942 is caused by the junction of two field banks, although it may have been augmented by field clearance. The sub-rectangular mound at ST 28733 58937 is part of a field bank, perhaps augmented by field clearance. A small hollow in its centre suggests that it has been dug into, and its northern end appears to have been modified by the removal of material.

Summarised description from Pastscape sources:

At the east end of Brean Down, a bank of stones, 4-8 feet high, with an outer ditch, makes an angle, ending on the steep slope on the north and destroyed by quarrying on the east.

In the part of the camp destroyed by quarrying a number of Roman gold coins of Augustus, Nero and Drusus, and two silver denarii of Vespasian, were found by quarrymen and dispersed to private collectors. A Roman cornelian ring is also recorded from the earthwork.

The principal feature of the earthwork is a bank and rock-cut ditch running north south across the ridge. At its southern end the bank turns to the east and follows a natural fault line along the top of exposed limestone outcrop.

Some mutilation of the earthwork and disturbance of the enclosed area was caused by military installations of the 1939-45 war.

A small excavation of the western bank of this feature was carried out in 1974, providing information for the following abstract:-

“Limited excavation at the SW angle of this small and now L-shaped earthwork showed the defences to consist of abutting rubble banks
revetted front and rear with massive drystone walling, with a ditch to the west. Radio carbon determinations indicate that the defences were constructed in the latter part of the Iron Age, and
provide dates for the coarse pottery of Iron Age `A’ type in use on the site prior to the construction of the banks and while ditch silting was taking place. The site continued to be frequented in the Roman period.”

The site was surveyed at a scale of 1:1000 by the RCHME in June 1995 as part of a landscape survey of Brean Down. The remains comprise an elongated L-shaped bank and ditch on the eastern side of Brean Down, centred at ST 29805900. Although the earthworks do not form a hillfort in the generally accepted definition of the term, the historical evidence, the scale of the western and southern ramparts, and the excavated evidence for Iron Age occupation, suggests that the term hillfort is appropriate for these earthworks.

The best preserved sections of the earthworks are the western rampart and ditch, and the western end of the southern rampart. The western rampart runs for 45m N-S and is, on average, 2m high and 2m wide. The ditch is present for some 25m on the outer side of the western rampart, south of the Military Road, and is rock-cut at its southern end. The ditch is 1.5m deep and 3.5m wide, giving a maximum width for the defences of 10m. North of the Military Road, the ditch has been disturbed by the construction of a 20th century military building.

The southern rampart utilises an outcrop of bedrock for much of its length. It is fronted by a narrow ledge 5m wide and 30m long at its western end. The rampart is breached at a point 35m east of the south-western angle; this is probably the result of erosion caused by a footpath. East of this breach, the earthwork is smaller in scale and comprises a bank, 110m long, 1.5m wide and 0.5m high. Disturbance caused by the construction of the Military Road occurs at ST 29895887, and east of this the bank changes direction and becomes less well-defined. The bank terminates at the Military Road at its eastern end, where it has been much disturbed by quarrying. There is no evidence for its extension east of the Military Road.

On the northern side of the earthwork, the ground falls away very sharply to the cliffs on the edge of Brean Down; this area has been disturbed by the construction of 20th century military buildings and no defensive remains are visible. None are shown on a 19th century map of Brean Down, which depicts the earthwork as very similar to its present day appearance.

Who put Bella in the Wych Elm?

Those visiting who pass the otherwise anonymous obelisk next to the fort might notice the old graffiti “Who put Bella in the Witch Elm?” painted on the base.

Rather macabrely, it relates to the discovery by four children in 1943 of the skeletonised remains of a women placed inside a tree in nearby Hagley Wood (not the hillfort, thankfully). The murder remains unsolved.

en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Who_put_Bella_in_the_Wych_Elm%3F

Finlaggan and the Lordship
Recollections of a Golden Age in a Hallowed Place by Dan Casey

islayinfo.com/finlaggan_clan_donald.html

Loch Finlaggan, Islay
Archaeologists confirm John Michell’s research
Bob Trubshaw

indigogroup.co.uk/edge/finlaggn.htm

Passionate about British Heritage

David Ross

britainexpress.com/scotland/Strathclyde/ancient/cultoon.htm

Extract taken from a superb novel by Edward Docx ‘Let Go My Hand’.

We can see nothing – absolutely nothing. So black is the darkness that I swear I can hear the shape of the walls, taste the taste stone, smell the water that has passed through from the Earth from above.
‘Now’, he says. ‘Now look with your eyes. Friends, look!’
Gradually, gradually, a light grows. Like a hallucination. Like a red shape behind our eyelids. So that we think we’re mad. Or reborn from the womb. But it widens and it spreads so that the opposite wall starts to shape itself, the light growing sharper and brighter, sharper and brighter. We see ochre hand prints; the human mark. We see strange red patterns and dots; human signs. We begin to see the outlines of animals – the beasts. The human mind, the human imagination, the human signature. And now the light starts flood the wall and we see that these animals crouch and creep and crawl this way and that all around us – lions, hyenas, panthers, cave bears. The light brightens still further. There is an owl daubed in white paint. We sense the finger that smeared the surface of the wall on that day thirty thousand years ago. There is rhino notched and scored in black. We see the artist has chosen a certain place on the wall where the shape of the rock serves his purposes. We see a heavy-haunched bison painted in sweeping flowing lines. We sense the human being standing back and admiring his artistry in a flicker of his torchlight. We see the curved flourish of the antlers of a reindeer. We see head after head of black-drawn horses, each on the other’s shoulder, as if caught in the instant of the herd’s fierce gallop, their black eyes somehow still alive.
We are silent. Dad’s voice is full of wonder: ‘I’ve wanted to see this all my life’, he says.
I get this feeling the opposite of sickness – the feeling that these paintings are being sucked inside me and that they will somehow live there for ever and ornament my soul.
‘This is it,’ Dad says. ‘The beginning’. His voice has the hushed tone of long yearning met – as though he has been trying to get to this moment ever since he was born. As though now that he apprehends the beginning, he might understand the ending. ‘This is the best we can know it, boys. The dawn of a distinctly human kind of consciousness.

Two large cairns on West Hill and Fire Beacon. Pastscape descriptions:

Fire Beacon cairn (ST 1491 3697)

A Bronze Age cairn located on the summit of Fire Beacon, a south west facing hill in the western region of the Quantock Hills. The cairn is of irregular shape with a spread mound, approximately 2 metres above ground level at its highest point and 26 metres in diameter. The surface of the mound has been disturbed which may indicate that a partial excavation has been carried out, probably in antiquity. Scheduled.

West Hill cairn (ST 15433719)

A very large platform cairn lies on the summit of West Hill at ST 1542 3717. The cairn comprises a rather disturbed stony mound, 28m in diameter and 1.6m high. Stone has been taken from the mound, probably to build the nearby enclosure bank. Despite this disturbance, the vestiges of a bank around the north part of the mound, and a central mound, 10m NS x 12m EW x 1m high, may be original features, suggesting that the cairn may have been an embanked platform cairn with a central mound.

There are two cairns at Wilmot’s Pool. Pastscape descriptions:

Western barrow (ST 15303813)

A large Bronze Age barrow lies on the southeast side of Wilmot’s Pool at ST 15310 38135. The barrow comprises a circular mound 21m in diameter. The top of the mound has a circular depression in it, 10m NS x 8m EW x 1.5m deep. This may be the result of antiquarian excavations or it may be the site of a beacon fire. The semi-circular bank on the south edge of the mound is formed of material from this hollow. A small satellite cairn, 5m NS x 4m EW x 0.6m high lies on the southeast side of the barrow and compares to a similar feature on the southeast side of the barrow on Beacon Hill.

Wilmot’s Pool is a pond, teardrop-shaped, 45m x 30m and some 1.5m deep. It still holds water in the winter, although the north side has been breached. The pond is of considerable antiquity: it appears on a map of 1609 (Somerset Record Office 1609 A plot of Quantock belonging to the right honourable the earle of Northumberland DD/SAS C/923). Narrow ridge and furrow ploughing has slighted its west and southwest sides. The pond was probably dug in the medieval period for watering stock on the commons.

Eastern cairn (ST 15483813)

A large embanked platform cairn lies some 200m to the east of Wilmot’s Pool at ST 1548 3813. The cairn comprises a circular mound, 17m in diameter and 1.1m high. The bank which runs around the perimeter of the mound is 0.8m wide and 0.8m high. A mound 3.4m in diameter and 0.8m high is placed to the northwest of centre on top of the mound.

As well as the main Thorncombe Barrow, there is a group of three further barrows on the summit of Thorncombe Hill to the southeast, centred on ST131391.

These are very low and (at the time of writing) heavily overgrown with heather.

Pastscape descriptions:

Three Bronze Age burial cairns lie on the summit of Thorncombe Hill. The largest of these three cairns lies at ST 13199 39105. This is a low, stony mound with a flat top, 8.5m in diameter and 0.5m high. The top of the mound has a central depression, 1.6m x 1.4m x 0.5m deep. The cairn has been cut through by a track which has exposed much of the west side of the cairn. Some 30m to the northwest, at ST 13175 39123, is a second cairn. This is a circular mound, 4.4m in diameter and 0.7m high, with a small central depression. A third cairn lies some 100m to the north at ST 13150 39224. This is a circular stony mound, 5m high and 0.7m high. The west edge of the cairn has been clipped by a track.

Apart from another Iona-related chapel at Tarbert, much of the settlement activity, old and new, is in the south-east corner of the island, nearest to Islay. Here, the enormous Camas an Staca Standing Stone rises out of the peat twice the height of a man, surrounded by further rocks and outcrops which Canmore (Scotland’s inestimable archaeological database) includes two conflicting and rather confusing accounts of. The feel of the place – the lines of sight and the general atmosphere – gave me a strong feeling that Camas an Staca could be another Callanish under several thousand years of peat deposit, with the single stone still visible the monstrously high centrepiece of something far greater and more impressive. Who knows if an archaeologist may yet have time – and funding – to take a closer look. [Calanais, on the Isle of Lewis, one of the most impressive and largest stone circles and ritual landscapes in the whole of the British Isles, erected around 3000BC, was almost completely buried under 1.5m or so of peat for (at least) 1500 years, only first recorded in the early 17th century, and the peat finally all dug away to reveal it in all its glory in the mid-19th century.

David Kreps blog 2016