MHG1092 - Burial Cairn - Berriedale Water

Summary

Site of late neolithic-bronze age burial cairn.

Type and Period (1)

  • BURIAL CAIRN (Neolithic - 4000 BC to 2401 BC)

Protected Status

Full Description

(A: ND 1083 2561; B: ND 1092 2569) Mounds (NR)
OS 6" map, Caithness, 2nd ed., (1908)

A: Perched on top of S bank of Allt Ardachaidh, near its junction with Berriedale Water is cairn measuring 38ft diameter & 5ft high. Visited 1910. <1>

The cairn was Scheduled in 1939.

'A' is a large cairn, 15m in diameter and 1.5m high.
'B', 110m to NE, on opposite bank of Allt Ardachaidh, is a large, mutilated and irregularly-shaped earth-and-stone mound covered with bracken. It measures some 27m N-S by 20m transversely, with a maximum height of 2m. The mound has been extensively robbed, the interior being almost cleared out to form a sheepfold.
A number of deserted building foundations exist immediately N of this mound; which would appear to be undoubtedly the remains of a burial cairn.
Visited by OS (W D J) 21 June 1960.

(A: ND 1083 2561; B: ND 1092 2569) Cairns (NR)
OS 6" map, (1965)

Cairn 'A' is 10.5m diameter and 1.3m high; it is largely heather-covered, but some rubble stones are exposed.
There are insufficient remains of 'B' to indicate that it is a cairn. All that can be seen is an early-modern enclosure wall situated on a natural spur within bracken-infested pasture. Interior of enclosure is relatively clear of stones, and is at same level as pasture to NW; in SE arc is a scarp about 1.5m high on which is stone tumbled from the enclosure, and some early-modern field clearance.
Revised at 1:10,000. Visited by OS (N K B) 10 November 1982.

The Scheduling was amended by Historic Environment Scotland in 2016 to include a larger area. <2>

GIS spatial data amended in 2018 according to its location on OS MasterMap. <3>

Sources/Archives (3)

Map

Location

Grid reference Centred ND 1082 2561 (26m by 26m) (2 map features)
Map sheet ND12NW
Civil Parish LATHERON
Geographical Area CAITHNESS

Finds (0)

Related Monuments/Buildings (0)

Related Investigations/Events (0)

External Links (2)

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