EHG3289 - Archaeological Survey of Assynt (Assynt's Hidden Lives Project)

Assynt's Hidden Lives Project (HLP) was designed to assess the archaeological resource of the parish of Assynt, to provide a platform for an improved archaeological understanding of the resource and to record key representative sites. The project was designed with three key phases. The first comprised a desk-based assessment of the existing archaeological records for the area and the compilation of a master database upon which the field programme could be based. Secondly, a walkover survey targeting all of the known sites within the study area was carried out. This phase of the project looked to assess each of the sites visited on their archaeological value and interest, level of preservation and ‘legibility’ as well as considering aspects relevant to visitor experience, such as aesthetic value and physical accessibility. The third phase of the project involved detailed topographic surveys of a representative cross-section of sites throughout the study area, aiming to record good examples of sites from across the chronological range of Assynt’s archaeology. This phase of the project involved a range of survey techniques, from plane table survey to laser scanning, with any given approach chosen to most appropriately record the important features of the site in a suitable level of detail. The project was a collaboration between AOC Archaeology Group and Historic Assynt. <1> Some minor revisions were made to the report, following discussion between the project team and the HER officer. Some NGRs required correction, due to a GPS error. The NGRs entered for monuments have not been updated, but in many cases this was factored in during the record creation process. <2>