EHG5038 - Watching Brief - UHI Student Accommodation, The Meadows, Dornoch

An archaeological excavation and watching brief were carried out by AOC Archaeology in 2016 to record an area of archaeology uncovered on a new site for UHI student accommodation in Dornoch. An evaluation undertaken ahead of the works (see EHG5216) highlighted potential for buried archaeological remains. Several pits, a shell midden and a shallow ditch were identified and excavated. A large amount of modern disturbance was encountered across the site, which was located on the east side of an early medieval to medieval site excavated in 1997 (see EHG475). The results of the study showed that the truncated remains formed a continuation of the 9th-11th century features excavated in 1997. Post-excavation work consisted of processing and analysing environmental samples and analysis of charcoal, marine shell and animal bone. The results showed that the early medieval occupation was partly sealed below a shellfish midden layer, containing predominantly cockle shell. Most of the 2016 features represented the eastern edge of a 9th-10th century structure overlain by a later enclosure ditch. The predominance of cattle, dog and sheep/goat, cockle shell and hulled barley and oat on the site represented the same type of material recovered in 1997. The present analysis suggested that the midden waste represented a mainly meat-based economy alongside small scale shellfish exploitation, while the 1997 results also indicated that improved agricultural practices were taking place on a site of more marginal land. Later features on the site included the remains of a calf burial of unknown date. <1>