EHG5521 - Excavation - former Herring station, Tanera Mor (Phase 2)

Excavations were carried out by C Dagg within compartments A, B and C of the north range of the former herring station on Tanera Mor in late 2019 in advance of proposals for the restoration and conversion of the buildings. Compartment D, which had been covered with a concrete floor in the 1940s, was cleared down to the brick floor without archaeological monitoring. This work was carried out in October and November 2019 in wintry weather conditions with low light. Removal of the overburden, contexts 001 and 002 was carried out by members of the Tanera Mor Restoration Project workforce, under the supervision of C. Dagg. This was not done archaeologically, as the trial excavations had ascertained that this layer, approximately 600mm in depth, dated to post-1875 and contained much modern detritus, but hand tools only were used to allow monitoring for any unexpected changes. Once the slate layer, 003 was partially exposed, work was continued by C. Dagg and M. Kerr as an archaeological exercise, with the assistance of guests to the island, who received training and guidance in archaeological technique. As a general rule, excavation stopped once the brick floors were exposed. These were recorded photographically, but only details within compartment A and the entire floor of Compartment C were subject to measured drawing. As there is no present proposal for alterations to the building, it was felt that any more detailed recording could be carried out at a later date if required and the priority should be to cover and protect the floor surfaces from the damaging effects of winter weather. <1>