EHG5989 - Geophysical survey - St Martins, Ulbster

A geophysical survey was undertaken by The Unversity of Aberdeen in 2022 over an area of approximately 2.87 hectares on the eastern and southwestern sides of St Martin's graveyard, Ulbster, where a new Pictish symbol stones had recently been uncovered. The survey employed a GPS enabled five sensor Sensys gradiometry cart with 0.5m sensor separation. Unfortunately, deep linear striations associated with past cultivation has largely masked or may have truncated underlying archaeology. No obvious enclosures were identified within the survey that might be associated with an early church. A board curving band of higher magnetic readings running in a northeast/southwest orientation is a geological response corresponding with a notable fall in the topography at this point. The only likely archaeological features recorded in the survey is a 10m diameter positive band of magnetic readings that probably represents a burnt roundhouse, and a fainter 8m diameter circular band of readings immediately to the south. Such structures may be of any period, though many comparable features date to the Iron Age. <1>