EHG6302 - Watching brief - new house plot, Harrow, Mey

An archaeological watching brief was undertaken by AOC Archaeology Group in 2024 at land 250m North-East of Wester Haven, Harrow, Mey, Caithness, as part of planning conditions for the construction of a new house and associated infrastructure. The requirement for archaeological watching brief arose due to the potential for buried archaeological remains within the site, which was located adjacent to the Old Mey Battery. The watching brief area comprised the excavation of the access track with 14 deeper connected foundation trenches excavated for the house structure, and associated service trenches. A parking area was also stripped within the site to the final working depth (approx. 0.15m of topsoil removed) which did not reach the underlying natural subsoil. The vehicular access road to the house did not require excavation to the natural, and therefore would not disturb any potential buried archaeology. However, two test pits were machine dug evenly spaced along this area. These test pits reached the depth of the natural (approx. 0.2) and showed no archaeology other than ploughing scars. A total area of approximately 250m² was excavated. No archaeological features or significant finds were identified during the monitoring. <1>