EHG6585 - Watching brief - new acess and steps refurbishment, Duntulm Castle, Skye

A watching brief and remedial works were carried out by West Coast Archaeological Services in 2026 at Duntulm Castle, Skye, including the installation of a new access gate, and cleaning of overburden from the steps accessing the subterranean vault/kitchen within the basement of the main tower. The work was undertaken to assess the nature and extent of any archaeological features or deposits likely to be affected by the installation of the new gate, while metal detecting of any removed sediments was carried out. Scheduled Monument Consent (Case ID: 300081974) and the Consent for Metal and Mineral Detecting (Case ID: 300084871) was provided by Historic Environment Scotland. The archaeological work was carried out on the 24th of June 2026. Cleaning of the steps into the subterranean vault did not encounter any in-situ archaeological deposits, while metal detecting recovered no finds. Sediments removed during the installation of the new access gate also produced no finds. However, excavation of one of the post-holes for the new access gate revealed in-situ archaeological deposits comprising orange and black ash, within the outer edge of the causeway between the terminals of the rock-cut ditch, providing access to the castle. It was recommended that the samples should be processed to see what information they might contain and especially, to see if they contain viable samples for radiocarbon dating. Duntulm Castle has not been subject to any serious archaeological study, including excavation, so it was, considered any new details that could be recovered would be important in putting forward a wider narrative for this important site. <1>