MHG10137 - Broch, Strath of Kildonan
Summary
No summary available.
Type and Period (1)
- BROCH (Iron Age - 550 BC to 560 AD)
Protected Status
- None recorded
Full Description
ND01NW 34 015 174.
There is a broch in the Helmsdale valley, about 1.5 miles from sea on S side of the valley, below Craig Marril (ND 01 17). Its ruins are covered by the Caithness Railway. A steatite cup was found on it. J Anderson 1873
No trace found during field perambulation.
Visited by OS (W D J) 27 May 1960.
No trace of this broch was discovered after further field perambulation and local inquiry.
Visited by OS (J B) 24 September 1976.
In Dunrobin Museum is a shale ring (Acc No:1870.10) 'found in the broch opposite Caen Burn, Strath of Kildonan' (This would locate the broch to appro. ND 015 174); and also a steatite cup or lamp 2.7ins high by 4.4ins in diameter 'from Marrel near Helmsdale' (Acc No: 1969.4) (This is presumably the cup referred to by Anderson 1873).
Info from TS of the Catalogue of Dunrobin Museum by A S Henshall.
ND01 1 CAEN BURN 1 ('Helmsdale Valley', 'Craig Marril')
ND/015174
Site of possible broch in Kildonan parish, Sutherland, about 2.25km (1.4 miles) from the sea and now covered by the railway line [2]; no trace of it was found in recent times [1, 3]. A steatite cup is report-ed to have been found in it [2] and this, and a shale ring which may also be from the site, are in the Dunrobin Museum [1]. The grid reference is taken from the find spot described for the ring [1].
Sources: 1. NMRS site no. ND 01 NW 34: 2. Anderson 1873, 188: 3. Swanson (ms) 1985, 777. <1>
The stone cup from Marrel and shale ring from opposite Caen burn (now identified as a spindle whorl), are on display at Timespan Museum (2019), having been loaned from Dunrobin Castle Museum. They are labelled 2 and 3 in attached photo. The spindle whorl may have come from MHG10131. <2>
Sources/Archives (3)
- --- SHG1281 Text/Publication/Article: Anderson, J. 1873. ''Notice of the excavation of the brochs of Yarhouse, Brounaben, Bowermadden, Old Stirkake, and Dunbeath in Caithness; with remarks on the period of the brochs, and an appendix, containing a collected list of the brochs of Scotland, and early notices of m. Archaeol Scot. 131-98. 188.
- <1> SHG26111 Text/Publication/Monograph: Mackie, E.. 2007. The Roundhouses, Brochs and Wheelhouses of Atlantic Scotland c.700 BC - AD 500: Architecture and material culture Part 2 (I & II) The Northern and Southern Mainland and the Western Islands. BAR British Series. 444. Paperback. ND01 1 CAEN BURN 1.
- <2> SHG28509 Text/Record Form/Project Recording Form: Archaeology for Communities in the Highlands (ARCH). 2019. Finds Collection at Timespan Museum, Helmsdale.
Map
Location
| Grid reference | Centred ND 0150 1739 (70m by 70m) (2 map features) |
|---|---|
| Map sheet | ND01NW |
| Geographical Area | SUTHERLAND |
| Civil Parish | KILDONAN |
Finds (2)
- RING (Iron Age - 550 BC? to 560 AD?)
- CUP (Iron Age - 550 BC to 560 AD)
Related Monuments/Buildings (0)
Related Investigations/Events (0)
External Links (1)
- https://canmore.org.uk/site/7450 (View RCAHMS Canmore entry for this site)
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