MHG12928 - Broch, Dun Dornaigil
Summary
No summary available.
Type and Period (1)
- BROCH (Iron Age - 550 BC to 560 AD)
Protected Status
Full Description
(NC 4572 4501) Dun Dornaigil (NAT) (Broch) (NR)
OS 6" map, (1961)
Dun Dornaigil (OS 6"map, {1908}) Dornadilla (A Pope 1777) or Dornagail (A Young 1964) is the ruin of a broch standing generally to a height of 6ft to 11ft externally but to 22ft on the NE, which arc contains the debris-choked entrance with its massive triangular lintel. This section has been buttressed internally in modern times. The interior measures 27ft in diameter and the wall is 8ft thick where visible above the debris filling the courtyard. Only the two outer roof-lintels of the entrance are in situ, but the remains of a guard-chamber survive on the right. An entrance to a mural chamber, or possibly the stairway, is indicated by a large lintel in the internal wall, 24ft to the left of the entrance. Immediately opposite the entrance, a small opening has exposed the top of a chamber roofed with overlapping flags.
Cordiner mentions three galleries surviving within the wall in the 18th century, but, except on NE, the wall has been reduced to the level of floor of first gallery. In 1874, the name was collected as 'Dun Dhoirneghil', but was 'corrected' to 'Dun Donradilla' by Rev J M Joass, Golspie. The broch is still known locally as 'Dun Dornaigil' (Info from Dr C S Sandeman, Durness) , but 'Dornadilla' form of the name is of interest in that a 'Dornadille' appears in early king lists.
A Pope 1777; C Cordiner 1780; Name Book 1874; OS 6"map, Sutherland, 2nd ed., (1908); Visited by OS (A C) 3 June 1959; A Young 1964.
Dun Dornaigil, a broch as described by the previous authorities.
Revised at 1:10,000. Visited by OS (N K B) 9 November 1978.
NW SUT Local Plan, May 1987: P23/2.36.
J Aitken : 11/06/01.
This site was included in Mackie's 2007 'The Roundhouses, Brochs and Wheelhouses of Atlantic Scotland c.700 BC - AD 500: Architecture and material culture'. See link below to HES Canmore record which includes the chapter on this site. <1>
As part of a research project into broch architecture and the Knowledge Transfer Project (a collaborative research project between AOC Archaeology Group and the University of Nottingham) a laser scan survey of Dun Dornadilla broch was undertaken in October 2007. Five scan positions were taken to produce a pointcloud with a net resolution of approximately 10mm. <2>
Cait McCullagh submitted photographs of the broch via the Highland HER Facebook page. <3>
Nicki MacRae submitted photos via the Highland HER Flickr group in May 2011. <4>
Sources/Archives (19)
- --- SHG10129 Image/Photograph(s): Broch, Dornadilla. Colour Slide; Digital Image. .
- --- SHG10135 Image/Photograph(s): Broch, Dornadilla. Colour Slide; Digital Image. .
- --- SHG10141 Image/Photograph(s): Broch, Dornadilla '65. Colour Slide; Digital Image. .
- --- SHG13674 Image/Photograph(s): Dun Dornaigil. Colour Slide; Digital Image. .
- --- SHG13675 Image/Photograph(s): Dun Dornaigil. Colour Slide; Digital Image. .
- --- SHG2053 Text/Publication/Volume: Close-Brooks, J. 1986. Exploring Scotland's Heritage: The Highlands. 151, No. 82.
- --- SHG2061 Text/Publication/Volume: Cordiner, C. 1780. Antiquities and scenery of the north of Scotland, in a series of letters to Thomas Pennant, Esq.. 108-10.
- --- SHG2296 Image/Photograph(s): Grierson, A. 196-?. [Photographs of Scottish abbeys, and other buildings, taken by Alec Grierson]. . 2 general views, 25V1964 (Grierson nos 5947-7) Neg C62516-7.
- --- SHG293 Text/Publication/Article: Young, A. 1964. 'Brochs and duns', Proc Soc Antiq Scot Vol. 95 1961-2, p.171-98. Proc Soc Antiq Scot. 171-98. 184-5.
- --- SHG3523 Text/Publication/Article: Pope, A. 1777. Archaeologia Vol. 5 1777, p.216-17. Archaeologia. 216-17. 216-18.
- --- SHG8548 Image/Photograph(s): Dun Dornaigil, broch. B/W Negative. .
- --- SHG8549 Image/Photograph(s): Dun Dornaigil, broch. B/W Negative. .
- --- SHG8550 Image/Photograph(s): Dun Dornaigil, broch. B/W Negative. .
- --- SHG8551 Image/Photograph(s): Dun Dornaigil, broch. B/W Negative. .
- --- SHG8552 Image/Photograph(s): Dun Dornaigil, broch. B/W Negative. .
- <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. NC44 2 DUN DORNAIGIL.
- <2> SHG23692 Text/Report/Fieldwork Report: Cavers, G. 2007. Laser scanning of highland brochs. AOC Archaeology Group.
- <3> SHG25262 Interactive Resource/Webpage: Highland Council. 2011. Highland HER Facebook page. Yes.
- <4> SHG25329 Image/Photograph(s): MacRae, N. 2009-2011. Photographs of various HER sites by Nicki MacRae. Colour. Yes. Digital. via Flickr.
Map
Location
| Grid reference | Centred NC 4571 4501 (70m by 70m) (2 map features) |
|---|---|
| Map sheet | NC44NE |
| Geographical Area | SUTHERLAND |
| Civil Parish | DURNESS |
Finds (0)
Related Monuments/Buildings (0)
Related Investigations/Events (1)
External Links (4)
- http://portal.historicenvironment.scot/designation/SM90113 (Online designation description (Historic Environment Scotland))
- https://canmore.org.uk/site/4891 (View RCAHMS Canmore entry for this site)
- www.facebook.com/HighlandHER (Highland HER Facebook page)
- www.flickr.com/groups/her (Highland HER Flickr group)
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