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MHG30616 - Hut circle - Allt Briste

Summary

A hut circle to the west of the Allt Briste.

Type and Period (2)

Protected Status

Full Description

A hut circle to the west of the Allt Briste. It was originally recorded by the OS at hut circle 'C'. See MHG10140 for hut circle 'A' and MHG64779 for hut circle 'B'.

On a SE-facing slope in an area of rough pasture is a settlement of three stone-walled hut circles (A-C).
'A' and 'B' are severly reduced. The former set into the slope has been about 8.5m in diameter within a wall 2.2m wide in SE arc where both faces are visible; elsewhere wall is obscured by whin and spoil from the adjacent track. A gap in S arc indicates entrance. Only the W half of hut 'B' remains; it measured about 10m diameter within a wall spread to about 2.5m broad. No trace of entrance is visible. Hut 'C' is well preserved; it is 9.5m diameter within wall up to 1m high and spread to 2.5m. Occasional inner and outer faces are exposed, but later field clearance has been piled onto walls of hut.
There is no evidence of contemporary cultivation; the area has been cultivated in more recent times.
Surveyed at 1:10 560 and hut 'C' at 1:2500.
Visited by OS (J B) 25 November 1976.

The site was visited by S Farrell during a walkover survey in 2002 in advance of a proposed foresty creation project. Site 4: Site is marked as a hut circle on latest OS map that is not recorded in HSMR or NMRS. Walkover reveals site is not a hut circle but an enclosure heavily overgrown with bracken, 12m in diameter with walls 1m wide and up to 1m high. Steepness of slope within the enclosure makes it impossible to be a hut circle. <1>

NOTE: Contrary to S Farrell's assertion that this hut circle was not recorded in the Highland SMR (as was) or NMRS (now the NRHE), all three hut circles recorded by the OS at this location had been corrrectly depicted on the relevant accompanying 1:10,000 map sheet, though a single centroid grid reference had been assigned to the record.

This feature looks exactly like a hut circle with an annex on vertical aerial photographs and SEPA LiDAR. <2> <3>

Sources/Archives (3)

Map

Location

Grid reference	Centred ND 0492 1698 (32m by 32m) (2 map features)
Map sheet	ND01NW
Geographical Area	SUTHERLAND
Civil Parish	KILDONAN

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Related Monuments/Buildings (0)

Related Investigations/Events (1)

External Links (2)