MHG416 - Possible Cairn SE of Wick Airport
Summary
Site of possible late neolithic-bronze age cairn. Recent investigations have hinted that the supposed cairn may be the remains of a building. A stone bowl and two Late Bronze Age armlets were found in this mound.
Type and Period (2)
- CAIRN (Bronze Age - 2400 BC to 551 BC)
- (Alternate Type) BUILDING (Undated)
Protected Status
- None recorded
Full Description
The area of the find was under crop when visited and therefore not investigated. The mound described by Miss Batey was not positively identified although overgrown remains of a probable building at ND 3701 5204 is possibly what she describes.
Visited by OS (J B) 18 August 1982.
A mound, 16m by 9.6m and 0.8m high, lies near E end of runway at Wick Airport and comprises an area of rough land in an otherwise ploughed field. It lies in the vicinity of mound in which the armlets were found, but may be composed of modern rubbish.
C E Batey 1981.
Gold armlets classified as Irish Late Bronze Age.
J M Coles 1962.
A stone bowl and two Late Bronze Age penannular gold armlets were found during ploughing in February 1913 in a small mound halfway between Inkerman farm (ND 3690 5254) and the Hillhead Broch (ND35SE 5, at ND 3762 5140). The mound was composed of black earth, grey surface stones, and some slaty stones 'fire burnt red form end to end and broken in the middle'. It had an extreme length of 78ft, a breadth at SW end of 30ft, and gradually diminished towards NE, and was about 2ft high. The bowl is 6ins in diameter and 4.5ins high externally. The armlets are elliptical and each formed from a single rod of gold, round in section. The extremities have a slight discoid termination. All are now in the NMAS (Acc Nos: AQ 84 and FE 69-70 respectively).
A O Curle 1913; Information from John Nicolson, Nybster
Sources/Archives (5)
- --- SHG1476 Text/Publication/Article: Coles, J M. 1962. ''Scottish Late Bronze Age metalwork: typology, distributions and chronology'', Proc Soc Antiq Scot Vol. 93 1959-60, p.16-134. Proc Soc Antiq Scot. 16-134. 93.
- --- SHG1958 Text/Report/Fieldwork Report: Batey, C E. 1984. Caithness Coastal Survey 1980-82: Dunnet Head to Ousdale. University of Durham, Department of Archaeology. 30/01/1984. Digital (scanned as PDF). WIC 165, WIC 166.
- --- SHG1959 Text/Report/Fieldwork Report: Batey, C E. 1981. Caithness coastal survey 1981: interim report. University of Durham, Department of Archaeology. . No. 166.
- --- SHG28278 Dataset/Database File: National Museums Scotland. 2019. Highland Finds from the NMS Catalogue. National Museums Scotland. Digital. AQ 84, FE 69-70.
- --- SHG628 Text/Publication/Article: PSAS. 1913. 'Donations to and purchases for the Museum and Library, with exhibits', Proc Soc Antiq Scot Vol. 47 1912-13, p.9-12, 95-8, 197-208, 341-2, 406-8, 429-35. Proc Soc Antiq Scot. 9-12, 95-8, 197-208, 341-. 433; illust.
Map
Location
| Grid reference | Centred ND 3720 5210 (14m by 14m) (2 map features) |
|---|---|
| Map sheet | ND35SE |
| Civil Parish | WICK |
| Geographical Area | CAITHNESS |
Finds (2)
- ARMLET (Bronze Age - 2400 BC to 551 BC)
- BOWL (Bronze Age - 2400 BC? to 551 BC?)
Related Monuments/Buildings (0)
Related Investigations/Events (0)
External Links (3)
- http://nms.scran.ac.uk/database/record.php?usi=000-100-033-189-C& (Link to NMS online collections database)
- https://canmore.org.uk/site/9143 (View RCAHMS Canmore entry for this site)
- https://www.nms.ac.uk/collections-research/our-research/featured-projects/prehistoric-gold/gold-object-of-the-week/gold-object-of-the-week-12/?item_id= (Link to online NMS Featured Project)
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