MHG45711 - Wag of Forse, settlement 800m WSW of Forse House
Summary
No summary available.
Type and Period (1)
- FIELD SYSTEM (Iron Age - 550 BC? to 560 AD?)
Protected Status
Full Description
Re-scheduled 2/2003 - see info in secondary file - HAW 4/2003
ND23NW 1 2048 3520.
Dun and Settlement (NR) OS 1:10,000 map, (1976)
Wag of Forse: An Iron Age site with successive periods of occupation including a dun (Young 1964; MacKie 1965) and wags, apparently only part of complex which extends along E edge of a rocky outcrop. It was partly excavated by Curle (1941; 1948) in 1939 and 1946-8.
The sequence of occupation appears to consist of huts of 3 periods, overlaid by a dun, which was succeeded and partly destroyed by wags, both elongated and round. The site is partly bounded by a turf wall on substantial stone base with, at least on W, an external, V-shaped ditch, the period of which is unknown.
MacKie (1965) likens the dun, with its massive double entrance to the pre-broch gatehouse forts of Shetland. It measures 47ft in internal diameter within a wall 4 to 5ft thick, rising from a heavy scarcement. Just inside entrance a flight of stairs leads off to the ruined wall-head (recalling entrances to some of the Caithness brochs, including that at Yarrows - ND34SW 1).
Excavation finds, most of which were donated to NMAS, included several saddle-querns but only one, broken, rotary quern. From the original hearth in hut 'C' (see plan) came a pot with LBA-EIA parallels (1965). The most sophisticated pottery came from a small round wag, not shown on plan, in area 'H'. No metal was noted.
A O Curle 1941; 1948; 1950; A Young 1964; E W MacKie 1965.
A partially excavated Iron Age occupation site, consisting of a dun and galleried dwellings, as described and illustrated by Curle. Excavated material overlies some of the dwellings and the outer turf-covered wall, rendering their identification virtually impossible.
There are undoubtedly more huts beneath the tumble, and also to S (see ND34SW 7 and 12) where numerous large slabs protrude through the turf. There was an associated field system, evidenced by a low bank running from the outer rampart, but this has been destroyed by much later field walls and cultivation, and cannot be accurately determined. Resurveyed at 1:2500.
Visited by OS (N K B) 11 May 1967.
If the primary structure is a dun it is unique although stair in the entrance section has analogies in the Keiss brochs (ND36SE2 & 3).
The secondary longhouses are unusual in the British Iron Age but may bear comparison with the wooden longhouses with internal rows of roof-posts of northern European Iron Age.
'It is quite possible that at Forse we have a rare fragment of evidence for the arrival in NE Scotland of prehistoric settlers direct from the continent, an influx of people who may have laid the foundations of the Pictish nation of proto-historic times. Certainly the dun appears to be earlier than the Caithness brochs and to have contributed some elements of its architecture to them.
E W MacKie 1975.
The entrance block in the circular ring-fort differs from that of the blockhouse forts in that the structure does not project forwards beyond the curve of the wall, which externally it does not interrupt, and it is of one build with the wall.
R G Lamb 1980.
No change to previous reports except that the protruding slabs noted to S by the previous field investigator do not appear to have any archaeological significance.
Visited by OS (J M) 24 March 1983.
Classified by Close-Brooks as broch and settlement.
J Close-Brooks 1986.
Sources/Archives (20)
- --- SHG11431 Image/Photograph(s): Wag of Forse.. Colour Slide. .
- --- SHG11835 Image/Photograph(s): AP : Wag of Forse. (1). Colour Slide; Digital Image. .
- --- SHG11836 Image/Photograph(s): AP : Wag of Forse. (2). Colour Slide; Digital Image. .
- --- SHG11837 Image/Photograph(s): AP : Wag of Forse Complex. (3). Colour Slide; Digital Image. .
- --- SHG11838 Image/Photograph(s): AP : Wag of Forse Complex. (4). Colour Slide; Digital Image. .
- --- SHG160 Text/Publication/Article: Curle, A O. 1941. 'An account of the partial excavation of a "wag" or galleried building at Forse, in the Parish of Latheron, Caithness', Proc Soc Antiq Scot Vol. 75 1940-1, p.23-39. Proc Soc Antiq Scot. 23-39. 23-39.
- --- SHG1612 Text/Publication/Article: Curle, A O. 1948. 'The "wag" of Forse, Caithness: excavations 1947-48', Proc Soc Antiq Scot Vol. 82 1947-8, p.275-85. Proc Soc Antiq Scot. 275-85. 275-85; plan.
- --- SHG1667 Text/Publication/Article: Curle, A O. 1945. 'The excavation of the "wag" or prehistoric cattle-fold at Forse, Caithness, and the relation of "wags" to brochs, and implications arising therefrom', Proc Soc Antiq Scot Vol. 80 1945-6, p.11-25. Proc Soc Antiq Scot. 11-25. 11-25.
- --- SHG1703 Text/Publication/Article: MacKie, E W. 1965. 'The origin and development of the broch and wheelhouse building cultures of the Scottish Iron Age', Proc Prehist Soc Vol. 31 1965, p.93-146. Proc Prehist Soc. 93-146. 97, 113, 133.
- --- SHG2053 Text/Publication/Volume: Close-Brooks, J. 1986. Exploring Scotland's Heritage: The Highlands. 153-4, No. 85.
- --- SHG2472 Text/Publication/Volume: MacKie, E W. 1975. Scotland: an archaeological guide: from the earliest times to the twelfth century. 223-4.
- --- 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. 188.
- --- SHG310 Text/Publication/Monograph: Lamb, R G. 1980. Iron Age promontory forts in the Northern Isles. BAR British Series. 79. 39.
- --- SHG3580 Image/Photograph(s)/Aerial Photograph: B/W Negative. .
- --- SHG3581 Image/Photograph(s)/Aerial Photograph: B/W Negative. .
- --- SHG3582 Image/Photograph(s)/Aerial Photograph: B/W Negative. .
- --- SHG3583 Image/Photograph(s)/Aerial Photograph: B/W Negative. .
- --- SHG3911 Image/Photograph(s)/Aerial Photograph: B/W Negative. .
- --- SHG3912 Image/Photograph(s)/Aerial Photograph: B/W Negative. .
- --- SHG9585 Image/Photograph(s): Wag, Forse, general view. Colour Slide; Digital Image. .
Map
Location
| Grid reference | Centred ND 2048 3520 (30m by 30m) (2 map features) |
|---|---|
| Map sheet | ND23NW |
| Civil Parish | LATHERON |
| Geographical Area | CAITHNESS |
Finds (0)
Related Monuments/Buildings (1)
Related Investigations/Events (0)
External Links (2)
- http://portal.historicenvironment.scot/designation/SM2301 (Online designation description (Historic Environment Scotland))
- https://canmore.org.uk/site/8608 (View RCAHMS Canmore entry for this site)
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