MHG60595 - Hut circle - Achnacarnin
Summary
A hut circle at Achnacarnin.
Type and Period (1)
- HUT CIRCLE (Neolithic to Late Iron Age - 4000 BC? to 560 AD?)
Protected Status
- None recorded
Full Description
A hut circle at Achnacarnin.
204788 932023 TH001 Achnacarnin: The hut circle was visited by A Welti, G Sleight, T Hughes and others in 2013 as part of research for a dissertation on hut circles in Wester Ross. This was part of a degree course overseen by Aberdeen University. This slightly oval stone structure is sited on a gentle north facing slope at a distance of 20m from a stream and 300m from the sea at Clashnessie Bay. The structure is engulfed in bracken, but otherwise is in good condition. The landscape outside the site is hilly and rocky with vegetation a mix of bracken, grass and rushes. The HC platform is dug into and built out from the slope. To the N, W and NE of the structure the wall banking slopes steeply down to a flat area which might have originally been a shallow lochan where rushes grew. Later field systems are evident in the surrounding landscape with field boundaries and clearance cairns. Views from the site over the sea are panoramic. On the E/W axis inner diameters are 11.3m and 13.9m. On the N/S axis outer diameters are 13.9m and 16.7m. Double skinned wall thickness is 1.2m with maximum height 1.35m. A definite entrance faces W with external width 2.5m, internal width 2.1m and passage length 2.0m. The ground outside the N end of the structure is 2.0m below the base of the wall. The structure is within 2000m of a dun. If HC was a dwelling then its siting fits with several other similar probably Iron Age structures within discrete areas of farmland and a nearby landing beach. <1> <2>
[Note: a database was set up as part of research for the dissertation and was subsequently expanded as an extension of the We Digs Project (see website link below). The full access database can be made available to enquirers/researchers if requested - contact HER for details].
GIS spatial data created in 2019 based on 2009 vertical APs <3>
Sources/Archives (3)
- <1> SHG27403 Text/Manuscript: Welti, A.. 2012. Roundhouses of Wester Ross and parts of Skye. University of Aberdeen. Yes. Digital. TH001.
- <2> SHG27404 Dataset/Database File: Welti, A.. 2009-2016. Roundhouses of Wester Ross and parts of Skye: project database. Lochbroom Field Club. Yes. Digital. TH001.
- <3> SHG27382 Image/Photograph(s)/Aerial Photograph/Vertical: Get Mapping. 2009. Getmapping aerial photography 2009. XY
Map
Location
| Grid reference | Centred NC 0478 3203 (24m by 24m) (2 map features) |
|---|---|
| Map sheet | NC03SW |
| Geographical Area | SUTHERLAND |
| Civil Parish | ASSYNT |
Finds (0)
Related Monuments/Buildings (0)
Related Investigations/Events (0)
External Links (0)
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