MHG63212 - Cup and ringed marked stone - Kerb cairn, Balnuaran of Clava
Summary
A cup and ringed marked stone at the Kerb cairn, Balnuaran of Clava.
Type and Period (1)
- CUP AND RING MARKED STONE (Neolithic to Late Bronze Age - 4000 BC? to 551 BC?)
Protected Status
Full Description
West of the three main cairns at Balnuranan of Clava (NH74SE 1, 3, 4) lies a small circle of contiguous recumbent stone, approximately 12 feet in internal diameter, with one of the stones on the ESE, bearing cup-and-ring and simple cup carvings. Excavation of the interior revealed what appears to have been a shallow grave for a now vanished inhumation, 5ft 6ins by 2ft 6ins. Over the filling of this near its western end was a scatter of white quartz pebbles. No artifacts were found beyond a scrap or two of pebble flint.
W Jolly 1882; S Piggott 1956.
The cairn was Scheduled with the other Clava Cairns in 1882.
NH 7568 4442 This circle is as described above.
Visited by OS (W D J) 25 April 1962.
The monument was included in a more tightly focused Scheduled area in 2016 following re-assessemnt by Historic Environment Scotland. <1> <2>
This panel was recorded as part of the ScRAP (Scotland’s Rock Art project) by members of NoSAS in August 2018. The panel is part of the complex of monuments at Clava ('Clava cairns'), well known and much frequented by visitors. The site is located on a level river terrace to the SE of the river Nairn, in the flat bottom of the southwest to northeast valley. The panel is part of a small circle of stones, on its south edge, and separate from the three main cairns on the site. There is a car park and on site interpretation.
Roughly rectangular, 1.4m in length and 0.9m wide, this panel has two flat horizontal surfaces at different levels and is composed of a medium grained sandstone with smooth worn surfaces. The upper (southwest) surface has a larger cup with a faint but clear ring, four clear cups near its edge, and one below them on the southeast face. In addition, there are four worn cups in a row following the edge facing the lower surface. The lower surface (northeast) has a row of five cups crossing the surface, and one other at the edge. In total there are 15 cupmarks and 1 cup-and-ring motif. <3>
Ordnance Survey Mastermap <4>
Sources/Archives (13)
- --- SHG1138 Text/Publication/Article: Corcoran, J X W P. 1969. 'Multi-period chambered cairns', Scot Archaeol Forum Vol. 1 1969, p.9-17. Scot Archaeol Forum. 9-17. 9.
- --- SHG1317 Text/Publication/Article: Jolly, W. 1882. On cup-marked stones in the neighbourhood of Inverness; with an appendix on cup-marked stones in the Western Islands. Proc Soc Antiq Scot Volume 16. 300-401. 319-20; illust..
- --- SHG1639 Text/Publication/Article: Barclay, G J. 1991. 'The clearing and partial excavation of the cairns at Balnuaran of Clava, Inverness-shire, by Miss Kathleen Kennedy, 1930-31', Proc Soc Antiq Scot Vol. 120 1990, p.17-32. Proc Soc Antiq Scot. 17-32. 17-32.
- --- SHG2053 Text/Publication/Volume: Close-Brooks, J. 1986. Exploring Scotland's Heritage: The Highlands. 162, No. 91.
- --- SHG23271 Text/Publication/Monograph: Bradley, R. et al. 2000. The Good Stones: a new investigation of the Clava Cairns. Society of Antiquaries of Scotland Monograph Series. 17. Paper (Original) & Digital. pp 38-39.
- --- SHG256 Text/Publication/Article: Bradley, R. 1994. 'Balnuaran of Clava (Croy & Dalcross parish): megalithic cemetery', Discovery and Excavation in Scotland 1994, p.34-5. Discovery and Excavation in Scotland. 34-5. 34-5; fig 16: plan.
- --- SHG2673 Text/Report: RCAHMS. 1979. The Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Scotland. The archaeological sites and monuments of North-east Inverness, Inverness District, Highland Region. . 7, No. 5(4).
- --- SHG537 Text/Publication/Article: Fraser, J. 1884. 'Descriptive notes on the stone circles of Strathnairn and neighbourhood of Inverness', Proc Soc Antiq Scot Vol. 18 1883-4, p.328-62. Proc Soc Antiq Scot. 328-62. 328-68.
- --- SHG749 Text/Publication/Article: Piggott, S. 1956. Excavations in passage-graves and ring-cairns of the Clava group 1952-3. Proc Soc Antiq Scot Volume 88. 173-207. 192; plan fig. 11.
- <1> SHG27658 Text/Designation Notification/Scheduled Monument: MacIver, M.. 2016. Changes to the schedule of Monuments 27/09/2016. Historic Environment Scotland. Digital.
- <2> SHG27701 Text/Designation Notification/Scheduled Monument: Historic Environment Scotland. 2016. Amended entry in the Schedule of Monuments: SM90074: Clava Cairns, cairns 70m, 170m NE of and 210m, 460m ENE of, barrow 270m NE of, and standing stone 395m NE of Balnuarin. Historic Environment Scotland. Digital.
- <3> SHG28011 Text/Publication/Article: PSAS. 1879. 'Donations to and purchases for the Museum and Library, with exhibits', Proc Soc Antiq Scot Vol. 13 1878-9. Proc Soc Antiq Scot. ScRAP ID 2018.
- <4> SHG23361 Image/Map: Ordnance Survey. Ordnance Survey Mastermap. Digital. XY
Map
Location
| Grid reference | Centred NH 7568 4442 (6m by 5m) (2 map features) |
|---|---|
| Map sheet | NH74SE |
| Civil Parish | CROY AND DALCROSS |
| Geographical Area | INVERNESS |
Finds (0)
Related Monuments/Buildings (0)
Related Investigations/Events (1)
External Links (3)
- http://portal.historicenvironment.scot/designation/SM90074 (Online designation description (Historic Environment Scotland))
- https://canmore.org.uk/site/14258 (View HES Canmore entry for this site)
- https://www.rockart.scot/rock-art-database/?scrapToolsaction=datatools:panel.view_all&id=B75B1154-0346-459D-A2449F469208054C (View the ScRAP record for this site)
Comments and Feedback
Do you have any more information about this record? Please feel free to comment with information and photographs, or ask any questions, using the "Disqus" tool below. Comments are moderated, and we aim to respond/publish as soon as possible.