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MHG66159 - Revetment - Boarscaig

Summary

The coast-edge of this area is marked by a length of revetment that stretches for over 200 m N-S.

Type and Period (1)

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Full Description

A township comprising five unroofed buildings (three are sub-divided) is depicted on the 1st edition of the OS 6-inch map (Sutherland 1878, sheet xvi). The township has three unroofed buildings (one sub-divided) shown on the current OS 1:10,560 map (1962).
Information from RCAHMS (FO) 10 August 1995.

A rapid coastal zone assessment survey was conducted by GUARD in the Autumn of 1997 commissioned by Historic Scotland from the Viking and Early Settlement Archaeological Research Project based at the University of Glasgow.

On sloping ground at the south of Boarscaig are a number of features associated with an old field-system in an area bordered by the Kyle at the east and the modern road at the west. The coast-edge of this area is marked by a length of revetment that stretches for over 200 m N-S. This revetment is turf-and-stone built and now in a poor condition, being badly eroded by the sea and heavily overgrown with bracken. This is mostly visible as a raised jumble of turf and undergrowth, but there are a number of orthostats protruding from this, as well as boulders slumped from eroded sections at the water's edge. Whilst this feature probably served to delineate the east boundary of a field it would also appear to have been built as a sea-defence. The north end of this feature has two streams running through it and is joined by a turf-and-stone dyke just south of these. This dyke stands up to 1.5 m high and is 2 m wide and runs SW up-slope to the modern road where it bends to run south for 50 m to the edge of a stream. At the road, another dyke runs north from this bend at a 45° angle toward Boarscaig. The south end of this area is marked by another ruinous dyke which runs down the slope just south of the stream. In the area bounded by these features, there are two clearance-cairns, the north example measuring 4 m E-W by 2 m and the S example measuring 2 m E-W by 1.5 m. The ground is under thick bracken and no further features were noted. Coastal-erosion and sheep-grazing has had a very detrimental effect on this area. This is a field probably associated with the township of Boarscaig and should be surveyed with it. <1>

Sources/Archives (2)

Map

Location

Grid reference	Centred NC 5664 5713 (115m by 201m) (2 map features)
Map sheet	NC55NE
Geographical Area	SUTHERLAND
Civil Parish	TONGUE

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