MHG9345 - Settlement and Field System - Upper Suisgill
Summary
No summary available.
Type and Period (2)
- FIELD SYSTEM (Iron Age - 550 BC? to 560 AD?)
- SETTLEMENT (Iron Age - 550 BC? to 560 AD?)
Protected Status
- None recorded
Full Description
NC82NE 36 8977 2505.
The area immediately E of the souterrain (NC82NE 35) was examined in advance of roadworks, the following sequence being recorded.
(i) Evidence of ard cultivation.
(ii) An Iron Age occupation surface surviving in a hollow and bounded to the E by a stone-faced earth bank which appears to have enclosed a substantial area between the present A897 and the Suisgill Burn. To the W of the enclosure bank a series of possible land divisions was investigated.
(iii) Resumption of ard cultivation within the enclosed area. At this stage most of the site to the W of the stone-faced bank was covered by a deep gravel wash from the high ground to the N of the site.
(iv) The surface of the gravel wash was occupied by a series of stone and wooden boundary features, which were in turn covered by a gravel wash.
(v) A scoop was cut into the top of the gravel to provide a platform on which a rectangular post-medieval structure was erected. This building was probably part of the post-medieval settlement which lay to the NE of the area under investigation.
(vi) The northern half of the building was removed to allow the construction of a road, as yet undated, which, by coincidence, followed the route now planned for the realignment.
G J Barclay 1980.
The site now lies beneath the new road.
Visited by OS 30.10.81.
The finds from the excavation are now in Inverness Museum.
G Harden 1985.
The results of Barclay's excavation were published in PSAS, 1987, volume 115, including 5 uncalibrated radiocarbon dates . Discovered at the site were multiple phases of settlement and agriculture punctuated by episodes of hillwash. Finds included an assemblage pottery dated to the 1st millenium BC, 3 fragments of shale bracelets, several querns and a possible whetstone. See link below to read the article published online. <1>
See MHG11028, MHG11390 and MHG9346 for the three souterrains close to the site.
The excavation assemblage from the site is listed under Acc. No. 1985.089 in Inverness Museum catalogue. Inverness Museum archive files contain in interim report from the excavations at the site, a conservation report on one of the shale bracelet fragments, and photos of the shale bracelets fragments and possible whetstone. <2>
Sources/Archives (6)
- --- SHG1616 Text/Publication/Article: Armit, I. 1992. 'The Atlantic Scottish Iron Age: five levels of chronology', Proc Soc Antiq Scot Vol. 121 1991, p.181-214. Proc Soc Antiq Scot. 181-214. 207.
- --- SHG1794 Text/Publication/Article: Harden, G. 1985. 'Upper Suisgill (Kildonan p) settlement', Discovery and Excavation in Scotland 1985, p.27. Discovery and Excavation in Scotland. 27. 27.
- --- SHG1795 Text/Publication/Article: Barclay, G J. 1981. 'Upper Suisgill (Kildonan p) settlement: cup-marked stone', Discovery and Excavation in Scotland 1981, p.21. Discovery and Excavation in Scotland. 21. 21.
- --- SHG1796 Text/Publication/Article: Barclay, G. J.. 1980. 'Upper Suisgill (Kildonan p), souterrains, ard marks, buildings', Discovery and Excavation in Scotland 1980, p.19-20. Discovery and Excavation in Scotland. 19-20. 19-20.
- <1> SHG748 Text/Publication/Article: Barclay, G. J.. 1987. Excavations at Upper Suisgill, Sutherland (PSAS Vol.115). Proc Soc Antiq Scot Vol. 115. 159-98. fiche 1: C1-D4.
- <2> SHG28371 Collection: Inverness Museum. 2019. Inverness Museum and Art Gallery Archive Files. 1985.089.
Map
Location
| Grid reference | Centred NC 8977 2505 (160m by 160m) (2 map features) |
|---|---|
| Map sheet | NC82NE |
| Geographical Area | SUTHERLAND |
| Civil Parish | KILDONAN |
Finds (4)
- SHERD (Iron Age - 550 BC? to 560 AD?)
- BRACELET (Iron Age - 550 BC? to 560 AD?)
- QUERN (Iron Age - 550 BC? to 560 AD?)
- WHETSTONE? (Iron Age - 550 BC? to 560 AD?)
Related Monuments/Buildings (1)
Related Investigations/Events (1)
External Links (2)
- https://archaeologydataservice.ac.uk/archiveDS/archiveDownload?t=arch-352-1/dissemination/pdf/vol_115/115_159_198.pdf (Link to PSAS article online)
- https://canmore.org.uk/site/6665 (View RCAHMS Canmore entry for this site)
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