MHG9580 - Cist and Burial, Chealamy

Summary

No summary available.

Type and Period (1)

  • CIST (Early Bronze Age - 2400 BC to 1501 BC) + Sci.Date

Protected Status

  • None recorded

Full Description

NC 722 502, Cist, Chealamy: A pit dug for a strainer-post during road-widening operations on B871 in February 1981 revealed a flat slab at a depth of 0.70m. Attempts to remove this with a jack-hammer pierced the slab, revealing a stone cist below. The site was immediately excavated, producing in intact N3 beaker accompanying a burial comprising only pelvic and leg bones. It seems likely that this is all that was originally buried. The cist was removed and reconstructed outside the Farr Museum, Bettyhill, with the beaker placed on display inside.
R B Gourlay and E Rudie 1981; Scot Mag 1981.

The find spot of the cist was pointed out on OS 6"map by Mr Gourlay (Wick Museum) at NC 7238 5017.
Visited by OS (N K B) 1 September 1982.

A document of correspondance from the Inverness Museum archive files from 1984 records that they possess the skeletal remains (listed under 1983.153 in the museum catalogue) and Farr Museum at Bettyhill possess the Beaker. Photographs of the beaker and of the cist are also within the museum archive files. <1> <2>

British Museum labs date this at 3630+/- 50 BP (1630- 1730 bc). Date from bone collagen, calibrated on the Pearson &Stuiver 1986 calibration. (info from ADS; DML)

A radiocarbon date for Chealamy was published as part of the Bristish Museum Beaker Dating Programme in 1991. This produced a date of 2140-1885 BC, calibrated at 2 sigma. A copy of the appendix from this publication, and illustration of the beaker was sent to Inverness Museum and is kept within their archive files. <3> <1>

The beaker is on display within Strathnaver Museum. <4>

Sources/Archives (20)

Map

Location

Grid reference Centred NC 7238 5016 (4m by 4m) (2 map features)
Map sheet NC75SW
Geographical Area SUTHERLAND
Civil Parish FARR

Finds (2)

  • BEAKER (Bronze Age - 2400 BC to 551 BC)
  • HUMAN REMAINS (Bronze Age - 2400 BC to 551 BC)

Related Monuments/Buildings (1)

Related Investigations/Events (0)

External Links (1)

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