MHG983 - Possible Broch, East Shebster
Summary
No summary available.
Type and Period (2)
- BROCH (Iron Age - 550 BC to 560 AD)
- (Alternate Type) HOMESTEAD (Iron Age - 550 BC to 560 AD)
Protected Status
- None recorded
Full Description
Cairn (NR) OS 6"map, Caithness, 2nd ed., (1907)
This oval, grass-covered mound, some 86ft by 78ft across and 4.5 ft high, is possibly a large, much-robbed cairn.
RCAHMS 1911.
This Pictish house was almost levelled many years ago. The remains of one small chamber are still visible.
Name Book 1873.
The much-mutilated, grass-covered remains of a cairn, measuring 22m diameter by 2m in height, contain remains of a possible chamber in SE segment.
Resurveyed at 1:2500. Visited by OS (R D) 3 November 1964.
On a barely perceptible rise in marshy ground, is a mound about 25m in diameter and 2m high, which is overgrown with grass and severely reduced by quarrying. The 'chamber' noted in Name Book and by previous field investigator may be the result of quarrying. Around N half of mound is a well-defined but silted ditch about 4m wide; this ditch may have carried around E and W sides, but this is unclear. The existence of this ditch and the overall size of the mound may indicate a broch or a homestead, but no walling is exposed and at no point can the content of the mound be seen.
Revised at 1:2500. Visited by OS (N K B) 24 November 1981.
ND06 2 EAST SHEBSTER ND/0250 6339
A possible broch in Thurso, Caith-ness, consisting of a much-quarried oval, grass-covered mound – some 25m in diameter and 2m high – with traces of a silted-up surrounding ditch on the north. In 1873 it was stated that "This Pictish house was almost levelled many years ago. The remains of one small chamber are still visible." [1]. The “chamber” was thought unconvincing in 1981 [1].
Sources: 1. NMRS site no. ND 06 SW 10: 2. RCAHMS 1911a, 105, no. 385.
Sources/Archives (3)
- --- SHG2664 Text/Report: RCAHMS. 1911. The Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments and Constructions of Scotland. Third report and inventory of monuments and constructions in the county of Caithness. . 105, No. 385.
- --- SHG3399 Text/Publication/Volume: Name Book (County). Object Name Books of the Ordnance Survey. Book No. 9, 77.
- <1> SHG26111 Text/Publication/Monograph: Mackie, E.. 2007. The Roundhouses, Brochs and Wheelhouses of Atlantic Scotland c.700 BC - AD 500: Architecture and material culture Part 2 (I & II) The Northern and Southern Mainland and the Western Islands. BAR British Series. 444. Paperback. ND06 2 EAST SHEBSTER.
Map
Location
| Grid reference | Centred ND 0249 6338 (70m by 70m) (2 map features) |
|---|---|
| Map sheet | ND06SW |
| Civil Parish | REAY |
| Geographical Area | CAITHNESS |
Finds (0)
Related Monuments/Buildings (0)
Related Investigations/Events (0)
External Links (1)
- https://canmore.org.uk/site/7936 (View RCAHMS Canmore entry 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.