MHG2198 - Chambered Cairn, West Yarrows
Summary
No summary available.
Type and Period (2)
- CHAMBERED CAIRN (Neolithic to Late Bronze Age - 4000 BC to 551 BC)
- CIST (Bronze Age - 2400 BC to 551 BC)
Protected Status
- None recorded
Full Description
Yarehouse: Standing Stones (NR) : Pict's House (NR) (Remains of) OS 6" map, Caithness, 1st ed., (1871)
'Two stones about four feet in height situated at farm steading of Yarrows', remains of a Pict's House, the rest of which was used for building present dwelling house and steading (ONB 1871).
These stones are amost certainly remains of an Orkney-Cromarty type long cairn (Henshall 1963) of which outline was still visible in 1854. There were several cists in it and in NMAS are a cast of a granite battle-axe (AH 109), a brown stone ball (not of 'decorated type') (AS 37), and a decorated sandstone cup (AQ 25) from unknown parts of the cairn. Rhind (1854) visited site and his description agrees with ONB, without naming the steading.
Name Book 1871; A S Henshall 1963; A H Rhind 1854; Proc Soc Antiq Scot 1894.
The battle-axe is of type 'Roe - Stage III - Bronze Age'.
FES Roe 1966.
This long cairn almost certainly stood in farmyard of West Yarrows, where stood the remains of 'Pict's House' (OS 6" map, Caithness, 1st ed., 1871).
The site is a low but prominent knoll, a typical cairn position and the most suitable in the area. There are no traces of the cairn to be seen, although a large displaced stone, 3m long, in farmyard, could well have been a capstone of a chamber.
Visited by OS (NKB) 11 May 1967.
Sources/Archives (7)
- --- SHG1412 Text/Publication/Article: Rhind, A H. 1854. 'Results of excavations in sepulchral cairns in the north of Scotland', Ulster J Archaeol Vol. 3 1854, p.99-108. Ulster J Archaeol. 99-108. 107-8.
- --- SHG1619 Text/Publication/Article: Roe, F E S. 1966. 'The battle-axe series in Britain', Proc Prehist Soc Vol. 32 1966, p.199-245. Proc Prehist Soc. 199-245. 218, 241, No. 379.
- --- SHG2115 Text/Publication/Volume: Davidson, JL and Henshall, A S. 1991. The chambered cairns of Caithness: an inventory of the structures and their contents. 93-4, no. 8.
- --- SHG28278 Dataset/Database File: National Museums Scotland. 2019. Highland Finds from the NMS Catalogue. National Museums Scotland. Digital. AH 109, AQ 25, AS 37.
- --- SHG3343 Text/Publication/Monograph: Ordnance Survey. Object Name Books of the Ordnance Survey. 13. Book No. 13, 236.
- --- SHG357 Text/Publication/Monograph: Henshall, A S. 1963. The chambered tombs of Scotland, Volume 1. 260, CAT 8.
- --- SHG558 Text/Publication/Article: PSAS. 1895. 'Donations to and purchases for the Museum and library', Proc Soc Antiq Scot Vol. 29 1894-5, p.5-10, 63-7, 104-7, 206-10, 241-3, 272-7. Proc Soc Antiq Scot. 5-10, 63-7, 104-7, 206-10. 5-7.
Map
Location
| Grid reference | Centred ND 3032 4406 (80m by 80m) (2 map features) |
|---|---|
| Map sheet | ND34SW |
| Civil Parish | WICK |
| Geographical Area | CAITHNESS |
Finds (3)
- STONE BALL (Undated)
- AXE HAMMER (Bronze Age - 2400 BC to 551 BC)
- CUP (Neolithic to Late Iron Age - 4000 BC? to 560 AD?)
Related Monuments/Buildings (0)
Related Investigations/Events (0)
External Links (1)
- https://canmore.org.uk/site/9033 (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.