Monument record MAB11983 - HILLHEAD, BLACKHILLS

Remains of a circular feature, confirmed by excavation to be a recumbent stone circle, although previously interpreted as a hut circle.

Remains of a circular feature, confirmed by excavation to be a recumbent stone circle, although previously interpreted as a hut circle. Mr K Cooper in 1998 first spotted the remains of this feature under trees and it was interpreted as a hut circle. Lying within a plantation, the feature was turf-covered with a few stones protruding through the circular bank with an internal diameter of circa 16m. In addition a large flat stone lay in the centre of the circle, with a number of quartz pebbles lying around the interior. Excavation was carried out by R Bradley in 2013 following damage to the site by forestry operations in 2012. The excavation demonstrated this to be the remains of a hitherto unknown recumbent stone circle and ring cairn. The earliest structure was a substantial ring cairn 26m in diameter which enclosed an open court circa 15 m across. Built of large stones, towards the northeast it had been bounded by a kerb of upright slabs, though much of it had been robbed. The kerb was essentially a screen, the main mass of cairn was retained between two banks of large boulders. The cairn had been accompanied by a ring of standing stones with a recumbent on the southwest side. Subsequently the entire monument by capped by a layer of glacial boulders , covering the original cairn and filling the court to the level of the inner kerb. Three features were cut through this filling, two of which yielded cremated human bone. A singe sherd was found during the excavation, on the old land surface, but date and form are the vessel are unknown. Five pieces of worked flint, none stratified, were scattered over the disturbed surface of the monument. Pieces of smashed or flaked quartz and quartzite were common. A second circular feature identified nearby by volunteers from NESARS may be the remains of a hut circle (see NJ50NW0080). Radiocarbon dates indicate activity in the central area of the site between 2500 and 2300 BC. Secondary activity in the centre of the monument dates from between 1500 and 1000 BC.

Period Notes
Radiocarbon dates: SUERC-53980 (GU34318) 3728 +/- 35, calibrated to 2275 - 2027 BC (Oxcal 4.2 run 22/07/14); SUERC-53891 (GU34319) 3723 +/- 25, calibrated to 2273 - 2024 BC (Oxcal 4.2 run 22/07/14); SUERC-53892 (GU34320) 3753 +/-35, calibrated to 2287 - 2101 BC (Oxcal 4.2 run 22/07/14); SUERC-53893 (GU34321) 3696 +/- 35, calibrated to 2200 - 1977 BC (Oxcal 4.2 run 22/07/14); SUERC-53894 (GU34322) 3855 +/- 35, calibrated to 2461 - 2207 BC (Oxcal 4.2 run 22/07/14); SUERC-53895 (GU34323) 3141 +/- 35, calibrated to 1499 - 1302 BC (Oxcal 4.2 run 22/07/14); SUERC-53899 (GU34324) 1209 +/- 25, calibrated to 690 - 938 AD (Oxcal 4.2 run 22/07/14); SUERC-53900 (GU34325) 1180 +/- 35, calibrated to 725 - 967 AD (Oxcal 4.2 run 22/07/14); SUERC-53901 (GU34326) 3982 +/- 35, calibrated to 2581 - 2350 BC (Oxcal 4.2 run 22/07/14); SUERC-53902 (GU34327) 3955 +/- 35, calibrated to 2572 - 2342 BC (Oxcal 4.2 run 22/07/14); SUERC-53903 (GU34328) 3935 +/- 25, calibrated to 2565 - 2299 BC (Oxcal 4.2 run 22/07/14); SUERC-53904 (GU34329) 2909 +/- 35, calibrated to 1214 - 1005 BC (Oxcal 4.2 run 22/07/14);

COOPER, K, 1998, DES. BLACKHILLS, 10 (Bibliographic reference). SAB2385.

HUT CIRCLE

CURRIE, G, 2007, DES VOL7, 2006, Fieldwalking report (Bibliographic reference). SAB1340.

ARCHAEOLOGY SCOTLAND, 2014, DISCOVERY AND EXCAVATION IN SCOTLAND, NEW SERIES, VOLUME 14, 2013, p.32 (Bibliographic reference). SAB5483.

BRADLEY, R, 2016, THE USE AND REUSE OF STONE CIRCLES: FIELDWORK AT FIVE SCOTTISH MONUMENTS AND ITS IMPLICATIONS (Bibliographic reference). SAB3816.

Jun 4 2013 , AAS-GR-13-06-626 - 632, AAS-GR-13-06-626 - 632 (Ground Photograph). SAB35479.

Jun 15 2014 , AAS-GR-14-06-510 to 514, AAS-GR-14-06-510 to 514 (Ground Photograph). SAB36632.

BRADLEY, R, n.d., EXCAVATIONS AT HILLHEAD, TARLAND, Interim report (Bibliographic reference). SAB3779.

Nov 19 2012 , AAS-GR-12-11-013 - 022, AAS-GR-12-11-013 - 022 (Ground Photograph). SAB34800.

Record last edited

Mar 16 2026 12:48PM