Building record MAB26403 - WEST CHARLESTON

Consumption dyke, 2.4m wide and 1.1m high, of medium to large stones.

Consumption dyke, 2.4m wide and 1.1m high, of medium to large stones. . This dyke is situated upon the estate of Charleston. This estate's papers have provided the best evidence for the development of consumption dykes. The estate was owned by the Menzies family and most of its dykes seem to date from the 19th century. On this process of improvement, and the creation of consumption dykes on Charleston, James Blaike, an advocate in Aberdeen commented in 1834. He wrote: 'On all the allotments are ring fences and many of them cut division dykes all of stone but of very rough workmanship indeed the erection of such fences was the only means of disposing of the immense quantities of stones which were dug up, or brought to the surface, in the course of the improvement, and a particular kind of dyke, peculiar to this dyke district called a consumption dyke was at first very much resorted to - the ordinary application of the term consumption will give a very enormous idea of this sort of fence for it is so called because it is stout, strong and of gigantic dimensions.in general dimensions from 12 to 18 foot in width at bottom, to eight feet in height, and from eight to twelve feet in breadth at the top.' Quotes received by the estate factors reveal that the cost of building a consumption dyke was around about £24. A manuscript dated 1861 entitled 'Copy Specification for Building Dykes on the Estate of Charleston' reveals how the foundations of these dykes should have been approached. It states 'the line of dykes will be staked off on the ground by a party acting for the proprietor. All the surface soil and vegetable mould to be removed from the sites of the dykes to 3.5 feet and the bottom levelled and equalised so as the Dykes may be of a uniform height'. Unfortunately it is not known exactly when this particular dyke was built. Map evidence is unhelpful in determining when this dyke was built. The 1866-69 and 1901-3 Ordnance Survey maps both show a single field boundary in this location. Consumption Dykes are often conspicuous on the Ordnance Survey maps with their width being shown. This could be a mistake on this particular map but it may also be that this dyke post dates the 1901-3 map. Although consumption dykes are not entirely unique to the north east of Scotland they are not found in any substantial numbers elsewhere in the world. They are dykes which result from the very rocky nature of the ground in the north east of Scotland and are associated with the period of agricultural improvements from the 18th century. Part of this movement involved clearing new ground of stones to create new fields. The excessive number of rocks and boulders in Aberdeen made this particularly arduous. The cleared rocks could be put to a number of different uses: if it was economical they could be sold off and shipped elsewhere. Many of the boulders and stones cleared in the north east were made into paving slabs in London. But where there were too many or where the distance to move them to the coast for transportation was too high they were often formed into consumption dykes. These dykes 'consumed' the stones cleared from the land. Technically these dykes may be defined as ones which are broader than they are tall. Historically they have also been known as Aberdeenshire Dykes and Consuming Dykes. They perform two functions: firstly to delineate a field boundary as all dykes do and secondly to use up the excess of stones. In some cases they also perform a third aesthetic function. In certain cases they have paths laid out along the top of them and are very much monuments to the taste of the estate landowner who had them created. Topographic survey of part of the dyke was carried out by Headland Archaeology in 2012 ahead of the Aberdeen Western Peripheral Route. Sample excavation of the southern dyke was carried out by Headland Archaeology in 2013 and showed that the dyke was constructed of large granite facing stones with a core of small to medium sub-rounded granite stones apparently from field clearance. The facing stones do not appear to have been deliberatley shaped. The base of the dyke rested on topsoil.

BABTIE GROUP, 2004, ABERDEEN WESTERN PERIPHERAL ROUTE: ARCHAEOLOGICAL DESK-BASED STUDY & WALKOVER SURVEY. VOL 1: TEXT, VOL 2 GAZETTEER, Site 13 (Bibliographic reference). SAB3745.

CROLY, C, 2004, CONSUMPTION DYKES ON THE ESTATE OF CHARLESTON (Bibliographic reference). SAB7077.

HEADLAND ARCHAEOLOGY, 2012, ABERDEEN WESTERN PERIPHERAL ROUTE PACKAGE SOUTHERN LEG) TOPOGRAPHIC SURVEYS: (Bibliographic reference). SAB4431.

HEADLAND ARCHAEOLOGY, 2014, ABERDEEN WESTERN PERIPHERAL ROUTE LOT 3 - SOUTHERN LEG: ASSESSMENT REPORT ON TRIAL TRENCHING AND SAMPLE EXCAVATIONS. (Bibliographic reference). SAB4451.

ARCAHEOLOGY SCOTLAND, 2015, DISCOVERY AND EXCAVATION IN SCOTLAND. NEW SERIES, VOLUME 15, 2014, p. 13 (Bibliographic reference). SAB5542.

Record last edited

May 30 2025 2:22PM