Angus HER - NO53NW0014 - CARLUNGIE

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Main Details

Primary ReferenceNO53NW0014
NameCARLUNGIE
NRHE Card No.NO53NW14
NRHE Numlink 34535
HES SM No. 90059
HES LB No. NULL
Site Form Standing Structure
Site Condition Incomplete
Details Souterrain with associated settlement, called Carlungie I by Wainwright. Discovered on 17th October 1949 in the same field as Carlungie II (NO53SW0024) and excavated by Wainwright in the summers of 1950 and 1951. The excavation showed that the trench for the souterrain was dug out and that the surface huts were built on the upcast. The souterrain, one of the longest known, is 42.6 m long and had four separate entrances. The paved passages average about 2.1 m in width, the corbelled walls being of boulders and split flags. The surviving walling suggested an internal height of at least 1.8 m, and when the roofing slabs were in place they must have protruded above ground for 0.6 m or more, eliminating the theory of concealment. The excavation suggested, and scientific analysis of the soil went some way to proving, that this had been a byre for cattle or sheep. A contemporary settlement consisting of at least 8 huts was identified. Seven of the huts were built of boulders and opened onto a well-paved courtyard partly fenced by upright flags. The 8th hut appeared to be timber built, five post-holes being identified. The evidence suggested that the souterrain had been deliberately and carefully dismantled and filled up as soon as it went out of use, with no break in time nor any change of inhabitants. A cup-and-ring marked stone was found in the filling. A change also took place in the settlement, the courtyard and part of the souterrain being overlaid with paving, and a paved building 5.5 m long and 3.65 m wide, possibly a byre, being built over part of the settlement and another hut being built over two of the earlier ones. The only datable find was a Roman amphora, lying in fragments on the paved floor of one of the earlier huts, but the accumulated evidence suggests that the occupation fell between 50 AD and 450 AD and that the souterrain was demolished a little later than 200 AD but before 250 AD. A small wall-sherd of plain Samian ware was discovered and collected as a surface find from Carlungie souterrain circa 1987 is now in Dundee Museum. A watching brief was carried out by Kirkdale Archaeology in March 2008 during repairs to the east side wall of the smaller souterrain.
Last Update22/09/2022
Updated Bycpalmer
Compiler 
Date of Compilation 

Google Map for NO53NW0014

National Grid Reference: NO 5111 3597



Event Details

Event DateEvent TypeOASIS ID
2008 Watching-Brief kirkdale1-59667

Excavations and Surveys


Artefact and Ecofact

Ecofact

Samples
Palynology
Ecofact Notes

Monument Types

Monument Type 1Monument Type 2Monument Type 3OrderProbability
SOUTERRAINS REMAINS OFB100
STONESCUP & RINGCUP-MARKEDC100
PAVING REMAINS OFD100
AMPHORA REMAINS OFE100
BUILDINGS REMAINS OFF100
COURTYARDS REMAINS OFG100
SETTLEMENTS REMAINS OFA100