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Remains of a motte. The first castle in this area was a palisaded tower or hall of the Garriachs, established during the Norman Penetrations, superseded by the 13th Century stone castle later named Keith Hall (NJ72SE0041). The motte was moated by a large sub-circular ditch, up to 15 m in breadth and 2 m deep, circa 4 m in width at the base. There is no obvious sign of survival of the resultant upcast forming additional features to the inside or outside of the ditch (although this is to be expected with such sites) and there is no evidence for a causeway or bridged entrance. The ditch may have been deliberately waterlogged (particularly as this is a poorly drained area) but there is no physical connection visible between this and the canalised stream channel immediately to the north of the site, which may have acted as a water supply. Researchers have argued that the ditch represents a defensive feature of these monuments and this appears to be the case at Caskieben. The interior is a broad sub-circular platform measuring approximately 44m in diameter and the structural remains that survive here are now obscured by the dense ground cover of rough grass and leaf litter. The motte sits within the policies of Keith Hall in a copse of mature broadleaf woodland (NJ72SE0212).
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Historic Environment Records (HER)