| Details |
Remains of prehistoric hut circles and field system. The site was visited by OS (R L) in April 1971, reporting a stone-walled hut with walls spread to 2m, and the entrance not evident. The field system was marked by stone clearance cairns joined in places by rickles of stones and lynchets. The plots were 10m sq, 17m sq and 50m x 6m. See also NJ25SE0006, NJ25SW0003. A walkover survey carried out by West Coast Archaeological Services in October 2020, covering an area of a proposed woodland planting and regeneration scheme (NJ25SW0049), recorded the remains of a prehistoric field system (Sites 4, 8, 10 and 12a) comprising concentrations of stone clearance cairns, and two hut circles (Sites 5 and 12b). The field system remains centred at NJ 24881 51470 (Site 4) comprises a dense concentration of at least 71 degraded clearance cairns, and possible associated field plots and rubble walls, located on the south and southeast flanks of Stony Hill. They were partially hidden by peat accretion and vegetation, particularly dense heather stands. The stones were generally rounded and varying in size from 0.1m - 0.5m across, with the visible elements of the cairns varying in size from 3.0m - 5.5m in diameter, 6.0m x 4.0m in extent, and 0.5m - 0.8m in height. The very degraded hut circle remains at NJ 24918 51542 (Site 5) consisted of a platform revetted into the southeast facing slope of Stony Hill, which measured internally 9.5m east-west, by 9.0m north-south, with heather covered banks spread to between 0.8m - 1.6m wide. There was a possible entrance in the east-southeast side measuring 0.7m wide, although this displayed evidence of collapse. The degraded field system remains centred at NJ 24843 51244 (Site 12a) comprises 46 stone clearance cairns, located on the southwest flanks of Stony Hill. They were partially hidden below the peaty ground cover of dense and deep stands of heather and deer grass, and are composed of generally rounded stones 0.1m - 0.4m across, some of which had been robbed away from the centre of the structures. They cairns measured 3.0m - 5.0m in diameter, others spread to 6.5m long by 4.0m wide, and 0.3m - 0.6m in height. The very degraded hut circle remains at NJ 24849 51301 (Site 12b), located on the southwest flanks of Stony Hill, consisted of stone walls under deep stands of heather, which measured approximately 10.5m in diameter internally, with walls spread to 2.2m and with no visible entrance. The northeast arc of the structure had been cut through by a later track. An isolated, very degraded, prehistoric clearance cairn recorded at NJ 2487 5111 (Site 11), located on the southwest lower flanks of Stony Hill under deep and dense heather cover, was probably part of the wider prehistoric field system. It consisted of rounded stones between 0.1m - 0.3m across, measured 4.5m long by 4.0m wide and 0.4m in height. The degraded field system remains centred at NJ 25055 51375 (Site 8) comprises 49 stone clearance cairns and associated features located on the southeast slopes of Stony Hill, within the improved ground associated with the post medieval farmstead at Burnkirk (NJ25SE0006). Some of the cairns were partially grass covered, others were under deep stands of heather and some had been robbed of stone. It is possible that stones from post medieval clearance activities may have been added to the features. They consisted of generally rounded stones measuring 0.1m - 0.4m across, with the cairns varying in size from 4m - 8m in diameter, up to 8m by 6m across and up to 0.7m in height. A fragment of a linear stone bank and other very ephemeral lines of stone may represent plots of ground associated with the field system and relate to the rickles of stones and lynchets reported by the OS site visit in 1971. To the southeast were the degraded remains of a further concentration of 14 stone clearance cairns centred on NJ 25165 51284 (Site 10), which may have originally been part of the prehistoric field system, but which have had stones added to them creating a differing morphology and believed to be post medieval. The cairns measured from 5m in diameter, up to 8m by 5m across and 0.7m - 1.2m in height, and located within a shallow valley running northwest-southeast, to the east and possibly related to the post medieval field enclosure of Burnkirk (NJ25SE0006).
|
Historic Environment Records (HER) 
Moray
HER -
NJ25SW0004 - STONY HILL