Condition

2
WALLS & MIDDEN
Argyll and Bute

Description

Two lengths of walling constructed of rounded boulders built across the landward head end and seaward end of a narrow SE-NW oriented dune blowout. The seaward end of the wall is being bisected by a stream. Moderate amounts of fire-cracked stone and marine shell spreads between the walls. August 2019 - this large elongated blowout now stretches inland for c.90m from the shore of Loch Gruinart in the southeast. It is 22m wide at its widest point and separated from the adjacent even larger blowout to the northeast (see Site 12959) by a sliver of surviving sand dune, which is between 14m and 4m wide, over 5m tall and already in places breached by erosion. It appears to be a matter of time before the two areas of deflation are joined up. Out of the two lengths of walling recorded previously, it is the longer inland one that has suffered further damage and is now collapsing down the slope over the deflating shell midden located on its southeast side. This wall, composed predominantly of large water rounded stones (max. size 0.53x0.45x0.4m), measures 20m long between the opposing sides of the blowout from which it emerges. It runs SW-NE before it turns SE along the NE edge of the blowout. A shorter length of wall measuring 7m on SW-NE orientation is bisected by a stream some 25m southeast from the first wall. Considering the curve of the first wall it is possible that the two form parts of the same enclosure. Also recorded were three dark brown soil horizons within the sides of a blowout, the lower two with evidence of occupation, in the form of charcoal content, these were sampled by column samples. The upper layer lay 1.21m below the present turf line and was dark brown in colour up to 0.10m thick although it contained no obvious evidence of occupation or midden deposits. 1.10m below this and banded sand deposits interspersed with some evidence of thin soil deposits was a second more established soil horizon up to 0.16m thick which had evidence of burning in form of charcoal along with shell and bone. Lying up to 0.1m below the second layer was a third soil horizon up to 0.30m thick again with evidence of burning in form of charcoal along with shell and bone.

Location

129065.00
672988.00
27700
55.8736343
-6.3330054

Submitted photographs

Image Date Caption User
Lower wall in August 2019 13/08/2019 Lower wall in August 2019 Darko
Lower wall in August 2019
Site from the north 13/08/2019 Site from the north Darko
Site from the north
View of the upper wall in August 2019 13/08/2019 View of the upper wall in August 2019 Darko
View of the upper wall in August 2019
View of the site in April 2019 13/08/2019 View of the site in April 2019 Darko
View of the site in April 2019
Walls and burnt stone and shell spreads, looking NW 24/06/2015 Walls and burnt stone and shell spreads, looking NW training1
Walls and burnt stone and shell spreads, looking NW
Stream bisecting seaward wall, looking N 24/06/2015 Stream bisecting seaward wall, looking N training1
Stream bisecting seaward wall, looking N
Walls at either end of narrow blowout with spreads of burnt stone and shell, looking SE 24/06/2015 Walls at either end of narrow blowout with spreads of burnt stone and shell, looking SE training1
Walls at either end of narrow blowout with spreads of burnt stone and shell, looking SE

Submitted updates

Update id Date User
3299 13/08/2019 Darko
Tidal state Low
Site located? Yes
Proximity to coast edge 11-50m
Coastally eroding? active wind erosion (in dunes only)
Threats stock erosion; animal burrows; visitor erosion; water erosion (e.g. stream, etc)
Visibility above ground Highly visible (substantial remains)
Visibility in section Clearly visible in section
Access easily accessible - no restrictions
Local knowledge is well visited
Description Two lengths of walling constructed of rounded boulders built across the landward head end and seaward end of a narrow SE-NW oriented dune blowout. The seaward end of the wall is being bisected by a stream. Moderate amounts of fire-cracked stone and marine shell spreads between the walls. August 2019 - this large elongated blowout now stretches inland for c.90m from the shore of Loch Gruinart in the southeast. It is 22m wide at its widest point and separated from the adjacent even larger blowout to the northeast (see Site 12959) by a sliver of surviving sand dune, which is between 14m and 4m wide, over 5m tall and already in places breached by erosion. It appears to be a matter of time before the two areas of deflation are joined up. Out of the two lengths of walling recorded previously, it is the longer inland one that has suffered further damage and is now collapsing down the slope over the deflating shell midden located on its southeast side. This wall, composed predominantly of large water rounded stones (max. size 0.53x0.45x0.4m), measures 20m long between the opposing sides of the blowout from which it emerges. It runs SW-NE before it turns SE along the NE edge of the blowout. A shorter length of wall measuring 7m on SW-NE orientation is bisected by a stream some 25m southeast from the first wall. Considering the curve of the first wall it is possible that the two form parts of the same enclosure. Also recorded were three dark brown soil horizons within the sides of a blowout, the lower two with evidence of occupation, in the form of charcoal content, these were sampled by column samples. The upper layer lay 1.21m below the present turf line and was dark brown in colour up to 0.10m thick although it contained no obvious evidence of occupation or midden deposits. 1.10m below this and banded sand deposits interspersed with some evidence of thin soil deposits was a second more established soil horizon up to 0.16m thick which had evidence of burning in form of charcoal along with shell and bone. Lying up to 0.1m below the second layer was a third soil horizon up to 0.30m thick again with evidence of burning in form of charcoal along with shell and bone.
Samples from the soil horizons will be processed and analysed with a view of obtaining some absolute dating. The entire deflation hollow was recorded by georeferenced photogrammetry for easier monitoring of the erosion in the future.
Comments In April 2019, a Cu-alloy pin was found in loose sand and reported to the Tresure Trove. It was situated below the soil horizons and above the longer section of walling described above. The pin belongs to a handpin type generally thought to date from the middle part of the first millennium AD (Ewan Campbell pers.comm.).

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