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wildgarlic · Posted: Fri Sep 14, 2007 10:19 am Post subject: Scottish Archaeology

http://www.scottisharchaeology.org.uk/

[url]We provide all sorts of information about archaeology in Scotland, including how to get involved, what excavations are happening and what archaeology you have in your area. Find out more by using the quick links on the left and right and the drop down menus above.

CSA depends on the subscriptions and donations of our supporters. The larger and more wide-ranging our membership is, the better we can make our voice heard on behalf of Scotland's cultural heritage. Help us speak up by joining CSA![/url]
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Stonehead · Posted: Wed Oct 22, 2008 5:03 pm Post subject:

Is it any better than the "official" bodies? We've picked up quite a few bits and pieces from around our croft, as did the previous owners, but the council archaeologist was dismissive as was Historic Scotland. Basically, our finds "could have come from anywhere" and "weren't properly excavated".

As well as Victorian and modern porcelain, horseshoes, bottles and pieces of machinery, we've also found worked stone knives and axe heads, a bronze arrowhead, a medieval stirrup, large lumps of iron, and very coarse, blackened pottery.

And when we were lifting the tatties the other day, the tattie lifter threw up quite a few bits of iron and bronze work.

I had been keeping our finds, but given the official brush-off I now give the stuff to the boys to play with or take in to school for show and tell. Either that, or throw it into the waste ground.

lachlanandmarcus · Posted: Wed Oct 22, 2008 5:41 pm Post subject:

We're not allowed to take a spade to part of our land as theyve been scheduled as ancient monuments (hut circle and cairn), though youd be hard pressed to see anything much, I suspect Stoney has a more important site though I quite like sitting 'in the hut' looking over the land.

I find it very frustrating when I hear about experiences like Stoneheads, these finds are certainly significant and if theyre not properly excavated, whose fault is that! those that are sniffy about finds people produce.

I think they should be much more encouraging....
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kimmie · Posted: Wed Oct 22, 2008 5:52 pm Post subject:

stonehead ....send them to "time team" not only will the council then listen, but you will get more of your tattie patch dug up for you

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IainC · Posted: Wed Oct 22, 2008 6:05 pm Post subject:

Lord_Azrael · Neepster Joined: 04 Jul 2007 Posts: 372 Location: Alves

Interesting. I'm very intrigued by your finds Stonehead, roughly where are you based? Although only an amateur historian myself, I have been taking in a lot of Scottish history lately and would be interested to know what may have been sited at various places. From the items you describe, it appears that there was obviously activity from the Bronze age (possibly even back to the Stone age) through to the present day. I'm really suprised by the reactions you've received from the authorities. I know many of their projects do cost a lot of money to investigate, but with finds like that I would have thought they'd have taken an interest to at least request to do a scan of the area.

When, many years ago, I was in Leicestershire, I found a collection of fossils in our garden, and contacted our museum service, who analysed them and sent me a full detailed report of what they were, how they'd got there and how the creatures actually lived before being fossilised and transported to our garden in the last ice age. I was only about 9 then, and that meant a lot to me and built on my interest of such things. I still have the document and fossils now!

If you don't have any joy with the authorities, try the local university as they well be interested.
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Stonehead · Posted: Wed Oct 22, 2008 10:18 pm Post subject:

We're within 100m of the remains of the Stonehead Circle, just over the hill from the site of the Castle of Wardhouse (which was the site of a dig in the 1980s), and within sight of the hill fort and castle remains on Dunnideer. The croft was part of the Wardhouse estate (owned by the Gordons of Wardhouse until 1952).

You may doubt the reaction of the "authorities", but I've actually had an archaeologist on site and shown her our finds. Her exact words were "those could have come from anywhere".

When we moved here, I was told about a burial kist found not far from the stone circle. I was told it was ripped out to make way for building works and was a bit surprised when told it was "nae bother as the archaeologists are nae interested".

Or compare old maps with the current OS map of the area. The Picardy Stone and various stone circles are on the modern map, but there are many more individual standing stones on the old maps than are there now. Those same old maps also show where urns where found on the farm opposite, where a cairn once stood, and where another kist was found.

The area is rich in material, but the message I've had time and again from neighbours is that there's no point in bothering anyone official about anything. I was doubtful until I reported things myself.

Oh, and I pulled a piece of worked stone out of a post hole today. It fits the hand nicely, has scalloped, sharp edges, and is not the field stone I normally pull out of the field.

The area I was working in is bounded by a dry stone dyke and has infilled between the dyke and the slope. The post hole goes down through this infill, towards the bottom of which I found a couple of pieces of pipe and the top of a stoneware flagon.

Below the infill is the dark layer of the original turf, and it was just below this that I found the piece of worked stone. In other words, the stone was there well before the dyke was built. (The dyke was there on an 1840s map.)

I put it to one side with the soil I took out of the hole, but I might see if I can find it again tomorrow.

IainC · Posted: Wed Oct 22, 2008 10:53 pm Post subject:

Sounds like you have a very interesting place there... I'd love to be able to work the land on the place I own and find such lovely things... regardless of whether any shortsighted local historian thinks it's worth looking at or not.

MJ · Posted: Thu Oct 23, 2008 2:34 pm Post subject:

Sounds ideal for your local YAC. If the "authorities" aren't interested, let the kids have a go. There is a YAC at Marshall Collage, sorry YAC=Young Archaeologist Club http://www.britarch.ac.uk/yac/

edit found Aberdeen's own site http://www.abdn.ac.uk/youngarchaeologists/

Lord_Azrael · Neepster Joined: 04 Jul 2007 Posts: 372 Location: Alves