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Dun Liath, Skye

Fort (Prehistoric)

Site Name Dun Liath, Skye

Classification Fort (Prehistoric)

Canmore ID 11206

Site Number NG37SE 2

NGR NG 3598 7002

Datum OSGB36 - NGR

Permalink http://canmore.org.uk/site/11206

Ordnance Survey licence number AC0000807262. All rights reserved.
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Administrative Areas

  • Council Highland
  • Parish Kilmuir
  • Former Region Highland
  • Former District Skye And Lochalsh
  • Former County Inverness-shire

Archaeology Notes

NG37SE 2 3598 7002

(NG 3598 7002) Dun Liath (NR)

OS 6" map, (1966)

Dun Liath, a galleried dun, occupying the summit of a rocky ridge with natural defences on the N, E and W, and an approach by a gradual rise on the S.

The enceinte measures 150' by 80' within a wall 8' - 12' thick and galleried on the N, E, and S but only about 5' thick on the W where it is now almost obliterated. It still stands about 6' high on the S, and considerable lengths of the lower courses of the outer face remain in position on the E in which side the entrance has been. A hut circle 6' in internal diameter lies 10' within the S wall.

An outer defence in the shape of a line of large stones set on end follows an intermittent low outcrop of rock across the approach at a distance of from 15' to 19' from the dun, and Feachem mentions a row of earthfast stones like a diminutive 'chevaux de frise' outside the dun on the S.

At a distance of about 100' from the dun on the land-ward side Mackie notes a stone wall - "almost certainly an outer defence" - crossing a broad flat depression. It has a vertical face only on the side away from the dun with whose wall it runs parallel. It terminates in a marsh at one end and in a steep declivity leading down to the beach at the other. The dun was excavated by Mackie during 1964-5 and pottery sherds from a secondary domestic context compare with the characteristic pottery of the pre-broch fort levels at Clickhimin (HU44SE 2). A polished stone macehead from the stie is in Dundee Museum (Accession No: 1956-370).

RCAHMS 1928; R W Feachem 1963; E W MacKie 1965; H Coutts 1971.

On size Dun Liath must be regarded as a galleried fort. It is generally as planned by the RCAHMS, but the recent excavation has revealed that a corbelled cell, entered from within the fort, lied immediately S of the entrance. A line of stones between this and the entrance appears to be a medial stabilising wall. A stone abutting from the N side of the entrance passage may be a door jamb but there is no sign of a corresponding one on the S side, although there are indications that the outside part of the entrance passage has been rebuilt. The alleged hut circle within the fort is fortuitous tumble.

The row of stones, like a chevaux de frise according to Feachem, are 1.0m outside and parallel to the galleried wall in the S. Three in number, they are about 0.4m high and 0.2m wide.

The outer defence noted by RCAHMS is more likely to be the remains of the wall of an earlier fort. All that survives is the intermittent outer face of earthfast boulders about 6.0m outside the SE and S arcs of the galleried wall.

Below and about 9.0m outside the galleried wall in the NE is another wall about 2.5m average width and 29.0m long. This wall and another further to the E (described by Mackie as a contemporary outer defence) are undoubtedly associated with the remains of depopulated buildings and enclosures around the NE, SE and S arc of the fort.

Visited by OS (I S S) 15 September 1971.

Activities

Field Visit (4 June 1921)

Dun Liath, Kilvaxter.

About 4½ miles north-north-west of Uig, at Cairidh nah Ob, the extreme western point of Trotternish, is Dun Liath, a galleried dun occupying the summit of a rocky ridge· which runs parallel to the sea-shore. Protected on the western flank and the northern end by a cliff about 40 to 50 feet in height, and on the eastern flank by a steep escarpment rising some 20 feet above the hollow which separates it from the rising ground on the landward side, it is approached from the south in a gradual rise broken by outcropping rocks. The enceinte is drop-shaped, the narrow end towards the north, and measures along the major axis, which runs north-north-west and south-south-east, 170 feet externally, while it is about 107 feet at its widest. It is defended bya wall of stone built on the edge of the summit, which is best preserved on the eastern flank and southern end, and varies in thickness from 8 to 12feet ; along the western flank on the edge of the cliff, where it seems to have been about 5feet in width, it is practically obliterated. At the southern end the wall still reaches a height of about 6 feet above the level of the interior, exhibiting a section of fine drystone building, and on the eastern flank considerable lengths of the lower courses of the outer face remain in position. An outer defence in the shape of a line of large stones set on end and following an intermittent, low outcrop of rock across the approaching ridge can be traced at a distance of 15 to 19 feet from the main rampart. The entrance to the dun is towards the southern end of the eastern flank and measures 3 ½ feet in width.

Within the thickness of the eastern wall is along narrow gallery, about 2 feet 6 inches wide, the inner wall of which is 3 to 4 feet thick; the outer at the northern end, where a length of 16 feet remains, shows a thickness of 4 ½ feet. Commencing about 6 feet from the entrance the gallery is traceable northwards, with slight breaks, for a distance of some 70 feet, where it apparently terminates. The probable doorway to this gallery is 26 feet north of the entrance.

In the interior of the wall round the southern end are three similar galleries, averaging about 3 feet in width, with the inner and outer walls measuring from 3 to 5 feet in thickness. The first, which seems to commence on the southern side of the entrance to the fort, is 26 feet long; the second, separated from the first by 3 feet3 inches of building, measures 50 feet in length, and is entered by a doorway 2 feet wide, 16 feet from its western end ; and the third, beginning 3 feet from the last, is much dilapidated, practically the only building apparent being one jamb of the entrance, which is placed at its eastern extremity.

The only structure traceable in the interior of the fort is a hut circle 6 feet in diameter internally, which lies 10 feet distant from the wall in the southern segment.

RCAHMS 1928, visited 4 June 1921.

OS map: Skye iii.

Publication Account (2007)

NG37 2 DUN LIATH 1

NG/3598 7002

This large galleried dun or small stone-walled hillfort in Kilmuir, Skye, stands on the edge of a steep rocky bluff, precipitous in parts, which runs along the sea shore and about 100 yds. back from it (visited 24/4/63: small excavation carried out in 1964).

Introduction

On the inland side the fort is isolated from the surrounding land by steep slopes and rock terraces. The terrain round about is markedly different from that of most of the other sites described here. The parish of Kilvaxter stands on flat, fertile land, the most extensive such area in Skye, and the cliff-bound hills to the south of it are rolling and undulating without the rocky knolls which are a feature of most other parts of the island. The large size of the enclosure of Dun Liath, and the rolling country around, are more reminiscent of southern Scottish hillfort country than of the west coast and western isles.

Description

The wall of the enclosure is tied to the edge of the bluff and forms a loop enclosing the summit of the rocky ridge on which it stands; there are only a few traces of walling along the cliff itself. The principle is evidently the same as that of the D-shaped semibrochs like Dun Ardtreck (NG33 2) and Dun Ringill (NG51 4) although in shape Dun Liath is a flattened D. The enclosed area, measures overall c. 52m (170 ft) along the north-north-west/south-south-east axis (along the cliff) and 32.6m (107 ft) at right angles to this.

The main wall, facing inland, is galleried in at least four separate sections with four doors to the interior; it reaches a maximum width of 3.66m (12 ft) in the hollow sections but diminishes to c. 2.44m (8 ft) at the north end where it is solid. To the north of the main entrance – which faces more or less directly inland and which is about in the middle of the landward side of the wall – is a long stretch of gallery with a doorway situated about 7.9m (26 ft) north of the entrance; the gallery is about 21.4m (70 ft) long and both its ends are visible.

On the other side of the entrance is a shorter length, about 7.02m (23 ft) long, which the Commission thought led into the entrance. However small-scale excavations in 1964 revealed it to be an oval cell with a door to the interior. The third stretch is 15.3m (50 ft) long with a doorway in the middle, while the fourth, dilapidated, stretch has the door at its east end, nearest the entrance. The width of the galleries is about 76cm (2.5 ft), though the oval cell is slightly wider.

There are traces of an outer wall on the shallower slope on the south side and about 4.6 - 5.8m (15 - 19 ft) from the main wall. Another stone wall, running along the middle of the shallow valley separating the fortified ridge from the higher moor inland, was not mentioned in the Commission's description. At the south end it terminates in boggy ground in the middle of the valley and, at the north, at a steep slope down to the beach. At its nearest point it is 30m (100 ft) from the dun.

In what seemed in 1964 to be the complete absence of other modern dykes or ruined clachans nearby, and in view of the fact that the wall serves no obvious function by itself, it seemed likely to the author that this wall was a forward defence for Dun Liath, designed to inhibit a direct rush at the walls across the flat bottom of the adjacent valley. However a more recent survey found depopulated buildings and enclosures nearby and concluded that the wall mentioned was associated with these [1]. The question must remain open but the possibility that the outlying wall is old should perhaps not be entirely excluded.

The 1964 excavations

Three days of trial excavations were carried out at the site in August 1964 [3]. A trench was sunk into the ground against the inner wallface north of the main entrance but only a few sherds were found in a thin occupation layer below modem humus and turf.

The short end-section of the mural gallery to the south of the main entrance was examined and the dilapidated door to the interior was found. The north side of this door had been deliberately dismantled, enlarging the opening, and this had been done in Iron Age times. A stratum of red and black peat ash in the doorway and in the gallery behind overlaid the footings of the left jamb and yielded several sherds. A long slab was found on the ash layer inside the gallery and was probably a lintel fallen from the doorway or the gallery. On top of the ash lay a stratum of brown earth (which yielded two iron objects) and this was covered by drystone rubble from the walls. The stone of which the fort was built is remarkably heavy and probably contains a high proportion of iron (the prismatic compass was affected when on site. As a result of lifting these heavy blocks the author suffered a slipped disc two months later, while pushing a pram).

Discussion

In the absence of material suitable for radiocarbon dating the age of Dun Liath cannot be inferred directly; the pottery cannot be confidently assigned to either the early or the middle Iron Age in the Western Isles. The internally decorated base could signify a date in the early Iron Age (similar ones were found in the earliest levels at Dun Mor Vaul, Tiree – site NM04 4) but this feature is found in middle Iron Age assemblages also.

The structure of the galleried wall and the way the wall is tied to the edge of a sheer cliff strongly resembles the design of the D-shaped semibrochs. However the dating of these structures seems unlikely, on present evidence, to be earlier than about the 2nd century BC (MacKie 2002). The function of Dun Liath was surely primarily to serve as a refuge for a fairly large number of people although, in the absence of excavations in the enclosed area away from the wall, the presence of permanently occupied huts is still possible. Evidence against the refuge hypothesis may be found in the narrowness of the main entrance which could not have been negotiated by cattle.

The author would be inclined to infer, on the basis of the probable early Iron Age date of the promontory semibrochs, that Dun Liath could be as early as the 6th or 5th centuries BC but it could also be later. The apparent absence of the typical middle Iron Age material culture (though the areas excavated were small, making this absence illusory) could mean a date between about 600 and 300 BC. Further excavation of this site would be desirable.

Finds (See www.huntsearch.gla.ac.uk)

Several potsherds were found in the occupation layer of the mural gallery which were reconstructed into a footed base and into most of a small barrel-shaped vessel with an incurving rim; the latter also had a footed base which was decorated on its inner surface with fingernail marks.

Iron objects included a long spike or prong and a small socketed sickle or reaping hook.

Stone: 1 hammerstone. A polished mace head from the site is in Dundee Museum (no. 1956-370) [1].

Sources: 1. NMRS site no. NG 31 SE 2: 2. RCAHMS 1928. 169-70, no. 541 and fig. 242: 3. MacKie 1965c.

E W MacKie 2007

Field Visit (20 April 2015 - 22 April 2015)

Field visits were undertaken to various sites, 20–22 April 2015, as part of a general survey of forts on Skye carried out by Simon Wood and Ian Ralston as part of the fieldwork for the former’s PhD research.

NG 35980 70020 Dun Liath (Canmore ID: 11206)

This galleried fort is mostly as described by the OS in 1971. A wall at the base of the valley c30m to the E that Mackie considered an outer defence is undoubtedly a dyke associated with later field systems. Another possible rampart closer to the fort on the E and N sides enclosing a small area with several structures is also probably considerably later than the fort, as noted by the OS. Towards the top of the hill on the S, SW and SE however, is a definite rampart, visible as a scarp with many facing stones visible. This second rampart may represent an earlier phase of enclosure on the hill, i.e. an earlier fort, or an outer defence for the galleried fort. On size (1035m2 inside the galleried defences) this should be considered a fort rather than a dun.

Archive: National Record of the Historic Environment (intended)

Funder: School of History, Classics and Archaeology, University of Edinburgh

Simon Wood and Ian Ralston – University of Edinburgh

(Source: DES, Volume 16)

Note (16 January 2015 - 16 November 2016)

This small fort is situated on a hillock backing onto the shore, which lies at the foot of the cliffs along the W flank. Oval on plan, it measures 42m from NNW to SSE by 24m transversely within a single wall, which is pierced by an entrance a little over 1m wide on the E. The wall is between 2.4m and 3.6m in thickness where best preserved on the E and S, still standing about 1.5m high above the interior on the S; elsewhere it seems to reduce in thickness and most of the masonry has fallen away along the cliff-edge on the seaward side. The wall is thickest where the hillock is most accessible along the E and S flanks, where it has been constructed with an intramural gallery; rather than a continuous feature, however, this is broken into at least four segments, each with an independent entrance from the interior. Immediately outside the wall on the SE there is a row of three upright stones, which Richard Feachem compared to a diminutive chevaux de frise (1963, 186), and beyond this traces of another wall reduced to little more than an intermittent line of outer face, but, rather than the remains of an outwork, the OS surveyors suggested that this might belong to an earlier fortification, presumably on account of its relatively poor state of preservation; other walls on the slopes are almost certainly the remains of later field-banks.

Information from An Atlas of Hillforts of Great Britain and Ireland – 16 November 2016. Atlas of Hillforts SC2708

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