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Abernethy, School Wynd

Monastery (Medieval), Round Tower (Medieval), School (Period Unassigned), Stone(S) (Period Unassigned), Track (Period Unassigned), Wall (Medieval), Cauldron (Iron)(Possible)

Site Name Abernethy, School Wynd

Classification Monastery (Medieval), Round Tower (Medieval), School (Period Unassigned), Stone(S) (Period Unassigned), Track (Period Unassigned), Wall (Medieval), Cauldron (Iron)(Possible)

Canmore ID 283786

Site Number NO11NE 244

NGR NO 1892 1644

Datum OSGB36 - NGR

Permalink http://canmore.org.uk/site/283786

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

  • Council Perth And Kinross
  • Parish Abernethy (Perth And Kinross)
  • Former Region Tayside
  • Former District Perth And Kinross
  • Former County Perthshire

Archaeology Notes

NO11NE 244 1892 1644

Evaluation NO 1892 1644 Prior to the proposed development of the former primary school, near the Round Tower and the historic core of the town, four trenches totalling 99m2 were opened in February 2005. No significant archaeological deposits or artefacts were found.

Archive to be deposited in NMRS.

Sponsor: Keppie Architects.

Martin Cook 2005

NO 189 164 A programme of archaeological evaluation works was undertaken by AOC Archaeology Group in July 2006 on the site of a proposed residential development site at School Wynd, Abernethy. Two 15m long trenches were excavated. One trench recorded a 2.5m-long spread of large sub-rounded stones within a sand layer. A number of small fragments of bone were recovered from the sand around these stones. It is not known what the stone feature represented and no datable material was recovered from the site.

Archive to be deposited in NMRS.

Sponsor: Steve Johnson Architect, Abernethy.

Donald Wilson, 2006.

Activities

Archaeological Evaluation (July 2006)

NO 189 164 A programme of archaeological evaluation works was undertaken by AOC Archaeology Group in July 2006 on the site of a proposed residential development site at School Wynd, Abernethy. Two 15m long trenches were excavated. One trench recorded a 2.5m-long spread of large sub-rounded stones within a sand layer. A number of small fragments of bone were recovered from the sand around these stones. It is not known what the stone feature represented and no datable material was recovered from the site.

Archive to be deposited in NMRS.

Sponsor: Steve Johnson Architect, Abernethy.

D Wilson 2006

Excavation (20 November 2006 - 6 January 2009)

NO 1895 1640 (centred on) Work was carried out 20–29 November 2006 on the site of a new house in Abernethy, close to the stone round tower dating from between the 9th to 11th centuries AD and in the possible area of a Culdee monastic foundation of about the same period. An evaluation by AOC Archaeology (2006) had exposed an unidentified spread of rounded stones and this work aimed to identify any additional remains.

A 10 x 10m area was excavated. Beneath highly disturbed topsoil and rubble relating to previous use of the site as a market garden a roughly metalled track was exposed. This overlay a massive dry stone wall foundation and a series of clay and silt deposits. The stretch of wall sat in a foundation trench and was 2.5m wide by 5m long on a cE–W orientation. It consisted of two courses of sandstone and whinstone boulders with roughly dressed blocks on the N face and a large (1m long) slab of red sandstone which acted as a terminal to the structure. AMS dating of roundwood charcoal (GU-15168) extracted from directly beneath the wall, suggested a

calibrated date range of AD 890–1020. 1m further E, across a stretch of rubble paving, a severely truncated wall briefly continued the alignment before petering out in the excavation trench. Beneath the walls, an apparent alignment of postholes was exposed, together with a curious pit feature that might have represented cooking, metalworking or perhaps an apple or cheese press. Charcoal from the fill (GU-15169) was dated to AD 680–900 (calibrated).

The wall and clay deposits may represent the remains of a substantial earthen rampart forming a subdivision of the Culdee monastic precinct, similar to examples known from Ireland and Whithorn, Dumfries and Galloway. The postholes may represent a forerunner of such a feature.

A watching brief on the excavation of a number of narrow trenches for drains was undertaken on 14 May 2008 and 5–6 January 2009. A number of stony deposits were revealed, possibly representing the remains of further dry stone walls relating to the monastic precinct. Layers of clay, ash, charcoal, degraded bone and burnt sandstone were found frequently during the excavation of the drains, suggesting that midden material was dumped on the site and that some sort of fire-related activity had been carried out.

Archive: RCAHMS

Funder: William Sutherland and Sons

C Fyles and Tamlin Barton – SUAT Ltd

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