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Papa Westray, Munkerhoose

Broch (Iron Age)(Possible), Mound (Prehistoric), Settlement (Prehistoric)

Site Name Papa Westray, Munkerhoose

Classification Broch (Iron Age)(Possible), Mound (Prehistoric), Settlement (Prehistoric)

Alternative Name(s) Binnas Kirk; Munger House; Munker Hoose; Church Of St Boniface

Canmore ID 2867

Site Number HY45SE 26

NGR HY 4877 5271

Datum OSGB36 - NGR

C14 Radiocarbon Dating

Permalink http://canmore.org.uk/site/2867

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

  • Council Orkney Islands
  • Parish Papa Westray
  • Former Region Orkney Islands Area
  • Former District Orkney
  • Former County Orkney

Archaeology Notes

HY45SE 26 4877 5271

See also HY44NE 2 and HY45SE 17.

An extensive Iron Age site, known locally as Munkerhoose is located under and to the W of St Boniface church. A large farm mound, previously identified as 'Binnas Kirk' and possibly the site of a serarate ecclesiastical building, lies to the N. Both features are exposed by erosion of the adjacent cliff section over a distance of approximately 125m.

An assessment was carried out to clarify the nature, date and extent of the archaeological deposits, to provide basic data for future management decisions.

The extent of the site and the general nature of the deposits were determined by auger survey, which clearly demonstrates that the archaeological site extends N and NE of the visible earthworks. The total area of the settlement complex is approximately 150m EW by 250m NS (3.75ha).

A surface survey of the site located a second, smaller mound with an EW aligned rectangular stone building on its summit and a sub-rectangular platform on its S side, to the W of the churchyard. Additional features located include a rectangular platform on the N flank of the North farm mound, a possible boat naust at the S end of the settlement mound and several circular depressions, possibly kelp pits. The exposed cliff-section was approximately 125m long, just over 80m (65%) of the cliff-section was investigated.

Stratigraphy and structures: The earliest deposits are represented by sand and sandy loam soils. A small stone-lined grave, aligned roughly NE-SW, was inserted into this primary surface. The grave contained the skull and fragments of long bones, probably of a child. A pit was also cut into, and a cairn of stones piled over, the same surface. This feature had been incorporated into the S wall of the broch and is interpreted as a possible funerary monument. The remains of a building (Structure 1) were located at the same stratigraphic level.

An apparently solid-based broch (Structure 2) was subsequently erected on sandy soil to the W and on rubble to the W. The entrance was from the SE and the exterior face, in this sector, stood approximately 2.8m high. Only part of the S and E sectors of the broch survived, sufficient to demonstrate that the building measured approximately 17.6m externally. At least two phases of construction were apparent. In its primary phase the walls were approximately 3.2m to 3.8m wide, providing an internal space 10.6m across (c.90m square). A series of additional internal wall-skins were added, apparently for stability after what appears to have been an early collapse or possibly in connection with the building of a secondary 'round-house' inside the broch. In its final phase the broch walls were 4.85m to 5.25m wide, providing an internal space 7.5m across (c.45m square), a 50% reduction on the original floor area.

Structure 4 was located immediately to the N of the broch and appears to represent part of the primary extra-mural broch settlement. The structure was approximately 1.1m to 1.4m across and appears to represent the cell of a larger building. One of the most complete buildings located was Structure 7, a large subrectangular drystone building with rounded corner(s), aligned approximately NS and c.4.25m by 3.5m inside walls 0.65m wide. It is clearly post-broch in date and of a type found on broch sites elsewhere in Northern Scotland, for example at Howe and Gurness on Orkney Mainland, and at Yarrows and Keiss in Caithness. Structure 7 was located to the E of the broch and approximately 1m from it. A series of superimposed flagged paths formed a passage between the two buildings. At a late date in this sequence the broch wall was externally buttressed and the passage blocked by the insertion of a cross-wall. This may imply that occupation was still continuing inside the broch at this time.

Structure 11 butted against the N exterior face of Structure 7. Only a small part of the building was located in the excavation area. The building appeared to be subrectangular with its longer axis probably aligned roughly EW. It measures 2m NS and at least 1.8m EW inside walls 0.6m wide on the W and 0.8m wide on the N. The N wall stood 1.5m high and incorporated a lintelled crawl-hole at the base of the wall, 0.8m wide and 0.7m high. A small circular bulding (Structure 12), roughly 3.5m in diameter, reminiscent of the NW end of House 4 at Buckquoy (Ritchie 1977) was subsequently erected against the N wall of Structure 11.

Structure 12 overlay Structure 10, a building of similar size but constructed with crudely coursed walls backed into rubble. Two

straight drystone walls, forming structures 14 and 21, overlay Structure 12 and are probably of Medieval date. The identification of a possible old ground surface below these structures may reflect temporary abandonment of this part of the site.

Structure 15, a single-faced drystone wall with associated stone flagged floor, erected over the ruins of Structure 7, an adjacent substantial stone-built drain may be assigned to this later phase of occupation. Buildings and deposits at the N end of Area 2 include Structures 19, 20, 16 and 17.

The Iron Age extends N into Area 1. The remains of Structure 22, a small lateral cell of a building preserved beneath the farm mound, were located at the S end of Area 1. A substantial stone-built path lay to the N of the ruins of this building. The path of massive stones was traced over a distance of roughly 11m, and was founded, for most of its course, over natural clay subsoil and primary sandy soil deposits. To the N the path appeared to be associated with the fugitive remains of Structure 23.

The area to the E of the path was subsequently filled in with midden material and a crude drystone wall (Structure 24), erected towards the S (visible) end of the path, an attempt to revet the midden dumps to the S. An old land surface subsequently formed over these deposits.

The whole area subsequently appears to have become a general dumping ground for domestic and other refuse and a 0.8m thick block of lensed and sharply layered deposits subsequently covered the site and a thick and clearly defined land surface formed over the area.

The old land surface was overlain by typical farm mound deposits, thin but extensive layers and lenses of ash material with fishbone and some animal bone. The finely layered nature of the soil matrix may suggest that the deposits have undergone little or no change since deposition. The terminus post quern dating of the farm mound rests, at present, on the discovery from a basal deposit in the farm mound of several lumps of impressed mortar/plaster. The presence of mortar, as discard material, would suggest that the mound is not earlier than the 12th or more probably the 13th century, a date which is not incompatible with the dating of the Sanday farm mounds.

C E Lowe 1990b.

Activities

Field Visit (June 1982)

St Boniface's Church, Binnas Kirk and Munkerhoose HY 488 526 HY45SE 26

There are known to be extensive stone structures under the churchyard and the recent extension to the S of it; these also underlie the broken ground between the churchyard and the shoreline, where they are exposed in an erosion-section. This shows heavy stonework interspersed with midden deposits, the whole forming an archaeological stratum nearly 3m thick. An extensive settlement of Iron Age date (possibly including a broch) which continues into the Pictish period may be represented. The grass surface of the upper slope of the banks has many projecting upright slabs indicating further structures. At the N end of the exposure, however, the section reveals the content of an extensive rounded eminence, some 1m high above the surrounding ground level, which occupies the area of rough grass immediately N of the churchyard. The content of this eminence can also be seen in rabbit-scrapes, being dark brown loamy earth with a little shell-midden material, showing that the feature is a typical 'farm mound' - a distinctively different type of deposit from the tumbled stone structures to the S of it. The whole complex covers an area of about one hectare.

The name Munkerhoose (munkarhus, monks' house) applies specifically to the buried stone structures, and is more loosely used to include the farm mound also. Binnas Kirk is sometimes used as an alternative name for the same structures, and sometimes for the church; although the latter usage may result from a confusion in popular etymology with Boniface, Binnas is in fact bam-hus, 'chapel'. An alternative and apparently more ancient tradition recorded by Marwick, and still just detectable on the island, applies Binnas Kirk specifically to the farm mound and makes it a separate church from St Boniface's.

RCAHMS and others have tentatively associated the Munkerhoose with an episode in Orkneyinga Saga, ch. lxxii, where in 1137 Earl Rognvald, attending mass at Pierowall, encountered sixteen tonsured and unarmed strangers. The episode is discussed by

Dietrichson, Taylor and Gudmundsson; it appears probable that it has been misplaced from another scene in the saga and that it did not take place in Westray. The church, Munkerhoose and the hogbacked stone are separately scheduled.

RCAHMS 1983, visited June 1982.

(Name Book, Orkney No. 26, p. 11; Dietrichson 1906, 124 (Norwegian text); Kirkness 1921; Scott 1922; Marwick 1925, 33-4, 40; 'Taylor 1938, 386, 388; RCAHMS 1946, ii, pp. 179-80, Nos. 518-20, p. 184, No. 526; Gudmundsson, Orkneyinga Saga, footnote, p. 163; Lang 1974, 230; CJ Arnold, Report on four composite bone comb fragments found in the erosion-section 1975, in Tankerness House Museum files, ref 731; Arnold 1975; OR 847).

Field Visit (1998)

An extensive prehistoric-early historic settlement underlies St. Boniface's chapel and graveyard (HY45SE17) and is partially exposed in the coastal section. The section stands up to 5m in height and contains a mass of structural remains interspersed with midden and occupation deposits. Tapestry excavation and section recording, carried out in the 1990's (Lowe, 1998) confirmed the presence of a broch, an extramural broch settlement, a post-broch house, a wag and a farm mound of 12th-13th C date. Parts of these structures are still visible in the exposed section face. This section face is very vulnerable to further erosion and should be closely monitored so that new appearances can be evaluated and recorded.

Moore and Wilson, 1998

Coastal Zone Assessment Survey

Publication Account (2002)

HY45 3 ST. BONIFACE CHURCH ('Munkerhoose')

HY/49634171

Probable solid-based broch on Papa Westray exposed in a cliff section, part of an extensive Iron Age site which lies under and to the west of the church. [1]. Only part of the structure is preserved and the entrance was observed on the south-east; here the outer wall face stood c. 2.8 m high. The estimated overall diameter is 17.6 m, the internal 10.6 m; the walls proportion would thus be 39.8% which is rather slim for Shetland. More wall faces were added around the broch interior, presumably when a roundhouse was inserted; the final internal diameter was c. 7.5 m. A plan of the remains has been published [1, fig. 21].

Source: 1. Discovery and Excavation in Scotland 1990, 46 and figs. 20 and 21.

E W MacKie 2002

Field Visit (13 May 2015)

ShoreUPDATE

As described. Extensive structural remains and midden deposits are visible in the coast edge, including the remains of the broch and other substantial buildings, including at least one wheelhouse. The remains of multiple phases are visible and the section is very complex. At least five mounds are visible in the immediate hinterland. Plastic from the 1990s excavation is visible in one small place in the section.

Visited by Scotland's Coastal Heritage at Risk (SCHARP) 13 May 2015

Field Visit (2 March 2018 - 17 March 2018)

HY 48770 52710 (Munkerhouse), HY 48400 50620 (White Howe); HY 49880 52950 (Cott) The objective of the fieldwork, 2 – 17 March 2018, was to assess the condition of the sites, record exposed areas of beach section and their environs and to assess the ongoing threats to the preservation of the sites. It also aimed to provide training to community volunteers in order to establish a core group of individuals with a skill set and methodology for the continued monitoring and recording of sites at risk from coastal erosion.

The fieldwork at each site has shown that there was a considerable quantity and range of archaeological features at risk of total loss from a combination of environmental pressures, including storm damage and weathering. The work was also used as a test-bed for an effective methodology for recording large sites of this type quickly, combining traditional site recording and survey methods with geo-rectified photogrammetry. The result is a 3D model which can be used as a baseline against which future erosion can be monitored.

Archive: NRHE

Funder: Historic Environment Scotland

Rick Barton – Orkney Research Centre for Archaeology (ORCA)

(Source DES Volume 19

Orkney Smr Note

In its discussion, RCAMS associates the monks of the place-

name with an event supposed to have taken place in Westray in

1137, when according to ch lxxii of Orkneyinga Saga, Tognvald

attending Mass at the church in the porp or village (i.e.

Pierowall) encountered a band of 16 strangers, who were tonsured

and unarmed. This incident however comes very abruptly in this

chapter, and may have been misplaced from ch lxxvii where it would

have been associated with the arrival of Bishop John at Knarston.

[R1], [R3], [R7], [R12], RCAMS loc cit

NOMENCLATURE - St Boniface is the dedication of the church.

Local opinion is not consistent as to the application of the names

'Munkerhoose' and 'Binnas mKirk'.

The 1879 Name-Book entry for 'Munger House' reads- '...

applies to what has evidently been an underground Picts House

situated close to and west of the Established Church. It has only

partly been excavated but one passage underground has been laid

open and altho not explored it seems to penetrate for some

distance in direction of the Church.' - This application of

'Munkerhoose' specifically to the stone structures W of the

church, is consistent with the usage by RCAMS in 1928, and with

the most prevalent modern local usage. By general consent it

applies to the structures known to be buried under the churchyard

as well as those in the cliff-section W of it. Marwick also

applies 'Munkerhoose' to the farm mound, and this usage also is

found today. RCAMS also gives the impression that 'Binnas Kirk'

was wholly interchangeable mis-appreciation of Marwick's

subsequent statements. [R2], [R6], [R11], RCAMS loc cit

This is a complex and rich site covering an area of

approximately one hectare, partly occupied by the old parish

church and its burial ground, which is in use. The complex

comprises late Iron Age or Pictish settlement, possibly continuing

into Early Norse times and having a monastic element; a farm-

mound; and the derelict church, the fabric of which is mediaeval

and in association with which are a hog-backed gravestone and two

separate discoveries of incised cross-slabs.

CHURCH - Nave of C12th church is the core of the present

fabric; the Traill burial-ground immediately E occupies site of

chancel. The nave was extended W by 8ft in 1700; present overall

dimensions 37ft 11in x 21ft 6in. Kirkness in 1921 wrote

as if the church were still in use in 1920, but by 1930 according

to RCAMS it was disused and in need of repair. It is now in a

very sorry state; many holes in the slab-covered roof, the

structural timbers decaying, the gallery and furnishings in a

state of collapse, the whole very damp. RGL Jun 82.

HOG-BACK & CROSS-SLABS - Immediately outside the Traill

burial-place is a hog-backed grave-monument or red sandstone,

lying E-W, 5ft 1in long x 12in wide at E end, 16.5in at W end, 8in

and 10in high at these ends; three rows of shingle representation

on the sloping top. It is now difficult to confirm the RCAMS

measurements, as only the top of the stone is visible, the level

of the regularly-mown grass having risen around it. The ornament

on the stone was already much worn from the weathering and the

stone is now at some risk from the lawnmower. In 1920, when for

the first time burials were made on the N side of the church, a

cross-slab was found at a depth of some 3ft; it was broken on

removal and a portion left in the ground. The major portion now

in the National Museum is 23in x 12.5in, unshaped, incised on one

side with an encircled cross patee above which is a small equal-

armed cross, each arm of which terminates in a crescent. In 1966,

a second cross-slab was found in grave-digging near the NE corner

of the church. In Tankerness House Museum, it is a water-worn

beach-slab, roughly elliptical in shape, standing 790mm high (but

with an unknown additional length buried in the display stand),

320mm wide at max. near top, 175mm wide at base, 64mm to 69mm

thick; the sandy flagstone has been broken into three pieces and

repaired with cement. The obverse has a weakly-executed encircled

cross pate with a more badly-incised square-armed cross above it.

On the reverse is a curious rectilinear figure apparently intended

to represent a standing, robed human figure. The carving has been

executed by pecking, and the lines thus formed have a somewhat

unfinished appearance.

MUNKERHOOSE - It is locally believed that ancient structures

underlie the ground to the S of the original churchyard-extension,

as well as underlying the original churchyard and filling the

space between it and the shore, where copious structures are

exposed in the erosion-section. In 1928 the site was described as

a group of huts with connecting passages, and in the section there

opened a flag-covered passage 3ft 5in high and 2ft 7in wide, some

15ft S of which could be seen a stretch of curved wall. At the S

end was an extensive kitchen-midden deposit containing shells and

pottery. The open passage can no longer be seen, but erosion is

active; the effect of the broken rocks offshore is to channel the

force of the sea to a few limited places, where deep geos are

being cut into the deposits. Very heavy stonework is exposed in

numerous places, the deposits being just short of 3m in thickness;

on the grass surface of the upper slope of the banks, there are

projecting edge-slabs further indicating buildings. The whole

suggests an Iron Age and Pictish settlement, very likely

originally centred on a broch, and certainly continuing in

occupation well into the early mediaeval period.

RGL Jun 82.

In the section, at HY 4877 5274, four fragments of composite

cone comb were found by C J Arnold, Dept of Archaeology,

Southampton University, and donated to Tankerness House Museum,

1975.

FARM MOUND - In an area of rough grass immediately N of the

churchyard - thus bounded by the churchyard to the S and by the

sea to the W - is an extensive, rounded mound some 1m high above

the general ground level although with deposits which, in the

cliff-section and in rabbit-scrapes on the sides of the mound

itself, the exposures reveal a composition of dark loamy earth

with some shell material, i.e. characteristic 'farm mound'

material - a deposit very different from the tumbled confusion of

stone structures in the area W of the churchyard.

RGL Jun 82.

On his next page Marwick states, 'Binnas Kirk is another old

name for this same church site ... According to one old Papey man,

Binnas Kirk was supposed to be a separate structure from the

present church of St Boniface, and was situated on the mound

outside the churchyard wall. An old tradition, he informed me,

had it that the people in St Boniface one day heard the folks

singing in Binnas Kirk a short distance away. An another fragment

told how a woman lived there who was so irreverent as to bake

bread on Sundys. These facts I record as bits of genuine

tradition, but I confess myself utterly unable to offer any

probable explanation of their origin.' In his name-gazetteer,

Marwick inconsistently applies 'Munkerhoose' to the old parish

church, but Binnas Kirk he gives as 'an almost obsolete name for

the old parish church, or mound adjacent.'

Today, 'Munkerhoose' is still applied to the stone structures

and is understood by some to cover the farm-mound also. 'Binnas

Kirk' is understood by some to be the same as Munkerhoose, by

others to be simply a name for the parish church. (It seems

however, that this may have arisen from a popular-etymology

confusion between the names Binnas and Boniface, which

philologically are unconnected). According to W Irvine however,

Binnas Kirk is specifically the mound N of the churchyard - the

farm-mound - which seems to perpetuate the strand of tradition

recorded by Marwick. It appears likely therefore that 'Binnas

Kirk' is a recollection of a church other than the parish church,

and that this church was specifically associated with the farm-

mound. Irvine Links

Information from Orkney SMR [n.d.]

References

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