Documents

Where documents include maps, the use of this data is subject to terms and conditions (https://portal.historicenvironment.scot/termsandconditions).

The legal document available for download below constitutes the formal designation of the monument under the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Areas Act 1979. The additional details provided on this page are provided for information purposes only and do not form part of the designation. Historic Environment Scotland accepts no liability for any loss or damages arising from reliance on any inaccuracies within this additional information.

• Type

  Legal Documents

  Title

  SM11752_Legal Doc

  Download(https://portal.historicenvironment.scot/document/600014084)

Summary

Description

The monument comprises the remains of a post-medieval farmstead or small fermtoun and a sample of an associated field system, situated in a field of rough grazing on the east bank of the Burn of Culfork. It is located about 80m SE of the abandoned farmsteading of Culfork, at an altitude of 290m OD.

The farmstead, sited on a terrace above the burn, survives as the turf-covered footings of a linear group of seven buildings. The walls of the buildings are 0.55-0.65m thick and up to 0.5m high. The buildings vary from 5.8m to 25 m in length and from 3.2m to 4.5m in width overall. Sub-divisions of, and outshots to, the buildings are in evidence. The group of buildings, which are not depicted on the Ordnance Survey First Edition map of 1870, lie at the foot of what may be a contemporary field system extending along the NW flank of Frosty Hill. This consists of a series of parallel linear ridges running downslope and probably representing lynchets or the edges of strip fields. A curving bank bounds the upper limit of these relic cultivation strips. A representative portion of this field system is to be included in the scheduling.

The area to be scheduled is an irregular polygon on plan, bounded on the W by the course of the Burn of Culfork, to include the visible remains and an area around in which associated evidence may survive, as shown in red on the accompanying map. The scheduling excludes the modern post-and-wire fence running along its S side, to allow for its maintenance.

Statement of National Importance

Cultural Significance

The monument's archaeological significance can be expressed as follows:

Intrinsic characteristics: The various elements of this farmstead or small fermtoun are in a relatively good state of preservation. They are upstanding and clearly visible in the landscape. The continued landuse as pasture has probably resulted in the preservation of archaeological deposits within and around the buildings. It therefore has the potential to provide further detailed information about local variations in vernacular architecture and building use, as well as upland landuse in the period immediately prior to the agricultural improvements in Strathdon in the 18th century.

Contextual characteristics: The remains of this pre-Improvement settlement represents a class of site which to date has been the subject of relatively little archaeological research, but which together with other historic rural settlement sites in the region have the potential to illuminate the settlement and economy of NE Scotland in the post-medieval period. The ability to physically demonstrate at Culfork, the development from a pre-Improvement agricultural settlement to a later, Improvement-period farmhouse, steading and field system further enhances the value of the site.

National Importance

This monument is of national importance because it is a well-preserved example of a pre-Improvement upland farmstead or small fermtoun. It therefore has the potential to reveal further information about local variations in vernacular architecture and building use, as well as upland land use prior to the agricultural improvements in Strathdon in the 18th century. The sample of the associated field system is important because it preserves the relationship of the buildings to the immediate archaeological landscape. The loss of the site would affect our ability to appreciate and understand the historic landscape of Western Strathdon, which preserves tangible evidence of the way of life prior to the age of agricultural improvement.

References

Bibliography

About Scheduled Monuments

Historic Environment Scotland is responsible for designating sites and places at the national level. These designations are Scheduled monuments, Listed buildings, Inventory of gardens and designed landscapes and Inventory of historic battlefields.

We make recommendations to the Scottish Government about historic marine protected areas, and the Scottish Ministers decide whether to designate.

Scheduling is the process that identifies, designates and provides statutory protection for monuments and archaeological sites of national importance as set out in the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Areas Act 1979.

We schedule sites and monuments that are found to be of national importance using the selection guidance published in Designation Policy and Selection Guidance (2019)

Scheduled monument records provide an indication of the national importance of the scheduled monument which has been identified by the description and map. The description and map (see ‘legal documents’ above) showing the scheduled area is the designation of the monument under the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Areas Act 1979. The statement of national importance and additional information provided are supplementary and provided for general information purposes only. Historic Environment Scotland accepts no liability for any loss or damages arising from reliance on any inaccuracies within the statement of national importance or additional information. These records are not definitive historical or archaeological accounts or a complete description of the monument(s).

The format of scheduled monument records has changed over time. Earlier records will usually be brief. Some information will not have been recorded and the map will not be to current standards. Even if what is described and what is mapped has changed, the monument is still scheduled.

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Find out more about scheduling and our other designations at www.historicenvironment.scot/advice-and-support. You can contact us on 0131 668 8914 or at designations@hes.scot.