Scheduled Monument

Boysack, enclosures and unenclosed settlement 230m SW and 280m SSE ofSM5986

Status: Designated

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.

Summary

Date Added
16/05/1994
Last Date Amended
05/03/2015
Type
Prehistoric domestic and defensive: enclosure (domestic or defensive, rather than ritual or funerary); hall; hut circle, roundhouse; settlement (if not assigned to any more specific type); souterrain, earth-house, Prehistoric ritual and funerary: enclosure (ritual or funerary rather than defensive or domestic)
Local Authority
Angus
Parish
Inverkeilor
NGR
NO 61934 48897
Coordinates
361934, 748897

Description

The monument comprises the remains of three prehistoric or early historic pit-defined enclosures, an unenclosed settlement of roundhouses, two rectangular timber structures and at least one souterrain. This is a multi-period site and the maximum date range for its various elements is around 4500 BC to AD 800. The remains lie buried beneath the ploughsoil and are visible as cropmarks captured on oblique aerial photographs. The monument lies on level ground close to the SW bank of the Lunan Water at around 35m above OD.

The pit-defined enclosure towards the centre of the scheduled area measures 46m NW-SE by 12m transversely and its elongated shape is suggestive of a mortuary enclosure or similar Neolithic funerary or ceremonial monument. The enclosure to the SE is rectilinear in shape and measures about 70m NW-SE by 60m transversely, with an entrance in the SE side. It contains a near rectangular post-defined timber structure with rounded corners, measuring about 18m by 9m. This structure and the enclosure within which it lies are on the same alignment, but the two are not necessarily contemporary. A concentration of pits at the N end of the scheduled area probably represents the remains of a second rectangular timber structure. Three sides of a further pit-defined enclosure are visible to the SW: its NE end is about 29m long, while the parallel NW and SE sides are visible for a distance of about 26m. At least eight ring-ditch roundhouses are located in the N part of the scheduled area, representing a later prehistoric unenclosed settlement. There is also at least one souterrain (underground structure), the clearest and largest example lying to the SE, across the road from the main scheduled area.

The scheduled area comprises two parts, both irregular on plan, as shown in red on the accompanying map. It includes the remains described above and an area around them within which evidence relating to the monument's construction, use and abandonment is expected to survive. The monument was first scheduled in 1994, but the documentation did not meet modern standards: the present amendment rectifies this.

Statement of National Importance

The monument is of national importance because of its potential to add to our understanding of prehistoric funerary and ceremonial activity and of prehistoric house construction, domestic organisation and settlement. The monument preserves a rare combination of ritual and funerary remains and domestic structures and its importance is greatly enhanced by its position within the cluster of ceremonial monuments, unenclosed settlements and barrows found on the S bank of the Lunan Water around Boysack. The archaeological monuments here are of varied form and the cluster represents one of the most important in eastern Scotland, with rich potential to support study of the changing character of prehistoric activity and settlement over time. Our understanding of the distribution and character of prehistoric ritual monuments and settlements would be diminished if this monument was to be lost or damaged.

References

Bibliography

RCAHMS records the monument as NO64NW 39, 40, 76, 77. The Angus Sites and Monuments Record reference is NO64NW0040.

ReferencesRCAHMS Aerial Photograph AN1551, AN3585, AN3676, AN3914, AN3922, AN5586, DP166891, DP166898

Kendrick, J 1995, 'Excavation of a Neolithic enclosure and an Iron Age settlement at Douglasmuir, Angus', Proc Soc Antiq Scot 125, 29-67.

McGill, C 2003, 'The excavation of a palisaded enclosure and associated structures at Ironshill East, near Inverkeilor, Angus', Tayside and Fife Archaeol J 9, 14-33.

Pollock, D 1997, 'The excavation of Iron Age buildings at Ironshill, Inverkeilor, Angus', Proc Soc Antiq Scot 127, 339-358.

RCAHMS 1978, The Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Scotland. The archaeological sites and monuments of Lunan Valley, Montrose Basin, Angus District, Tayside Region, The archaeological sites and monuments of Scotland series no 4, Edinburgh, 17, no 103.

HER/SMR Reference

  • Angus SMR NO64NW0040

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.

Scheduled monument consent is required to carry out certain work, including repairs, to scheduled monuments. Applications for scheduled monument consent are made to us. We are happy to discuss your proposals with you before you apply and we do not charge for advice or consent. More information about consent and how to apply for it can be found on our website at www.historicenvironment.scot.

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.

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Printed: 04/05/2024 12:36