Cell 2: A Mystery Solved!
Today Jack and Dawn have been investigating some fragments of fired clay recovered from within Cell 2 of the broch. During excavation the presence of organic material was noted but it was unclear what this material was and how it had formed, and the function of the cell was unclear. As you can see from […]
A Movie from Forge Photography
Many thanks to our friends at Forge Photography, who generously donated their services to make this wonderful documentary-style film about the project at the broch on behalf of Historic Assynt. Enjoy!
Reaping the rewards
We may have finished our excavations at the broch, but post-excavation work continues. Conservator Bethan has been working on the reaping hooks. These were discovered along with lots of other iron tools in a discrete area of the broch, suggesting that all the tools were stored neatly in one place. They are badly corroded from […]
Under scrutiny: a rotary quern
Another peek behind the scenes at the post-excavation process and what it is revealing. This an upper rotary quern stone (below) made of a quartzite-rich sandstone was discovered during excavations at the broch in 2017. Fragments of at least nine quern stones were discovered during last year’s work. They were used for grinding grain: rotary […]
Shedding new light on the artefacts: RTI of the incised stone disc
As exciting as it is to discover ancient artefacts during an excavation, our post-excavation team reveals all sorts of hidden secrets during their analyses. This stone disc (right) was found to have an incised spiral doodle decoration that was not visible until we cleaned it up back in the lab. If you click on the […]
Stone lamp – 3D model
One of the most remarkable aspects of the assemblage of artefacts from Clachtoll broch is the number of stone lamps that were found. Many were very finely made, carved to create smooth cup-shaped vessels. Others were decorated with incised lines, creating geometric patterns on the outside and handles. The lamps would have burned tallow or […]
Pushing on with post-excavation analyses
The final phase of excavations at Clachtoll may be over, but the post-excavation analyses are still in progress, with lots of careful scrutiny of the evidence to come before we can make any more solid interpretations about the construction, use and demise of the broch. Our post-excavation research design (PERD) sets out the way in […]
More interesting finds at Clachtoll broch
The excavation of the ‘guard’ cell to the left of the entrance, between the broch walls, continues to produce really interesting finds, particularly coming out from the sieving of the gloopy material in the floor of the chamber. Under where the almost complete skeleton of a sheep was found was some slimy deposits – possibly […]
2018 Season Project Launch & Excavation Dates
We’re delighted to be getting back to Clachtoll Broch soon for further excavations and consolidation work. Excavation dates: Monday 2nd July, 2pm-5pm Tuesday 3rd-Saturday 7th July and Monday 9th-Saturday 14th July, 9am-5pm As always, volunteers are invited to participate in work at the broch. No experience is required and we will provide all tools and […]
Fabulous Finds: the Artefact Assemblage
“So, what have you found?” is surely the question most frequently asked by visitors to archaeological excavations. Artefacts help us piece together the story of those who came before, giving us little glimpses of past lives. 224 individual small finds were logged during excavations at Clachtoll, many of which comprised groups or clusters of ceramic […]