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.dt Scotland in Pagan Times, by Joseph Anderson
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Fig. 31.—Brooch found in Tiree.
1. Under Shell of Brooch, gilt.
2. Upper Shell of pierced and chased work.
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Transcriber’s Note:
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are referenced. They have been resequenced for uniqueness.
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locations. Two are embedded in footnotes.
The footnotes themselves are gathered at the end of the text, and links are
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see the transcriber’s #note:endnote# at the end of this text
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SCOTLAND IN PAGAN TIMES
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Printed by R. & R. Clark
FOR
DAVID DOUGLAS, EDINBURGH
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LONDON | HAMILTON, ADAMS, AND CO.
CAMBRIDGE | MACMILLAN AND BOWES.
GLASGOW | JAMES MACLEHOSE AND SONS.
ABERDEEN | LEWIS SMITH AND SON.
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.ca THE BROCH OF CLICKAMIN, NEAR LERWICK, SHETLAND.
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.h1
SCOTLAND | IN | PAGAN TIMES
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The Iron Age
THE RHIND LECTURES IN ARCHÆOLOGY
FOR 1881
By JOSEPH ANDERSON, LL.D.
KEEPER OF THE NATIONAL MUSEUM OF THE
ANTIQUARIES OF SCOTLAND
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.ca Ornament of Bronze Mirror.
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EDINBURGH: DAVID DOUGLAS
1883
All rights reserved.
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.h2
PREFATORY NOTE.
.sp 2
On the conclusion of my second series of Lectures on
Scotland in Early Christian Times, the Council of the
Society of Antiquaries of Scotland having done me
the honour of again appointing me to the Rhind Lectureship
for a term of two years, that I might deal
with the antiquities of the Pagan Period in Scotland,
I have devoted the present series of Lectures to the
investigation of the remains of the Iron Age, leaving
those of the Bronze and Stone Ages to be dealt with
in the succeeding series.
I have to thank the Council for their permission
to use such of the Society’s woodcuts as might be suitable
for the illustration of the Lectures, and my thanks
are also due to Mr. J. Romilly Allen for the use of
some of his drawings and measurements of Brochs, to
Messrs. Chambers for the view of the Broch of Mousa,
and to Mr. Thomas S. Muir for the use of his etching
of the Broch of Clickamin, which forms the frontispiece
to the present volume.
.ll 68
.rj
J. A.
.ll
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.nf l
14 Gillespie Crescent, Edinburgh,
15th March 1883.
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.in
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.bn 009.png
.pn vii
.sp 4
.h2
CONTENTS.
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.ta h:58 r:12
LECTURE I.
CHRISTIAN AND PAGAN BURIAL—VIKING BURIALS.
Reasons for the division of the general subject into two sections, comprising\
Christian Times and Pagan Times—Survival of Pagan\
customs in Christian burial—Burial clothed, and with arms,\
ornaments, and insignia of office—Burial with shoes on the feet—Burial\
with holy-water vessels—Burial with incense vases of clay—Viking\
burials—Graves in the sandhills at Ballinaby, Islay—Their\
characteristics—Arms, implements, and ornaments associated with\
them—Characteristics of the art of these objects—Their art not\
Celtic—Phenomena of the burials not Christian—Their unusual\
and suggestive character—Determination of the typical relations\
of the objects found in the graves—The sword, spear, and shield\
are of the Viking types—The brooches and silver ornaments are\
of Scandinavian types—Comparison of their art with the art of\
the Celtic school—No such groups of arms and ornaments associated\
with Celtic burials—Their forms are those of the Norwegian\
area—Typical character of the Norse burials of the heathen\
Viking time—Burials, burnt or unburnt, with grave-goods—Identity\
of their characteristics with those of the Islay burials—Determination\
of the area of this type of burial in Scotland—Other\
burials of the same type in Islay, in Mull, in Tiree, in\
Barra, in Sangay, in St. Kilda, in Sutherland, in Caithness, in\
Orkney, in Shetland—Character of the art of the Norse brooches\
of the Viking time—Their number in Scotland exceeds that of the\
Celtic brooches—This excess an archæological result of the difference\
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between Paganism and Christianity—The range of the\
Viking burials in Scotland establishes an archæological area\
coincident with the area colonised by the Norwegians—Viking\
graves in Eigg—A Viking cemetery in Westray, Orkney—Ship-burial\
in Scotland—Testimony of the earlier Sagas—Evidence of\
the grave-mounds—A ship-burial, burnt, at Möklebust—Ship-burials,\
unburnt, at Tune and Gökstad | Pages #1–65:Page_1#
LECTURE II.
NORTHERN BURIALS AND HOARDS.
Modified types of the intruded Paganism of the northern area—Burials\
with urns of steatite in Orkney and Shetland—Their relation to\
Norwegian burials in the Pagan Period of the Viking time—Deposits\
of objects not associated with burials—Hoard of silver\
ornaments found at Skaill, Orkney—Dated by Kufic and Anglo-Saxon\
coins found in it—Typical characteristics of its brooches—Special\
features of their ornament—Characteristics of its neck and\
arm rings—Difference in character from the Norries Law hoard—No\
other hoard of similar character found in Scotland—Similar\
hoards found in Norway, Sweden, and Denmark—Character of\
the objects found in them—Question of their Oriental origin—The\
hoard of silver ornaments found at Cuerdale—Character of its\
brooches—Some of them distinctively Celtic—Determination of\
the typical relations of the Skaill brooches—Their form Celtic—Their\
art partly Celtic and partly Scandinavian—Its affinities with\
the art of the Scandinavian Pagan times—A figure like that of the\
god Thor represented on one of the Skaill brooches—Thor’s\
hammer—Thor’s face as represented on monuments—The mixed\
art of these brooches implies a mixed race—They are probably products\
of the area in which they were found—Dress of the period—Hood\
found in a moss in Orkney—Relations of the neck and arm\
rings of silver to ornaments in gold found in Orkney and the\
Western Isles—Their special forms and ornamentation are peculiar\
to the area of the Scandinavian colonies in Scotland | Pages #66–111:Page_66#
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LECTURE III.
THE CELTIC ART OF THE PAGAN PERIOD.
Bronze headpiece, with horns, found at Torrs, Kirkcudbrightshire—Bronze\
headpiece, with horns, found in the Thames—Typical\
relations of their ornament—Other objects found in Scotland possessing\
the same character—Swine’s head of bronze found at\
Liechestown, Banffshire—Character of its ornamentation—Other\
objects exhibiting the same style of art—Sword-sheath of bronze\
found on the Pentland Hills—Bridle-bit, with red and yellow\
enamels, found at Birrenswark, and harness-mountings found in\
Annandale—Difference of the art of these objects from that of the\
Celtic Christian times—Technical skill displayed in their manufacture—The\
testimony of Philostratus to the skill of the Barbarians\
of the Ocean in working enamels—Such enamelled horse-trappings\
found only in Britain—Bronze mirror and other objects\
found at Balmaclellan, Kirkcudbright—The character of their\
ornament—Such mirrors found associated with interments of Pagan\
times—Pagan Cemetery at Mount Batten, near Plymouth—Bronze\
mirror found in one of the graves—Character of its ornament—Similar\
mirrors found in graves at Trelan-Bahow, Cornwall, and at\
Birdlip, near Gloucester—Character of their ornament—Other\
bronze mirrors found in Britain—They differ in form and ornamentation\
from Roman mirrors—Their ornament discloses the\
existence of a native school of art differing from the Roman style—Bronze\
spoons found at Weston, near Bath, and Llanfair, Denbighshire—Bronze\
collar found at Stitchell, in Roxburghshire—Bronze\
armlet found at Plunton Castle, Kirkcudbrightshire—Hoard\
of gold objects found on the Shaw Hill, Peeblesshire—This group\
of objects, in bronze and gold, includes characteristic examples of\
the work of a special school of decorative art—Its distinctive\
character—Its Celticism—Another group of objects in bronze\
peculiar to Scotland—Massive enamelled bronze armlets found at\
Castle Newe, Aberdeenshire—The character of their ornament—Enamelled\
bronze armlets found at Pitkellony, near Muthil—Others\
of similar character found in Scotland—One found at Stanhope,\
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Peeblesshire, associated with a bronze vessel of Roman type—The\
period of this distinctively native style of art reaches back beyond\
the time of the Roman occupation—Another group of personal\
ornaments in bronze, exhibiting the special features of this school\
of decorative art—Armlet, in the form of a double-headed snake,\
found in the Culbin Sands—Its form and decoration—Its character\
as a work of art—Armlets of similar form found at Pitalpin, near\
Dundee, and at Grange of Conan, near Arbroath—Bronze ball,\
with Celtic decorations, found at Walston, Lanarkshire—Stone\
balls, with ornaments of similar character, found in various parts\
of Scotland—Their probable purpose—Their area—This group of\
objects presents a series of examples of the art which characterised\
the Iron Age Paganism of Scotland—Its difference from the art of\
the Christian time—Its special qualities and characteristics | Pages #112–173:Page_112#
LECTURE IV.
THE ARCHITECTURE OF THE BROCHS.
The Broch of Mousa, Shetland—Its situation and appearance—Its\
peculiarities of construction—Its chambers, stairs, and galleries—Its\
features not related to those of any variety of castle of historic\
times—Many similar structures in different parts of Scotland—The\
Brochs of Glenelg—Broch at Loch Duich—Their typical plan—Evidence\
as to height—Typical characteristics of the Brochs—They\
point to a double intention in the minds of the builders—Their\
admirable adaptation for purposes of shelter and defence—Range\
or area of the typical form—Broch on Cockburn Law in\
Berwickshire—Broch at Torwood, Stirlingshire—Broch at Coldoch,\
Perthshire—Their numbers north of the Caledonian Valley—More\
than three hundred examples in the five northern counties—Significance\
of this result—They are the remains of a period of\
architectural activity which has no parallel in the history of the\
country—No example of the type is known except in Scotland—Instances\
of Brochs with peculiar features—Defensive works, wells,\
and drains—Construction of the doorway—The general adoption\
of such a peculiar system of strongholds points to the existence of\
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peculiar circumstances in the history of the people—Uniformity\
of plan and construction a striking feature alike of the Round\
Towers of Ireland and the Brochs of Scotland—Dissimilarity of the\
two types of structure—Idea of which the Broch structure is the\
actual embodiment—The archæology of Scotland is largely composed\
of typical forms that occur nowhere else—Her monuments\
and metal-work demonstrate the existence of a National School of\
Decorative Art in Early Christian and Pagan times—The remains\
of these structures demonstrate the existence of a National School\
of Architecture as truly unique—Significance of these facts in\
relation to the unwritten history of Scotland | Pages #174–208:Page_174#
LECTURE V.
THE BROCHS AND THEIR CONTENTS.
Excavation of the Broch of Kettleburn, Wick, by the late Alexander\
Henry Rhind of Sibster—Group of objects found in it—Their\
deposit in the National Museum gave a new character to the\
collection of Scottish antiquities and a new direction to Scottish\
archæology—Description of the relics—Implements in stone,\
bone, bronze, and iron—The food of the inhabitants of the Broch—No\
reason for attributing to them an exceptionally low condition\
of culture and civilisation—Excavation of the Brochs of Kintradwell\
and Carn-liath, in Sutherlandshire—Group of relics found in\
them—The food of the inhabitants—Outbuildings or secondary\
constructions in connection with the Brochs—Burials found in\
them—Excavation of the Brochs of Yarhouse, Brounaben, Stirkoke,\
Bowermadden, and Dunbeath in Caithness—Description of relics\
found in them—Excavation of the Broch of Levenwick in Dunrossness,\
Shetland—Its peculiar features—The Brochs of Orkney—The\
Broch of Burray—The Broch of Burwick—The Broch of\
Okstrow—The Broch of Lingrow—The Broch of Burrian—Character\
of the relics found in them—Determination of the\
general relations of the group of remains obtained from the Brochs—They\
are products of an advanced state of culture, civilisation,\
and social organisation—The relations of the structures and their\
contents are Celtic, and not Scandinavian | Pages #209–259:Page_209#
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LECTURE VI.
LAKE-DWELLINGS, HILL-FORTS, AND EARTH-HOUSES.
A Broch like Clickamin is practically a lake-dwelling—Many defensive\
structures in lakes which are not Brochs—Defensive structure in\
the Loch of Hogsetter, Whalsay—Its special peculiarities—Lake-dwellings\
constructed of wood, known as Crannogs—The Crannogs\
of the Loch of Dowalton—The Crannogs of Ayrshire—General\
similarity of the groups of objects recovered from them to those\
found in Brochs—No class of ancient remains of which we have\
less precise knowledge than Hill-Forts—They differ essentially from\
all other structures—They are of two varieties, earthworks and\
stoneworks—Character of the earthworks—Earthwork on Midhill\
Head, Midlothian—Stone fort at Garrywhoine, Caithness—The\
White Caterthun, Forfarshire—Fort on Ben Ledi—The vitrified\
forts—Knockfarril in Strathpeffer—Craig Phadrig, near Inverness—Fort\
at Finhaven, Forfarshire—Dun Mac Uisneachan, in Loch\
Etive—Forts in Arisaig, Inverness-shire—Vitrified forts do not\
differ in character from forts that are not vitrified, if their vitrifaction\
be not a feature of their construction—The evidence\
insufficient to establish that the vitrifaction was a method of construction—The\
phenomena of the vitrified forts in France—The\
Gaulish forts constructed with alternate layers of logs and stones—Similar\
construction of the great rampart of Burghead in Morayshire—The\
hill-fort of Dunsinnane associated with underground\
chambers—Similar association in the forts of Ireland—Underground\
chambers not associated with forts—The “Earth-Houses” at\
Broomhouse, Berwickshire—In Strathdon, Aberdeenshire—Groups\
of them at Airlie, Forfarshire, and Kildrummy, Aberdeenshire—Associated\
with an overground habitation and a group of graves at\
Grange of Conan, Forfarshire—With objects of the Roman period\
at Tealing, Pitcur, Newstead, and Crichton Mains—The range and\
period of this type of structure—The culture and civilisation of\
the people who constructed them | Pages #260–307:Page_260#
INDEX | #309:Page_309#
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LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.
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| PAGE
View of the Broch of Clickamin, Shetland | #Frontispiece:frontis#
Clay Vase found in a Mediæval Stone Coffin at Montrose |
Illumination from a Fourteenth-Century Manuscript | #12:f_2#
Clay Vases found at Castle Hill of Rattray, Aberdeenshire | #13:f_3#
Sword found in a Viking Grave at Ballinaby, Islay | #17:f_5#
Boss and Handle of Shield found in a Viking Grave at Ballinaby | #18:f_6#
Front view of Handle of Shield, Spear-head, and Ferrule found\
in a Viking Grave at Ballinaby | #19:f_7#
Iron Ferrule and Fragment of Iron found in a Viking Grave at\
Ballinaby | #20:f_10#
Bronze Plaque, with Figure of a Warrior, found in the island\
of Oland | #20:f_12#
Sheath-mounting of Bronze and Axe-heads of Iron from a\
Viking Grave at Ballinaby | #21:f_13#
Adze and Hammer from a Viking Grave at Ballinaby | #22:f_15#
Forge-tongs and Handle of Pot from a Viking Grave at\
Ballinaby | #23:f_17#
Oval Bowl-shaped Brooch and its Pin of Brass from a Grave at\
Ballinaby | #24:f_18#
Double Disc of Bronze and Hairpin of Silver from a Grave at\
Ballinaby | #27:f_21#
Chain of Knitted Silver Wire and Beads of Coloured Glass\
from a Grave at Ballinaby | #28:f_23#
Saucepan of Thin Bronze from a Grave at Ballinaby | #29:f_25#
Implement of Black Glass for Smoothing Linen from a Grave\
at Ballinaby | #30:f_26#
Sword of the Viking time from Vik, in Norway | #33:f_27#
.bn 016.png
.pn +1
Linen Smoother of Black Glass (modern) | #37:f_28#
Oval Bowl-shaped Brooch of Brass found in a Grave at Ballinaby\
in 1788 | #38:f_29#
Oval Bowl-shaped Brooch of Brass found in a Grave near Newton,\
Islay | #39:f_30#
Oval Bowl-shaped Brooch found in Tiree | #40:f_31#
Oval Bowl-shaped Brooch of Brass found at Castletown, Caithness | #44:f_32#
Oval Bowl-shaped Brooch found in a Cist in The Long Hills,\
Wick, Caithness | #45:f_33#
Sword ploughed up in Rousay, Orkney | #45:f_34#
Silver Mounting of a Drinking Horn found at Burghead | #46:f_35#
Sword-hilt of the Viking time found in the island of Eigg | #49:f_36#
Side view of Pommel and Edge of Grip of Sword-hilt |
Upper side of Guard of Sword-hilt | #51:f_39#
Sword-hilt found in a Grave at Ultuna, Sweden | #52:f_40#
Buckle of Bronze from a Grave-mound in Eigg | #53:f_41#
Ground Plan and Sections of Grave-mounds in Eigg | #53:f_42#
Penannular Brooch of Bronze, silvered, from a Grave-mound in\
Eigg | #54:f_43#
Belt-clasp of Bronze from a Grave-mound in Eigg | #54:f_44#
Whetstone and portions of Cloth from a Grave-mound in Eigg | #55:f_45#
Single-edged Comb from a Grave-mound in Westray | #57:f_47#
Oval Bowl-shaped Brooch from a Grave-mound in Westray | #57:f_48#
Iron Key from a Grave-mound in Westray | #58:f_49#
Sheath-mounting from a Grave-mound in Westray |
Sectional View of Burials in Stronsay, Orkney | #67:f_51#
Urn of Steatitic Stone from a Cist in Stronsay |
Urn of Steatite from Stennis, Orkney |
Urn of Steatite from Corquoy, Rousay | #71:f_54#
Urn of Steatite from Rousay | #72:f_55#
Urn of Steatite from Shapinsay, Orkney | #72:f_56#
Urn of Steatite from The Fair Isle |
Vessels of Sandstone found at Aucorn, Caithness | #75:f_58#
Silver Brooch found at Skaill, Orkney | #79:f_59#
Silver Brooch found at Skaill, Orkney | #81:f_60#
Silver Brooch found at Skaill, Orkney | #82:f_61#
.bn 017.png
.pn +1
Neck-ring of Silver found at Skaill, Orkney | #84:f_62#
Neck-ring of Silver found at Skaill, Orkney | #85:f_63#
Neck-ring of Silver found at Skaill, Orkney | #86:f_64#
Armlets of Silver found at Skaill, Orkney | #87:f_65#
Flat Arm-band of Silver found at Skaill, Orkney | #88:f_67#
Circular Patterns on Brooches found at Skaill | #94:f_68#
Pattern of Interlaced Work on Brooch found at Skaill | #94:f_69#
Zoomorphic Patterns on Brooch found at Skaill | #95:f_71#
Zoomorphic Patterns on Brooches found at Skaill | #96:f_73#
Human-headed Figure on Brooch found at Skaill |
Axe-head inlaid with Silver from the Mammen How, Denmark |
Thor’s Hammer in Silver from Skäne, Sweden | #99:f_79#
Runic Monument at Skjern, North Jutland, with Thor’s Face | #100:f_80#
Runic Monument at Aby, with Thor’s Head and Hammer |
Hood found in a Moss in St. Andrew’s Parish, Orkney | #103:f_82#
Portions of the fabric of the Hood and Woollen fabric from the\
Moss of Haraldskjaer, Jutland |
Gold Rings found at Stennis | #106:f_86#
Gold Rings found in the Hebrides | #107:f_87#
Ingot of Silver found in the island of Bute | #107:f_88#
Gold Rings and Fillets found in the island of Bute | #108:f_89#
Penannular Arm-ring of Silver found at Rattar, Caithness | #109:f_91#
Bronze object, like the frontal of a horse, with horns, found at\
Torrs, Kirkcudbrightshire | #113:f_92#
Plan of the horns of the Bronze object | #115:f_93#
Bronze Plaque, with Figures of Warriors, found in the island of\
Oland | #116:f_94#
Bronze object in the form of a Swine’s Head, found at Liechestown,\
Banffshire | #117:f_95#
Plates, forming separate parts of the Bronze object | #118:f_96#
Sword-sheath found at Morton Hall | #120:f_97#
Mountings of Cast Bronze found at Henshole, on Cheviot | #121:f_98#
Bronze Ornaments found in a Cairn at Towie, Aberdeenshire | #122:f_99#
Mounting in Cast Bronze from Dowalton Loch |
Bridle-bit, enamelled, found in moss at Birrenswark | #124:f_101#
Quern found with Bronze articles at Balmaclellan | #126:f_102#
.bn 018.png
.pn +1
Bronze Mirror found at Balmaclellan |
Half of a Crescentic Plate of Bronze, with its Ornament, found\
at Balmaclellan |
Form of the Bronze Plates found with the Mirror at Balmaclellan | #129:f_106#
Bronze Mirror found in a Grave at Mount Batten, near Plymouth | #130:f_107#
Back of a Bronze Mirror found in a Grave at Birdlip, near\
Gloucester | #132:f_108#
Bronze Spoon found at Weston, near Bath | #134:f_109#
Backs of the Handles of Bronze Spoons from Weston | #135:f_110#
Spoon found at Weston, and Spoon found at Llanfair | #136:f_111#
Jointed Collar of Bronze found at Stitchell, Roxburghshire | #136:f_112#
Jointed Armlet found in the Parish of Borgue, Kirkcudbrightshire | #137:f_113#
Gold Ornament found on the Shaw Hill, Peeblesshire | #139:f_114#
Bronze Armlet, enamelled, found at Castle Newe, Aberdeenshire |
Back view of Bronze Armlet found at Castle Newe |
Enamelled Plates of Bronze Armlets found at Pitkelloney,\
Perthshire | #143:f_117#
Bronze Armlet found at Auchenbadie, Banffshire | #144:f_118#
Back view of Bronze Armlet found at Auchenbadie, Banffshire |
Plan of Ornamentation of Bronze Armlet found at Auchenbadie,\
Banffshire |
Front view of Bronze Armlet found at Drumside, Belhelvie,\
Aberdeenshire | #146:f_121#
Back view of Bronze Armlet found at Drumside, Belhelvie,\
Aberdeenshire | #146:f_122#
Plan of Ornamentation of Bronze Armlet found at Drumside,\
Belhelvie, Aberdeenshire | #147:f_123#
Armlet of Brass found near Aboyne, Aberdeenshire | #148:f_124#
Armlet found near Aboyne (back and side views) | #149:f_125#
Bronze Armlet in the National Museum (back and front views) | #149:f_126#
Bronze Armlet found at Stanhope, Peeblesshire | #150:f_127#
Buckle-like object of Bronze found at Stanhope, Peeblesshire | #151:f_128#
Saucepan of Bronze found with the Bronze Armlet at Stanhope,\
Peeblesshire | #152:f_129#
Bronze Armlet, probably from Bunrannoch, Perthshire |
.bn 019.png
.pn +1
Plan of Ornamentation of Bronze Armlet from Perthshire |
Bronze Armlet found near Seafield Tower, Kinghorn, Fife | #155:f_133#
Bronze Armlet found near Newry, County Down, Ireland | #155:f_135#
Bronze Armlet found in the sands of Culbin, Elginshire | #156:f_136#
Bronze Armlet found in the sands of Culbin, Elginshire (back
view) | #157:f_137#
Bronze Armlet found at Pitalpin, near Dundee | #159:f_138#
Bronze Armlet in the National Museum |
Bronze Armlet found at Grange of Conan, near Arbroath | #160:f_140#
Bronze Ball found at Walston, Lanarkshire | #162:f_141#
Ornamented Stone Ball from Elgin | #162:f_142#
Ornamented Stone Ball found at the Glas Hill, Towie, Aberdeenshire|#163:f_143#
Ornamented Stone Balls found at Freelands and Fordoun | #164:f_144#
Ornamented Stone Ball in the collection of Sir J. Noel Paton | #165:f_146#
Ornamented Stone Ball found at Ballater, Aberdeenshire | #166:f_147#
Ornamented Stone Ball found in the Tay, near Perth | #166:f_148#
Ornamented Stone Balls found in Argyleshire and Inverness-shire | #167:f_149#
Ornamented Stone Ball found in the Isle of Skye | #167:f_151#
Ornamented Stone Balls found at Skaill, Orkney | #168:f_152#
Ornamented Stone Ball found near Kirkwall, Orkney | #169:f_154#
Ornamented Stone Balls found in Dumfriesshire, and at Dudwick,\
Aberdeenshire | #169:f_155#
Ornamented Stone Balls found at Montblairy, Banffshire, and\
near Nairn | #169:f_157#
Men with Maces (from the Bayeux Tapestry) | #170:f_159#
Exterior view of the Broch of Mousa, Shetland | #175:f_160#
Ground Plan of the Broch of Mousa, Shetland | #176:f_161#
Section of the elevation of the Broch of Mousa, Shetland | #178:f_162#
View of Doorway of Broch in Glenbeg, Glenelg | #181:f_163#
Ground Plan and Section of Doorway of Broch in Glenbeg,\
Glenelg | #181:f_164#
Section of Elevation of Broch in Glenbeg, Glenelg | #182:f_166#
Ground Plan of Doorway of Broch at Loch Duich | #183:f_167#
Sectional elevation of S.E. side of entrance passage of Broch at\
Loch Duich |
.bn 020.png
.pn +1
Views of Cole’s Castle and Dun Dornadilla, Sutherlandshire | #185:f_169#
General Plan of Broch and its fortifications on Cockburn Law,\
Berwickshire | #187:f_171#
Masonry of Broch on Cockburn Law | #188:f_172#
Ground Plan and Section of Elevation of Doorway in Broch of\
Torwood, Stirlingshire | #189:f_173#
Ground Plan of the Broch of Coldoch, Perthshire | #190:f_175#
View of the Nuraghe of Goni, in Sardinia | #193:f_176#
Section of Nuraghe, showing chambers and stair | #193:f_177#
View of Broch, known as Cole’s Castle, Sutherlandshire | #194:f_178#
General Plan of Broch of Clickamin, near Lerwick, Shetland | #196:f_179#
Diagrammatic Section of East Broch, Burray, Orkney | #197:f_180#
Diagrammatic Section of the Broch of Borrowston, Shapinsay,\
Orkney | #198:f_181#
Ground Plan of Broch at Manse of Harray | #198:f_182#
Section of the Well in the Broch at Manse of Harray | #199:f_183#
Ground Plan of Structure at Bodinar, Cornwall | #207:f_184#
Ground Plan of Broch at Kettleburn, near Wick | #210:f_185#
Lamp of Sandstone from Broch of Kettleburn |
Long-handled Comb from Broch of Kettleburn | #213:f_187#
Bronze Tweezers from Broch of Kettleburn | #214:f_188#
Section of Chamber in Broch of Kintradwell | #217:f_190#
Stone Cup from Broch of Kintradwell | #218:f_191#
Oval Pebble of Quartzite from Broch of Kintradwell | #220:f_192#
Hammer-marked Plate of Brass from Broch in Dunrobin Park | #222:f_193#
Ground Plan of Broch of Yarhouse, Caithness | #224:f_194#
Circular Brooch of Brass from a Burial in the mound covering\
the ruins of Broch of Yarhouse | #225:f_195#
Interior Aperture of Doorway in Broch of Yarhouse | #227:f_196#
Entrance to Stair in Broch of Yarhouse | #228:f_197#
Whetstones from Broch of Yarhouse | #230:f_198#
Bronze Armlet from Broch of Yarhouse | #231:f_200#
Portions of Horns of Reindeer from Broch of Yarhouse | #231:f_201#
Vessel of Red Sandstone, Bead, Comb, and Bronze Pin, from\
Broch of Yarhouse |
Ground Plan of Broch of Levenwick, Shetland | #235:f_207#
.bn 021.png
.pn +1
Bronze Knob from Broch of Harray, Orkney |
Bone Cup, Comb, Button, and Pins, from Broch of Harray |
Ornamented Bone Pin from Broch of Burwick, Orkney |
Long-handled Comb from Broch of Burwick | #240:f_212#
Round-backed Comb from Broch of Burwick |
Cup and Lamps of Sandstone from Broch of Okstrow, Orkney |
Bronze Pin, Penannular Brooch, and Mounting of Bronze from\
Broch of Okstrow |
Ground Plan of Broch of Lingrow, Orkney | #243:f_220#
Pebble of Quartzite and Implement of Bone from Broch of\
Lingrow |
Clay Mould for casting Bronze Pins from Broch of Lingrow | #245:f_223#
Bone Implement and Pins of Bone from Broch of Burrian,\
Orkney |
Bone Pins and Needles from Broch of Burrian |
One of a set of Playing Dice from Broch of Burrian |
Tool of Bone and Round-backed and Double-edged Combs of\
Bone from Broch of Burrian |
Double-edged Comb of Bone from Broch of Burrian |
Long-handled Combs of Bone from Broch of Burrian |
Smoothing Implement of Bone from Broch of Burrian |
Weaving Comb of Wood and Iron used in India |
Stone with Incised Figures of Crossed Triangles from Broch of\
Burrian | #255:f_242#
Metatarsal Bone of Ox, with Incised Symbols, from Broch of\
Burrian |
Defensive Structure in the Loch of Hogsetter, Whalsay, Shetland | #261:f_244#
Portion of a Shoe of Stamped Leather from Crannog in Dowalton\
Loch |
Saucepan of Bronze, of Roman form, from Crannog at Dowalton | #266:f_246#
Bead of Glass with lining of Bronze from Crannog at Dowalton | #267:f_247#
Basins of Bronze from Crannog at Dowalton | #268:f_248#
Ground Plan of Earthwork on Midhill Head, Midlothian | #273:f_250#
Section of Hill-Fort of Dunsinnane, with Underground Chambers | #281:f_251#
Ground Plan and Sections of Earth-house at Broomhouse, Berwickshire | #283:f_252#
.bn 022.png
.pn +1
Ground Plan of Earth-house at Migvie, Aberdeenshire | #284:f_253#
Ground Plan of Earth-house at Buchaam, Strathdon | #285:f_254#
Ground Plan of Earth-house at Culsh, Aberdeenshire | #287:f_255#
Ground Plan and Section of Earth-house at Kildrummy,\
Aberdeenshire | #288:f_256#
Ground Plan and Section of Earth-house at Eriboll,\
Sutherlandshire | #289:f_257#
Ground Plan and Section of Earth-house at Kinord, Aberdeenshire | #291:f_258#
Ground Plan of Earth-house at Cairn Conan, near Arbroath | #294:f_259#
Ground Plan of Earth-house at Tealing, Forfarshire | #298:f_260#
Sketch Ground Plan of Earth-house at Newstead, Roxburghshire | #300:f_261#
Ground Plan of Earth-house at Crichton Mains, Midlothian | #301:f_262#
Sections of Earth-house at Crichton Mains, Midlothian | #302:f_263#
Ambry and Hewn Stones in Earth-house at Crichton Mains |
.ta-
.bn 023.png
.pn 1
.sp 4
.h2
LECTURE I. | (17th October 1881.) | CHRISTIAN AND PAGAN BURIAL—VIKING BURIALS.
.sp 2
.ti 0
At the outset of my first series of Lectures I stated that the
necessity of abandoning the historical method of inquiry was
involved in the very nature of the investigation which I contemplated,
because the relations which the materials to be
investigated bear to each other, and to special phases of
human culture and civilisation, are neither disclosed by
historical record nor discoverable by historical methods of
research. I therefore proposed that, for the purposes of this
inquiry, we should consider ourselves engaged in the exploration
of an unknown region; and that, starting from the borderland
where the historic and the non-historic meet, and
ascending the stream of time, we should proceed to make
such observations of the facts and phenomena encountered in
our progress as would enable us to determine their relations
by comparison with facts and phenomena already familiar to
us, and to deduce conclusions which, so far as they are sound
and relevant, would serve as materials for the construction of
a logical history of culture and civilisation within the area
investigated.
Having thus traversed the region characterised by the
phenomena of the Early Christianity of Scotland, all that is
distinctively Christian is now left behind. Before us lies the
whole extent of the Pagan period, resolvable into three great
.bn 024.png
.pn +1
divisions, characterised as the Ages of Iron, of Bronze, and of
Stone. In each of these we shall meet with distinctive
manifestations of culture, disclosing their peculiar characteristics
by their special products. These products are the
materials of our investigation, and they fall to be dealt with
by the same methods that have been employed in the disclosure
of the nature and quality of the culture and civilisation
of the Early Christian Time in Scotland.
I have adopted this division of the general subject into
“Christian Times” and “Pagan Times,” because the phenomena
with which I am dealing do themselves exhibit a clearly
defined distinction, and are separable from each other by their
characteristics according as they are products of Christian or
of Pagan forms of culture and civilisation.
For instance, while Paganism existed, there were two
customs which gave a distinctly typical character to the
archaeological deposits of the heathen period. These were
(1) the burning of the bodies of the dead; and (2) the deposit
with the dead (whether burnt or unburnt) of grave-goods—urns,
weapons, clothing, personal ornaments, and implements
and utensils of domestic life. Previous to the introduction of
Christianity, the burials are characterised by cremation or by
the association of urns, arms, implements, and ornaments.
After the introduction of Christianity these characteristics
cease. The substitution of Christianity for Paganism thus
produced an alteration in the character of the archæological
deposits exactly comparable to that which was produced by
the substitution of bronze for stone, or of iron for bronze; and
the difference between the Christianity and the Paganism of
a people or an area, as thus manifested, is therefore a true
archæological distinction.
But no archæological boundary is of the nature of a hard
and fast line. The deposits which constitute the periodic
divisions of archæology (like those of the geological series)
.bn 025.png
.pn +1
are always to a greater or less extent products of a re-formative
process, by which portions of pre-existing systems are
imbedded in the new formation, in whose constitution the
disintegrated elements of the older system are often quite
clearly visible. There is therefore necessarily a series of
transitional phenomena along the whole line of contact, and
though the new system may have been characterised by a
gradually increasing number of new types, the older types are
often continued with altered characteristics, caused by an
increasing conformity to the new conditions. It thus becomes
of importance that the character of these transitional
phenomena should at least be indicated before we finally pass
from the region of Christianity into that of Paganism. Their
investigation is essentially an examination of the disintegrated
elements and altered fragments of the Pagan systems that
have entered into the composition of later Christian formations;
and no branch of this inquiry is more instructive than
that which takes cognisance of the survival of Pagan customs
in the usages connected with Christian burial.
“The first Christians,” says Aringhi, “did not follow the
heathen custom of placing deposits of gold, silver, and other
precious articles in their sepulchres.” But it is plain from
his further statement that they followed it partly, or, in other
words, that the older custom was continued in a modified
form;[1] for he goes on to say that “they permitted gold, interwoven
.bn 026.png
.pn +1
with the cloth used in the preparation of the body for
burial, and such things as gold rings on the fingers; with
young girls, too, they often buried their ornaments and such
things as they most delighted in.”
.fm rend=t
.fn 1
The body was swathed in linen, sometimes with the insignia of office, or
with ornaments of gold, or gems placed in the coffin or sarcophagus.—Euseb.
Vit. Const. iv. 66; Ambros. Orat. in obit. Theodos; August. Conf. ix. 12,
cited in Smith’s Dict. of Christ. Antiq., sub voce “Burial of the Dead.” The
insignia of office, if the deceased had held any such position—gold and silver
ornaments in the case of private persons—were often flung into the open
grave, and the waste and ostentation to which this led had to be checked by
an imperial edict.—Cod. Theodos. xi. tit. 7, 1, 14. Ibid. So common was
the burial of weapons and ornaments in Early Christian times among the
Franks, that enactments against the violation of graves in search of treasure
form a special feature in the Salic Laws. Gregory of Tours tells of the
robbery of the grave of the wife of Gonthram, who was buried in the Church
of Metz, “cum auro multo rebusque preciosis;” and Montfaucon adds that
from this we see that it was not the kings only, but the great of the land
also, who were at that time buried with things of price.
.fn-
.fm rend=t
Although the Pagan form of burial in which the dead
were placed in their tombs, apparelled in their richest robes,
and with their arms, ornaments, and insignia, is clearly
opposed to the doctrine taught in all ages of the church, that
the dead are for ever done with the things of this life,[2] we
find it strangely surviving as a Christian ceremonial in the
burial of kings and clergy. Childeric, the last of the Pagan
kings of France, was buried seated on a throne, in his kingly
robes, and with the arms, ornaments, and insignia of royalty.
Charlemagne, the establisher of Christianity (who meted out
the punishment of death to the Saxons who dared to burn
their dead after the old manner),[3] was also buried seated on a
throne, with his royal robes, his arms and ornaments, and the
.bn 027.png
.pn +1
book of the Gospels on his knee. The Scandinavian Viking
was buried with his arms because his Valhalla was a fighting
place; but the Christian kings of Denmark continued to be
buried with their arms although there was no Valhalla prepared
for them.[4] Giraldus Cambrensis, describing the miserable
death of Henry II. of England, laments that when the
body was being prepared for burial “scarcely was a decent
ring to be found for his finger or a sceptre for his hand, or a
crown for his head, except such a thing as was made from an
old head-dress.” When the custom was disused for kings, it
was retained for the clergy.[5] Archbishops and bishops have
always been buried with their insignia and robes of office.[6]
Their graves, containing the crosier or staff, the chalice and
paten, the robes and ring, although necessarily of Christian
time and Christian character, are directly related in the
line of archæological succession to those of the earlier
Paganism. The custom also survives in the pompous accessories
.bn 028.png
.pn +1
of a military funeral. When we see the sword laid
over the coffin, and the horse led in procession to the grave,
we witness the survival of one of the oldest ceremonies ever
performed among men—the difference being, that of old the
weapon was laid in the grave beside the hand that had wielded
it, and the horse was slaughtered to accompany his master to
the unseen world.[7] Some forms of this survival gradually
passed into distinctively Christian usages[8] with a definitely
Christian significance, and others became actually incorporated
in the ritual of the Church. One of the most striking of
the sepulchral customs of the Pagan Northmen was that of
binding the “hell-shoes” on the feet of the dead. It is
stated in the Saga of Gisli the Outlaw that when they were
laying Vestein in his grave-mound, Thorgrim the priest went
up to the mound and said, “’Tis the custom to bind the hell-shoes
on men so that they may walk on them to Valhalla,
and I will now do that by Vestein;" and when he had done
it he said, “I know nothing about binding on hell-shoon, if
.bn 029.png
.pn +1
these loosen.” This custom is often found in Christian as
well as in pre-Christian graves in Central Europe. It was
well known to the liturgical writers of the Middle Ages.
Durandus says: “The dead must also have shoes on their feet
by which they may show that they are ready for the judgment.”
Members of religious orders were usually thus buried,
but the custom was not confined to them alone.[9] The idea
of providing for a journey which was implied in the Northern
custom of the “hell-shoon,” is curiously illustrated by the
statement of Weinhold, that in some remote districts of
Sweden, up to a very recent period, the tobacco-pipe, the
pocket-knife, and the filled brandy-flask, were placed with
the dead in the grave.
.fm rend=t
.fn 2
There are records of occasional cases in which the converts rebelled and
went back to their old customs in spite of the efforts of the clergy to restrain
them. Thus we find in A.D. 1249, that in Livonia, where heathenism
lingered longer than in almost any other part of Europe, there is a solemn
deed of contract entered into between the converts and the brethren of the
Holy Cross, by which the converts become bound, for themselves and their
heirs, never again to burn their dead or to bury with them horses or slaves,
or arms or vestments, or any other things of value, but to bury their dead in
the cemeteries attached to the churches.—Dreger, Codex Diplomaticus
Pomeraniæ. Again we find that the Esthonian converts rebelled in 1225,
took back the wives they had given up, exhumed the dead they had buried
in the Christian cemeteries, and burned them, after the fashion of the old
Pagan times.—Gruber, Origines Livoniæ, cited by Wyllie in Archæologia,
vol. xxxvii. p. 46.
.fn-
.fn 3
Si quis corpus defuncti hominis secundum ritum paganorum flamma
consumi fecerit, et ossa ejus ad cinerem redierit, capite punietur.—Capitulary,
A.D. 785.
.fn-
.fn 4
When the grave of King Olaf at Sore was opened, a long sword was
found over the body from the head to the feet. In the coffin of King Erik
Glipping, in the Church of Viborg, his sword lay at his side. Kornerup,
Aarboger for Nordisk Oldkyndighed, 1873, p. 251.
.fn-
.fn 5
In the Capitularia Regum Francorum we are told that the custom
which had grown obsolete among the common people was retained for the
clergy:—Mos ille in vulgo obsoletus in funeribus episcoporum et presbyterum
retinetur.
.fn-
.fn 6
Durandus says, “Clerici vero, si sint ordinati, illis indumentis induti
sint, quae requirunt ordines, quos habent; si vero non habent ordines sacros
more laicorum sepeliantur. Verumtamen licet in aliis ordinibus propter
paupertatem hoc saepius omittatur, in sacerdotibus tamen et Episcopis nullo
modo praetermittendum est.”—De Div. Off. lib. 7. Kornerup, describing the
practice in Denmark, says of the burials of the higher orders of the clergy in
the Middle Ages—“On their heads they bore the mitre, on their shoulders
the cloak of gold brocade, on the finger the Episcopal ring, and the crosier
lay by the side of the corpse. Their feet were shod, and the chalice and
paten were placed in their hands.” These particulars have been verified in
many instances, among which it is only necessary to mention the graves of
Bishop Absalon at Sore, and Bishop Suneson at Lund.—Kornerup, Aarboger
for Nordisk Oldkyndighed, 1873, p. 251.
.fn-
.fn 7
In a tumulus opened near Picton Castle, there were found, along with
the skeleton of a man, a sword, a breastplate, four horse-shoes, and a gold
ring, on the bezel of which were engraved the arms of Sir Aaron ap Rhys,
a knight of the Holy Sepulchre. The latest instance of this custom carried
out in its integrity occurred at the interment of Frederick Casimir, a knight
of the Teutonic Order, who was buried with his horse and his arms at Treves
in February 1781.
.fn-
.fn 8
A variety of the custom of burial clothed took the form of burial in a
monkish habit. It was not uncommon in the twelfth century for laymen to
be thus buried, under the notion that the sanctity of the dress preserved the
body from molestation by demons. Thus Erik Ploupenning sets forth in a
deed dated 1241, “Votum fecimus ut in habitu fratrum minorum mori
deberemus et in ipso habitu apud fratres minores Roeskildenses sepiliri.”—Pontoppidan,
Annales Eccl. Dan. 1669. The idea of sanctity connected with
the monastic orders led people to seek for burial, not only in the consecrated
ground about the monastery, but in the habit of the monks. The right was
in early times purchased by the great men of Brittany by the gift of lands
and other offerings, as we have seen to be the case in Ireland.—Stuart’s
Sculptured Stones of Scotland, vol. ii. p. 63.
.fn-
.fn 9
Bernard, grandson of Charlemagne, who died in 818, was found with
shoes on his feet when his coffin was opened in 1638. William Lyndewode,
Bishop of St. David’s, who died in 1446, was buried in St. Stephen’s. When
his grave was recently disturbed during repairs, the body was found unclothed,
but with shoes on the feet.—Archæologia, vol. xxxiv. p. 403. In the
cathedral of Worcester a skeleton was found in 1861 having shoes or sandals
on its feet, the soles of which were quite entire.—Gent. Mag., Oct. 1861. The
Abbé Cochet mentions a large number of instances in France, proving the
existence of the custom there from the twelfth century to the seventeenth.
In an account of the funeral expenses of Roger Belot, who died in 1603, there
is a charge of twelve sous six deniers for a pair of shoes to place on the feet
of the defunct.—Revue Archæol., vol. xxv. (1873) p. 12.
.fn-
.fm rend=t
Broadly stated, the archæological effect of the establishment
of Christianity was to cut off the presence of grave-goods
from the burials of the area. But these examples show
that while this was the general and final result, it was neither
obtained absolutely nor at once. The burial usages of a
people are among the most unalterable of all their institutions.
Other observances may change with the convictions
of individuals, but the prevailing sentiment which leads to
the disposal of the dead—"gathered to their fathers"—in the
same manner as the fathers themselves were disposed, resists
innovation longer and more stubbornly than any other. In
.bn 030.png
.pn +1
point of fact we find that from the beginning there have been
but two great typical forms of burial—viz. burial with grave-goods,
which is the universally Pagan type, and burial
without them, which is the universally Christian type.
These typical forms of burial are respectively products
of the opposing doctrines of Paganism and Christianity as
touching the future life. I cannot tell what may have been
the precise attitude of mind which induced my Pagan ancestor
to provide his dead with grave-goods. In view of the
general prevalence of the custom, I cannot doubt that it was
an attitude which regarded their provision as a sacred duty,
universally binding and almost universally performed. But
the Christian belief in a resurrection to newness of life
recognised no such duty to the dead, and steadily opposed
the practice as amounting to a denial of the faith. On this
account it is plain that when we find the dead in Christian
graves provided with grave-goods we have a form of burial
which cannot be accounted for by anything in the essential
elements of Christianity itself, and therefore it must be regarded
as a survival of the older custom, which logically
ought to have died with the death of the Pagan system,—of
which it was a distinctive usage.
.pm floatimage_e f_1 fig001_033 'Fig. 1.—Clay Vase, one of\
four found in a mediæval\
stone coffin at Montrose.' 150 30 r
The Christian fathers appear to have drawn the line of
demarcation between Pagan and Christian burial so as to
prevent the continuance of cremation. Yet the practice of
strewing charcoal and ashes ritually in the open grave, and
laying the unburnt body upon them, was a wide-spread
Christian custom of the early Middle Ages.[10] I cannot conceive
.bn 031.png
.pn +1
the process by which a custom like this could have
been evolved from any of the distinctive usages of Christianity,
if the custom of cremation had not preceded it. Again the
practice of placing vessels of clay in the cist with the unburnt
body, which was one of the most widely diffused and
most distinctively Pagan customs connected with the interment
of the dead, was continued with certain modifications
of form and significance as a Christian usage.[11] In Pagan
times these vessels contained food and drink; in Christian
times they held holy water and charcoal and incense. The
holy water vessel was shallow and basin-like, and was placed
usually at the feet of the corpse. Johannes Belethus, in the
twelfth century, notices this custom, and after him Durandus,
Bishop of Mende,[12] who says that the holy water is used “that
the demons who are greatly afraid of it may not come near
the body;” and that incense is used "to indicate that the
.bn 032.png
.pn +1
dead person has entered his Creator’s presence with the
acceptable odour of good works, and has obtained the benefit
of the Church’s prayers." That the latter usage was widely
extended throughout Christendom is proved by the frequent
discoveries of vases pierced with holes, and containing
the remains of charcoal, which have occurred in Italy,
Switzerland, France, and Denmark.[13] It was not unknown
in Scotland, as the following examples will show. On the
demolition of the old town steeple of Montrose in 1833, in
.bn 033.png
.pn +1
removing the soil under the base of the structure, a rude
stone cist was discovered at a depth of three feet. The cist
contained a skeleton disposed at full length, and beside the
skeleton were four vessels of clay placed two at the head and
two at the feet. One of these vessels
(Fig. ) is still preserved in the Montrose
museum. It is of reddish clay, 4
inches in height, 5 inches in diameter
at the widest part, and 3 inches across
the mouth. Its form is shown in the
accompanying woodcut, from which it
is also observable that it is pierced with
holes which exhibit irregular outlines.
There are five of these holes in the
circumference of the widest part of the vase, and it is evident
from their appearance that they have been pierced by driving
a sharp-pointed instrument through it, not when the clay was
soft but after it was fired.[14] All the characteristics of the
interment—the stone-lined grave, the full-length burial, the
vases placed two at the head and two at the feet[15]—are those
of the commonest form of Christian burial with incense vases,
as manifested in continental examples later than twelfth
century.
.fm rend=t
.fn 10
The Christian liturgists account for this custom on other grounds than
as a simulation of the effect of cremation, or a survival by symbol; but we
should not expect them to recognise it as a survival of the Pagan custom.
Durandus says:—“Carbones ponantur in testimonium quod terra ilia in communes
usus, amplius redigi non potest; plus enim durat Carbo sub terra quam
aliud.” Is not the “ashes to ashes” of the burial service a lingering echo of
this ritual?
.fn-
.fn 11
Vases of glass and of clay were buried with the early Christians in the
catacombs. The glass vessels were drinking cups, the clay vessels are in all
probability such as were in domestic use. Garrucci gives a list of 340 of these
glass vessels, many of which have the Christian monogram, or scenes from
Scripture, depicted on them. There are others, however, ornamented with
scenes from domestic and civil life, and even with subjects from the Pagan
mythology.
.fn-
.fn 12
Mabillon also notices this custom:—"L’on trouvent assez souvent dans
l’anciens tombeaux des Chretiens des petits vases de terre pleins de charbons."—Dissertation
sur le culte des Saints inconnus, p. 25. “Aquam benedictam
et prunas cum thure apponerent.”—Beleth, De Divinis Officiis, c. 161.
“Deinde ponitur in spelunca in qua ponitur aqua benedicta et prunae cum
thure. Aqua benedicta ne demones qui multum eam timent ad corpus
accedant; solent namque desaevire in corpora mortuorum, ut quod nequiverunt
in vita, saltem post mortem egant. Thus propter faetorem corporis removendum,
seu ut defunctus creatori suo acceptabilem bonorum operum odorem intelligatur
obtulisse, seu ad ostendendum quod defunctis prosit auxilium
orationis.”—Durandus, De Off. Mortuorum, In Rationale Div. Off. lib. vii. c.
35. “Vascula cum aqua lustrali in sepulchris apponebantur.”—Aringhi,
Roma Subterranea, vol. i. p. 94. “Statutum etiam fuit ut in sepulchris crux,
et aqua lustralis seu benedicta apponeretur.”—Durantes, Ex Antiq. Ritual.
Sacr. Libris. apud Aringhi, loc. cit.
.fn-
.fn 13
The following are a few of the localities in which these vases have
occurred most abundantly:—Braquemont, Martin Eglise, Bouteilles, where
over 100 vases occurred, Roux Mesnil, Neuchatel, etc. It may be interesting
to indicate the range in time of the custom, by a few instances, with well-defined
dates. In the coffin of Urson, Abbot of Jumieges, who died in 1127,
two pierced vases were found. At Leure, near Havre, among many interments
with similar vases, there was one with an inscribed slab identifying it as that
of Pierre Berenguier (1270–1290). In the stone coffin there were six of these
pierced vases. The stone coffin of Simon de Goucans, Bishop of Amiens, who
died in 1325, contained three vases, two being placed at the shoulders and one
at the feet, all pierced with holes and partly filled with charcoal. In the
coffin of John Count Dunois, who died in 1468, seven vases occurred. In
that of Francis Longueville, who died in 1491, twelve pierced vases with
charcoal were ranged along the sides of the coffin. On the right side of the
wooden coffin of the Abbé François d’Orignai, who died in 1483, two pierced
vases were found. In the leaden coffin of Agnes of Savoy, Duchess of Dunois,
who died in 1508, there were four vases of common red unglazed ware containing
charcoal. The latest precise date is furnished by an interment in the
graveyard of the Benedictine monastery at Mans. The coffin, on which the
inscription was still legible, Charlotte Le Normant de Beaumont, Decede
le 12 Avril 1688, contained a vase with charcoal. This curious and little
known custom is fully illustrated in the Abbé Cochet’s works, La Normandie
Souterraine, 2d edition, Paris 1855, and its sequel Sepultures Gauloises,
Romaines, Franques et Normandes, Paris 1857. See also Bulletin Monumental,
vol. xxii. pp. 329–364, 425–447; vol. xxv. pp. 103–132, 273–311;
Mémoires de la Société des Antiquaires de Normandie, vol. xxii. pp. 11, 12,
294–298, vol. xxiv. p. 5–8; Archæologia, vol. xxxv. p. 233, vol. xxxvii. p.
399, vol. xxxviii. p. 66, vol. xxxix. p. 117; Proceedings of the Society of Antiquaries
of London, 1855, pp. 206, 290; Revue de l’art Chretien, vol. ii. (1858),
p. 420; De Caumont, Cours d’Antiquites Monumentales, vol. vi. p. 316; A.
Murcier, La Sepulture Chretienne en France, p. 159–164.
.fn-
.fn 14
This is a frequently-occurring characteristic of the vessels partially filled
with charcoal found in graves of the Carlovingian period and down to the
seventeenth century in France. They are usually pierced with holes irregularly
placed. In some cases the holes have been made when the clay was soft. In
others the vessels have been pierced by holes driven through their sides after
they were fired, as if by a nail or other pointed instrument.
.fn-
.fn 15
At Bernay, where 150 of these incense vases were found, the most common
arrangement was four in one coffin, two at the head and two at the feet.
.fn-
.fm rend=t
.il id=f_2 fn=fig002_034.jpg w=300px ew=60% align=l
.ca Fig. 2.—Illumination from a fourteenth century\
MS., representing incense vases, placed, alternately\
with candles, round the coffin during\
the funeral service.
The form of the vase figured is not that of any known
variety of urn found with interments of Pagan type. But
it closely corresponds with the form of the incense vases
represented in an illumination from a manuscript of the
.bn 034.png
.pn +1
fourteenth century (Fig. #2:f_2#), as placed alternately with candles
on the floor round the coffin during the funeral service, and
which, as we learn
from contemporary
documents, were afterwards
placed in the
grave.[16] In the illumination
the red colour
of the fire within the
vases appears through
the holes pierced in
their sides. (This
cannot be shown in
the woodcut here
given, but the escaping
smoke indicates
the position of the
apertures). There is
in the National Museum
another pierced vase, in which the holes have been
made when the clay was soft. It was found in 1829, with
two others, under a flat stone at the Castle Hill of Rattray in
Aberdeenshire. It is here figured (Fig. #3:f_3#) along with one of
the two others found with it, of which the Society possesses
a drawing (Fig. #4:f_3#). From a note attached to the drawing
.bn 035.png
.pn +1
we learn that the three vessels were filled, with ashes when
they were first discovered. No other record of the phenomena
of this interesting deposit exists; but, from the character of the
vessels themselves, which is totally distinct from that of all
known types of vessels deposited with Pagan interments in
this country, they may be assigned to the class of vessels
deposited in Christian graves of twelfth to fifteenth and
sixteenth centuries with charcoal and incense.
.fm rend=t
.fn 16
Two instances are cited by the Abbé Cochet. Claud d’Escarbotte left
orders in his will that the young lads, orphans, who were to follow him to the
grave should carry each a torch and a pot with incense. Jehan Thelinige
described the custom more particularly, for he prescribes in his will that the
small pots with the fire and the incense shall be thrown into the grave. In
the district of Morvan, says M. Jules Chevrier, the peasants even in our own
days continue the custom of using funeral vases. They throw upon the coffin,
when it is lowered into the grave, a porringer or some such dish of earthenware
which had been ordinarily used by the defunct; and in certain parts of
La Bresse they still throw into the grave the holy water vessel which had
stood at the feet of the defunct previous to the ceremony of inhumation.
.fn-
.fm rend=t
.il id=f_3 fn=fig003_035.jpg w=400px ew=80%
.ca Figs. 3, 4.—Clay Vases found at Castle Hill of Rattray, Aberdeenshire\
(5 inches high).
In the special features of such survivals as these we
read the story of the transition from the older to the newer
forms of burial resulting from the change of faith. We see
the custom of burial with grave-goods retained as a ceremonial
observance in Christian sepulture, and the practice of
cremation succeeded by the symbolic act of strewing charcoal
in the open grave, and by a ritual which still regards the act
of burial as a consigning of “ashes to ashes;” and by these
and similar links of connection we pass gradually from the
Christian system to the system of Paganism that preceded it.
But when we advance beyond the Christian boundary in
Scotland we enter on a region singularly destitute of materials
by which the burial customs of the people may be correlated
.bn 036.png
.pn +1
with those which offer indications of their culture and civilisation.
The general phenomena of the burials of the Celtic
Paganism of the Iron Age in Scotland are not disclosed by
any recorded observations known to me. If they exist, they
exist either as phenomena of unrecognised character or as
phenomena which are still unobserved. I therefore proceed
to the examination of a group of phenomena disclosing the
existence within the Celtic area of a system of Paganism
which was not of Celtic origin; and I turn to these phenomena
as the only materials available for the demonstration of
the character of Pagan burial—premising that they belong to
a time when, owing to the intrusion of a foreign element, the
Christian form and the Pagan form were closely contiguous
and contemporary in Scotland.
.tb
In the autumn of 1878 the late Mr. William Campbell of
Ballinaby, on the west coast of the island of Islay, passing
through the sandy links there, had his attention arrested by
the unusual appearance of a patch of iron-rust in a hollow
from which the sand had drifted. Examining the spot more
closely, he found that there was a deposit of iron implements
in the sand. Digging out the deposit, he discovered that it
had been disposed in two contiguous graves, each containing
a skeleton laid at full length, with the head to the east and
the feet to the west, the boundary of each grave being marked
by an enclosure formed of stones set on edge in the sand.
In grave No. 1 he found the following objects deposited
with the skeleton:—
.pm start_quote
An iron sword in its sheath (Fig. #5:f_5#).
The iron boss of a shield, with its handle of bronze or brass
still attached. (The boss and handle are shown in Fig. 6, and
the handle separately in Fig. 7.)
An iron spear-head with wide blade and long socket (Fig. #8:f_8#).
An iron object, having a wide socket at one end of a long
shank (Fig. #9:f_9#).
.bn 037.png
.pn +1
A conical iron object with the remains of wood adhering to
the interior surface (Fig. #10:f_10#).
A number of fragments of corrugated iron (Fig. #11:f_11#).
A hollow cylindrical object of bronze with a globular end,
probably the mounting of the end of a small sheath (Fig. #13:f_13#).
An iron axe-head, not differing greatly from the modern
form, the eye broken (Fig. #14:f_14#).
An iron axe-head of similar form, but longer in the shank,
the eye entire (also shown in Fig. #14:f_14#).
The iron head of a small adze, nearly entire (Fig. #15:f_15#).
The iron head of a hammer, entire (Fig. #16:f_15#).
A pair of forge-tongs, partially broken (Fig. #17:f_17#).
The broken fragments of a large iron pot, and its bow-handle,
broken (Fig. #18:f_18#).
.pm end_quote
In grave No. 2 he found the following objects deposited
with the skeleton:—
.pm start_quote
A pair of oval bowl-shaped brooches of bronze, ornamented
with pierced and chased work and with plaited bands of silver
wire and studs, of which the pins only remain (Fig. #20:f_20#).
The brass spring-pins of the two brooches (Fig. #19:f_19#).
Portions of three pairs of discs of thin bronze, plated with
silver, each pair connected by a narrow band, the discs ornamented
with bosses arranged in circles, and the bands with
borders all in repoussé work (Fig. #21:f_21#).
A silver hair-pin with a globular head, ornamented with
filigree work, and furnished with a ring of wire fastened by a
peculiar twisting of one end round the other (Fig. #22:f_22#).
A silver chain-like ornament, formed of fine silver wire
knitted as a hollow tube, knotted at the two ends, and furnished
at one end with a ring fastened by a peculiar twisting of the ends
round each other (Fig. #23:f_23#).
Seven beads of coloured glass, enamelled on the surface with
patterns in different colours (Fig. #24:f_24#).
A saucepan of thin bronze, with a long flat handle (Fig. #25:f_25#).
A hemispherical lump of black glass, in shape nearly resembling
the bottom of a bottle, and having its convex side rubbed
and striated by use (Fig. #26:f_26#).
A small object like a needle-case, of silver, broken, and containing
what seems to be a portion of a broken needle of bronze.
.pm end_quote
It is apparent, from the nature of the groups of objects
severally associated with the two burials, that No. 1 was the
.bn 038.png
.pn +1
grave of a man, and No. 2 was the grave of a woman. The
man was buried with his arms and implements, the woman
with her personal ornaments and housewife’s gear. It is equally
apparent, from an examination of the whole phenomena of the
burials, that there is an obvious absence of all indications of
Christianity. They are not destitute of characteristics possessing
a special significance, but they are destitute of characteristics
possessing such significance as could be attributed
to the faith and hope of the Christian creed, or explained by
reference to any recognised customs of Christian burial.
They suggest, for instance, a condition of life considerably
removed from absolute poverty; they present indications of
culture and taste, of skill and industry, of manly vigour and
womanly grace. But the position of the graves, with the
head to the east and the feet to the west, is the opposite of
that referred to by the liturgical writers of early Christian
times as the proper position of the Christian dead, who
should be placed with their feet to the east, so that in rising
they may face their Lord as He comes from the east. And
there is no feature which can be more surely relied on as an
indication of early Christian burial than this orientation of
the grave which is here so plainly disregarded.
.il id=f_5 fn=fig005_039.jpg w=100px ew=20% align=r
.ca Fig. 5.—Sword found in the grave at Ballinaby, Islay (36½ inches in length).
If the absence of all indications of Christianity be thus
obvious, there is no less obviously a complete absence of all
the characteristics of art and art-workmanship with which
we have become familiar in the progress of our investigation.
There is no Celticism apparent in the art of the decorated
objects placed in these graves. The characteristics which we
have found to be constantly present in the decorative metal-work
of the Celtic school of art are notably absent, and
those that are present are mostly new and strange to us. If
the phenomena of the burials are clearly not Christian, the
characteristics of the art are as clearly not Celtic.
To find such weapons of bronze or stone as are commonly
.bn 039.png
.pn +1
styled prehistoric deposited with the dead excites no feeling
of surprise, because we know, in a general way, that this was
the common custom of prehistoric Paganism. But when we
find in a grave, along with the ordinary weapons of war, a
collection of implements like this—a group of actual tools of
iron—scarcely differing in shape, and not differing in material
from those now in use in our workshops, we instantly realise
the presence of a phenomenon at once unusual and suggestive.
It is unusual in this country because our forefathers received
Christianity early, and Christianity abolished the custom of
placing implements in graves. It is suggestive
because it enables us to perceive how closely
the characteristic customs of the man we call
primeval may be linked with the arts and
culture of modern times. It is therefore a
phenomenon which it is desirable to investigate
as fully as possible.
.il id=f_6 fn=fig006_040.jpg w=175px ew=35% align=l
.ca Fig. 6.—Boss of Shield, with Handle\
attached, found in grave No. 1 at\
Ballinaby, Islay.
For this purpose it will be necessary to
examine in detail the principal objects found
in the graves, with the view of determining
their typical characteristics and relations.
First, I take the sword (Fig. #5:f_5#) as the most
important, and therefore the most likely to
disclose its typical relationship by comparison
with others. It is a long, broad-bladed, double-edged
weapon, tapering slightly and evenly from
hilt to point. Its whole length is 36½ inches.
The blade is 2¾ inches wide at the junction
with the guard of the hilt, 2½ inches in the
middle of its length, and 1½ where it begins to
be rounded off at the point. The grip of the
hilt, which is covered with leather, is 3¾ inches
in length. The guard, which forms a straight collar to the
blade, flattened on the upper and under surfaces, and convex
.bn 040.png
.pn +1
on both sides, is 4¼ inches in length. The pommel, which is
triangular in outline and convex from the apex to the base,
is 2½ inches high, 4 inches from
side to side, and 1½ inches
thick. Portions of the wooden
lining of the scabbard still
adhere to the blade.[17]
.fm rend=t
.fn 17
Pennant figures an iron sword
of this type in the second volume of
his Tour in Scotland, plate xliv., but
dismisses it with the remark that
it is “part of an iron sword found in
Islay.”
.fn-
.fm rend=t
The shield boss (Fig. #6:f_6#) is a
round piece of hammered iron,
like a hollow truncated cone,
the outlines being those of an
ogee curve instead of rectilinear.
It measures 3¼ inches
diameter and 3½ inches high,
the flattened top being half an
inch across. The base of the
cone impinged upon the wood
of the shield, to which it was
securely fastened by two rivets
passing through the flange of
the boss and through the wood.
Other two rivets, placed in the
circumference of the flange
midway between these two, also
passed through the wood of the
shield and were riveted into
the handle. The handle is of
brass or bronze, 7¼ inches in
length, convex on the exterior
.bn 041.png
.pn +1
surface, and concave internally in the direction of its breadth,
and slightly convex also in outline in the direction of its
length. It is ornamented (as shown in Fig. #7:f_7#) by bands of
engraved lines forming
reticulated patterns, and
terminates at both ends
in slightly raised circular
discs, furnished with
loops in front and back.
The front loops apparently
passed through the
wood of the shield, those
on the backs of the discs
must have stood free on
the inside of the shield,
and were probably used
for its suspension by a
strap slung across the
shoulder. Portions of the
wood of the shield still
adhere to the edges of the
boss. This specimen
shows what has never
before been seen in this
country, viz. the method
of attachment of the boss
and handle through the
wood of the shield.
.il id=f_7 fn=fig007_041.jpg w=500px ew=90%
.ca Fig. 7.—Handle of Shield, front view (7¼ inches in length).
.dv class='column-container right width40'
.dv class='column'
.il id=f_8 fn=fig008_041.jpg w=100% ew=100%
.ca Fig. 8.—Spear-head found in grave No. 1, at Ballinaby, Islay (7 inches in length).
.dv-
.dv class='column'
.il id=f_9 fn=fig009_041.jpg w=100% ew=100%
.ca Fig. 9.—Ferrule found in grave No. 1 (6 inches in length).
.dv-
.dv-
The spear-head (Fig.8)
.bn 042.png
.pn +1
is a long and stout-bladed weapon, straight-edged, and tapering
equally from the butt of the blade, which is unbarbed,
the short neck of the blade passing gradually into the rounded
socket. The blade is now only 7 inches in length, but was
probably about 10 inches long and 2 inches wide at the butt.
The socket still contains a portion of the wood of the shaft.
With these weapons there are other relics to which it is
less easy to assign a definite purpose, such as the iron object
(Fig. #9:f_9#), 6 inches in length, which may have been the ferrule
of a shaft, if not the heel of the spear-shaft itself, which was
often mounted with an iron prong for convenience of thrusting
it into the ground.
.dv class='column-container'
.dv class='column28'
.il id=f_10 fn=fig010_042.jpg w=100% ew=100%
.ca Fig. 10.—Iron Ferrules found in grave No. 1 at Ballinaby.
.dv-
.dv class='column28'
.il id=f_11 fn=fig011_042.jpg w=100% ew=100%
.ca Fig. 11.—Fragment of Iron from grave No. 1 at Ballinaby.
.dv-
.dv class='column44'
.il id=f_12 fn=fig012_042.jpg w=100% ew=100%
.ca Fig. 12.—Bronze Plaque, from Oland (actual size).
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Akin to this object is the broken portion of a conical
ferrule (shown in Fig. #10:f_10#), and there are a number of fragments
of an iron object with a corrugated surface, as if
formed of thick wires laid side by side (Fig. #11:f_11#). None of the
fragments suggest the probable size or form of the object
when entire, or reveal its purpose. But in the figure of a
warrior represented on a small bronze plaque (Fig. #12:f_12#), dug
up in the island of Oland, we see a helmet formed of bands of
.bn 043.png
.pn +1
somewhat similar appearance, and the sword he bears in his
hand is a sword of the peculiar type associated with these
peculiar relics.
.il id=f_13 fn=fig013_043.jpg w=125px ew=20% align=r
.ca Fig. 13.—Sheath Mounting of Bronze from grave No. 1 at Ballinaby (actual size).
A small and elegantly-formed and ornamented object of
bronze (Fig. #13:f_13#), with a cylindrical socket,
terminating in a globose and lobated expansion,
with a rope-like moulding round the
upper part of the terminal expansion,
appears to have been the mounting of the
end of a small sheath. A similar object,
nearly of the same size, having its globose
termination ornamented with a grotesque
face was found in a grave in the island of
Westray, in Orkney, and will be hereafter
referred to. (See Fig. #50:f_50#.)
.il id=f_14 fn=fig014_043.jpg w=400px ew=75% cw=110%
.ca Fig. 14.—Axe-heads of Iron (⅓), from grave No. 1 at Ballinaby.
The implements associated with these
weapons and accoutrements in the man’s
grave are equally worthy of special examination,
because, when regarded as a representative group, it
will be seen that they point with equal definiteness to the
.bn 044.png
.pn +1
same conclusion as to the typical character and relations of
the special form of burial with which we are dealing.
The iron axe-heads (Fig. #14:f_14#) found in the grave were two
in number, nearly alike in form and dimensions, though
somewhat mutilated. They do not differ greatly from the
modern form of the implement, and are good serviceable
tools.
.il id=f_15 fn=fig015-016_044.jpg w=400px ew=75%
.ca Figs. 15 and 16.—Adze and Hammer (½), from grave No. 1 at Ballinaby.
The small adze-head (Fig. #15:f_15#) and the hammer-head (Fig. #16:f_15#)
of iron are also good serviceable tools, not differing greatly
from forms that are still in use, but possessing, in common
with the axes, sufficient individuality of form and character
to establish their typical relationship as members of a special
group.
.il id=f_17 fn=fig017_045.jpg w=450px ew=75%
.ca Fig. 17.—Forge-Tongs (⅓) from grave No. 1 at Ballinaby.
The forge-tongs (Fig. #17:f_17#), in the same manner, present
features of individuality which are capable of being correlated
with a special variety of this type of tool confined to a special
area, and usually occurring in certain special associations
of a similar character to those in which this example occurs.
.bn 045.png
.pn +1
.il id=f_18 fn=fig018_045.jpg w=450px ew=80%
.ca Fig. 18.—Bow-Handle of Iron Pot, one end broken (⅓), from grave No. 1\
at Ballinaby.
The broken fragments of the large iron pot present no
features of character that can be recognised as distinctive.
They are simple fragments of a large culinary pot, the
diameter of which is indicated by the span of the iron bow-handle
(Fig. #18:f_18#), of which about half remains entire. But
though the pot itself is not a specially remarkable object, the
occurrence of an iron culinary pot in such associations is a
fact of sufficiently remarkable character to be of importance
in the determination of the special relations of a burial distinguished
by such a group of unusual phenomena.
Let us now examine in detail the special characteristics
of the ornaments and other articles found in the grave of
the woman.
.il id=f_19 fn=fig019_046.jpg w=350px ew=70%
.ca Fig. 19.—Brass Spring-Pin of Brooch, from grave No. 2 at Ballinaby.
.il id=f_20 fn=fig020_046.jpg w=450px ew=80%
.ca Fig. 20.—Oval Bowl-shaped Brooch found in grave No. 2 at Ballinaby, Islay.
The most peculiar and striking objects among these
ornaments are the two brooches. They are determined to be
brooches by the fact that they are each furnished with a pin
.bn 046.png
.pn +1
on the under side. These pins, which are of brass, are of very
peculiar construction.[18] The head of the pin (Fig. #19:f_19#) is bent
back to form a loop, by which the pin is secured in a socket
formed by two projections from the inner surface of the
brooch, in which a small rod is riveted passing through the
loop of the pin. On this rod, the pin plays as on a hinge.
The free end of the loop of the pin, doubled back and
recurved, impinges on the inner and concave surface of the
brooch, and acts as a spring when the point of the pin is
pressed back to be slipped under a projecting catch on the
opposite end of the brooch. When in its place it lies
under the concavity in a line with the longest diameter of the
brooch, which is oval and bowl-shaped, convex externally and
concave internally. The body of the brooch (Fig. #20:f_20#), which
is 4¾ inches in length, 3 inches in width, and 1½ inch in height,
.bn 047.png
.pn +1
is double,[19] consisting of an outer and highly ornamented shell
of pierced open work, placed over an inner shell which is
smooth and highly gilt on the upper surface, so that the
gilding may appear through the open work above it. This
open work consists of a series of patterns which are similar
as to the general effect, though they vary in their details.
They are arranged in equal segmentai divisions of the
convexity of the brooch, and separated by continuous bands
of unpierced metal. These bands are traversed longitudinally
by furrows, in which plaited strands of fine silver wire are
laid and carried through perforations at the junctions where
they cross each other. At these junctions are circular spaces,
each of which has borne a knob or stud, probably of coloured
paste or enamelled glass. These are all gone, but the pins
that fastened them remain. The patterns themselves are
zoomorphic in character, but their zoomorphism is radically
different from that of the Celtic school. It is zoomorphism
in which the details are sacrificed to the general effect, as if
in the mind of the artist the idea of the ornament was
dominant, and the idea of the form of its parts subordinate.
No two styles of ornament could be more widely dissimilar.
The artist of the Celtic school produced his effects by simple
variation of the arrangements of his stereotyped forms. In all
the intricate interlacements of his zoomorphic patterns, the
typical forms employed to produce the most bewilderingly
beautiful combinations are substantially the same, and their
parts are the same. His zoomorphism was consistent
throughout. If the conventional beast was there at all, his
tail was there, and his crest, and his limbs—he was there
in unvarying completeness of form and conventionality of
feature. But this zoomorphism renders nothing distinctly.
There is a suggestion of heads here and wings there, but
.bn 048.png
.pn +1
there may be no bodies and no limbs, or there may be a
suggestion of limbs to which no bodies effeir. The Celtic
artist built up his patterns with the forms of his conventional
beasts laboriously expressed. This artist simply blocks out
his pattern and covers it with suggestions of animal forms.
.fm rend=t
.fn 18
The pins of all the other specimens of this type of brooch that are preserved
in the Museum have been of iron, and have consequently disappeared
by oxidation. Without the Ballinaby brooches we should not have known
the construction of the pin.
.fn-
.fn 19
See the figure of the Tiree brooch, which is engraved with the upper shell
removed from its place, and each shown separately (Fig. #31:f_31#).
.fn-
.fm rend=t
But if the art of these brooches is not Celtic, the form
differs no less widely from that of the Celtic brooches,
which is penannular, with flattened and expanded ends. No
brooch of this oval bowl-shaped form occurs within the Celtic
area, either ornamented with Celtic art, or associated with
objects of exclusively Celtic origin.
.dv class='column-container width66'
.dv class='column66'
.il id=f_21 fn=fig021_049.jpg w=100% ew=100% cw=80%
.ca Fig. 21.—Double Disc of thin Bronze, from grave\
No. 2 at Ballinaby (7½ inches in length).
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.il id=f_22 fn=fig022_049.jpg w=100% ew=100%
.ca Fig. 22.—Silver Hair-Pin, from grave No. 2 at Ballinaby (actual size).
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Equally characteristic, and as widely different from
anything that we have seen of Celtic forms or Celtic art, are
the forms and the art of the double discs of plated metal
(Fig. #21:f_21#), of which three were found in the same grave with the
brooches. They are so thin and so sorely wasted that they
could only have been recovered from a sandy soil, and even
then, if they had been subjected to less careful handling, we
should have been unable to establish their original form.
They are all imperfect, the most entire being 7½ inches in
length, consisting of a pair of buckler-like discs, ornamented
with bosses and concentric circles, and connected by a band
ornamented with zigzags and pellets, all in repoussé work.
It is difficult even to conjecture what may have been their use.
They are of silvered bronze, and if they had occurred in the
man’s grave, they might have been supposed to have been
ornamental mountings of the shield. But Mr. Campbell’s
testimony as to their occurrence in the grave of the woman
is distinct, and it is equally clear from their form and
character, that they are objects of ornament, but neither the
form nor the character of the objects gives any clue to the
manner in which they were worn.
The silver hair-pin (Fig. #22:f_22#), with globular head and ring
attached by a loop, is 5 inches in length. The globular head is
.bn 049.png
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.bn 050.png
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ornamented with double reversing spiral scrolls of filigree
work of notched wire, finely executed. The ring of wire
which hangs in the loop on the summit of the globular head
of the pin, is also notched, and the ends twisted round each
other in a fashion which is characteristic of many similarly
joined rings of this type; as, for instance, the ring attached to
the end of the chain of knitted wire to be next described.
.il id=f_23 fn=fig023_050.jpg w=400px ew=80%
.ca Fig. 23.—Chain of Knitted Silver Wire, 15 inches in length, and end portion\
of the Chain of the actual size, from grave No. 2 at Ballinaby.
The chain of knitted silver wire (Fig. #23:f_23#) is an object of
very peculiar character, but its relations are not difficult to
establish.[20] Its total length is 16 inches, and its width ¼ inch.
It is formed of silver wire of the fineness of sewing thread,
.bn 051.png
.pn +1
knitted as a hollow tube, with the common knitting-stitch
used in knitting stockings. The knots at the ends of the
tube are produced separately, and fastened on. The ring at
the end of the chain has its ends twisted together in the
same manner as the ring attached to the hair-pin.
.fm rend=t
.fn 20
A portion of a similar chain occurred in the Croy find (Scotland in Early
Christian Times, Second Series, p. 23); also in the Skaill hoard, to be subsequently
described; in the hoard at Cuerdale; and in a small hoard found in
the Isle of Inchkenneth.
.fn-
.fm rend=t
.il id=f_24 fn=fig024_050.jpg w=450px ew=80%
.ca Fig. 24.—Beads found in grave No. 2 at Ballinaby (actual size).
The beads of coloured glass found in the graves (of which
the different varieties are shown in Fig. #24:f_24#), were seven in
number. In all probability, only a part of them were
recovered. They present the peculiarity of being formed of
glass of different colours fused together so as to present a
variegated surface, sometimes in regular patterns of different
colours.
.il id=f_25 fn=fig025_051.jpg w=400px ew=80%
.ca Fig. 25.—Saucepan of thin Bronze, from grave No. 2 at Ballinaby (17½ inches in length).
The saucepan of thin bronze (Fig. #25:f_25#) is extremely light,
of good shape and excellent workmanship. Its whole length
is 17½ inches,—the handle being 12 inches in length, the bowl
5½ inches wide and 3½ inches deep. It is formed of extremely
thin beaten bronze, not much thicker than writing
paper. A T-shaped fillet surrounds the rim, giving strength
and rigidity to the upper part of the bowl. Below the rim
are three slight mouldings in repoussé work. The handle is
strengthened by a T-shaped fillet on either edge, and the
circular expansion at the end is ornamented with a disc
hammered up from the under side.
The hemispherical implement of black glass (which is here
shown in Fig. #26:f_26#), is the most peculiar object found in this
.bn 052.png
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grave. In shape it nearly resembles the bottom of a common
black bottle, though flatter in the concavity and scarcely so
large, being 3 inches in diameter and 1½ inches in thickness.
It has been made by “throwing” a lump of glass in fusion,
and has evidently been “thrown” in this special form for
a special purpose. That purpose, as we shall see hereafter, is
indicated by the marks of use on its convex side,—which is
considerably rubbed and striated, chiefly towards the centre
where the surface is most prominent.
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.dv class='column40'
.il id=f_26 fn=fig026a_052.jpg w=100% ew=100%
.ca Back view.
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.il fn=fig026b_052.jpg w=100% ew=100%
.ca Front view.
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.il fn=fig026c_052.jpg w=100% ew=100%
.ca Section.
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.ce
Fig. 26.—Implement of Black Glass, from grave No. 2 at Ballinaby (3 inches\
in diameter).
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Lastly, a little cylinder of bronze plated with silver, about
2 inches in length and scarcely so thick as a common pencil-case,
contains in its interior, adhering to one of its sides, what
seems to be the point end of a needle of bronze.
From this detailed examination of the objects associated
with these interments, we perceive that they are for the most
part objects presenting a strongly marked individuality of
character. The weapons form a peculiar group, consisting of
a long, broad-bladed, double-edged sword, with short, straight
guard and triangular pommel; a light wooden shield with a
truncated boss of iron, and a long, stout-bladed, and unbarbed
spear. The ornaments also form a peculiar group, the brooches
being large, oval, and bowl-shaped, and covered with patterns
.bn 053.png
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of zoomorphic decoration, imperfectly expressed. Reverting
to the remarks made on the essential qualities of this peculiar
style of decoration, it will be remembered that it differs
widely in character and spirit from the decoration of the Celtic
school with which we have now become familiar; and if the
general teaching of these Lectures, in regard to the value of
decoration as an index to the archæological relations of the
objects on which it is found, has been successfully applied, it
must be obvious that there is no Celticism apparent in these
objects. We are unable to compare the forms of the weapons
and implements with forms obtained from Celtic burials,
because no iron sword, no iron spear, or wooden shield has
ever been found in Scotland in association with any burial
demonstrably of Celtic character. And no such group of
implements as axes and smithy-tools of iron has ever been
found in association with any interment on the mainland of
Scotland. The obvious inference is that these two burials,
with their associated groups of weapons, implements, and
ornaments possessing such strongly marked and unusual
characteristics, may be outlying examples of a form of burial
and associated types of objects, whose special area is not
Celtic, and therefore probably not in Scotland.
I have already explained that since it is difficult, if not
impossible, to point to any given area which has remained
unaffected by movements of populations, invasions, colonisations,
and other changes not dependent on purely physical
conditions, we must be prepared for the occurrence, among
the products that are indigenous to the soil, of other products
archæologically characteristic of other areas; and I have
endeavoured to show how these are separable from the purely
indigenous types by their difference in character and decoration,
and how they are assignable to their parent area by their
identity with the types native to the region from which they
are derived. This is the problem we have now to deal with.
.bn 054.png
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The most prominent features of the form of burial
exhibited by these Islay graves are that it is burial unburnt,
and with grave-goods. I have already shown that these are
features that are common to almost all forms of Paganism.
But there seems to be a special suggestiveness in the character
of the group of objects deposited in the man’s grave.
Since he took with him his sword and spear, his axe and
shield, and took also with him his smithy-tools to keep them
in repair, it seems a fair inference that his form of faith must
have taught him to look for a continuance of warfare in the
life beyond the grave. We know that such a faith existed,
and that the Northern and Western Isles of Scotland were
overrun by men who held it at a time when such implements
and weapons of iron were in common use. The special
feature which distinguished the wild creed of the Northmen
from most other forms of heathenism was that it promised a
place in Odin’s Hall to all men wounded by arms or slain in
battle. Spears supported the ceiling of this Valhalla; it was
roofed with shields, and coats of mail adorned its benches.
It was the perpetual pastime of its inmates to fight and slay
each other every day, to be revived again before evening, and
then to ride back to the feast of boar’s flesh and mead. If,
therefore, it can be shown that the forms of the weapons,
implements, and ornaments thus found in these Islay graves
are the forms of the Norwegian area, and that, when they
occur in Scotland, they are found in those portions of
Scottish territory that were possessed and colonised by the
Norwegians—and found only there—the demonstration of
the character, period, and relations of these burials will be
complete.
The materials for forming an estimate of the typical
character of the burials of the Viking time in Norway are
ample, and they have been very fully described by the
Norwegian archæologists. Upwards of a thousand graves of
.bn 055.png
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this period are known. The form of burial which they
exhibit is burial with grave-goods. The burial is usually
covered by a mound, either round or oblong in shape. The
mounds vary greatly in size, but they differ from those of the
early Iron Age, and of all previous ages, in being usually
unfurnished with either cist or chamber. Stones are often
found set round the burial, which, when the body was unburnt,
was simply laid on the natural surface, and the mound
heaped over it. In Norway the custom of burning the body
exceeds in frequency the custom of burying unburnt by about
four to one. Where the body has been burnt it is usually
found that the grave-goods have also passed
through the fire, but this is not always the case.
The burnt remains are either found spread over
the area of the base of the mound or gathered together
in a heap in the centre. Very frequently
they are found placed in an urn. The urns of the
Viking time are very rarely made of clay, but are
either hollowed out of some soft stone, such as
steatite, or they are caldrons made of thin plates
of iron riveted together, or beaten out in bronze.
The grave-goods buried with these interments include
the clothing, weapons, implements, or ornaments
used or possessed by the deceased, and the
furnishings of the grave are thus rich in proportion
to the wealth and station of the individual.
.il id=f_27 fn=fig027_055.jpg w=100px ew=15% align=r
.ca Fig. 27.—Sword found at Vik, in Norway.
The sword which is characteristic of these interments
in Norway is a peculiar weapon. It is
long, broad-bladed, often double-edged, and usually
furnished with a short, straight guard and a
triangular pommel. One which was ploughed up
from a grave-mound at Vik, in Flaa Sogn in Norway,
in 1837, is shown in Fig. 27 for comparison
with those of the same type found in Scotland. I have said
.bn 056.png
.pn +1
that we have no Celtic sword of this type. It is the type
which prevailed in Scandinavia during the last three centuries
of their heathen period. It differs from the types that preceded
and succeeded it in Norway, and it differs also from
the types of swords of the later Iron Age in other countries
of Europe. It is specially the sword of the Norwegian Viking.
As the sword is the most characteristic object among the
grave-goods of the man, the brooch is also the most characteristic
object among the grave-goods of the woman. The
brooch, which is constantly found in these interments in
Norway, is a most peculiar ornament. It is always of brass,
massive, oval, and bowl-shaped in form, and is distinguished
from all other brooches that are known, not only of this, but
of every other area and every other time, by the fact that it
is an article of personal adornment which (though as capable
of being used singly as any other form of fibula might be), is
almost never found singly, but constantly occurs in pairs—the
one being usually an almost exact duplicate of the other.
This singular type of brooch is the special ornament of the
female dress which prevailed in Norway during the last three
centuries of their heathen period.[21] It differs entirely from
the types that preceded and succeeded it; and it differs as
completely from the types of the later Iron Age in all other
European countries.
.fm rend=t
.fn 21
For this reason the geographical distribution of these brooches marks
the range of the Scandinavian conquests of the ninth and tenth centuries.
In Iceland, in Russian Livonia, in Normandy, in England, in Ireland, and
on our own shores in Shetland, Orkney, Caithness, and Sutherland, and in
the Hebrides, including even the remote St. Kilda, their presence attests the
historical fact of the Viking settlements from Norway. But the area in
which they are specially abundant, of course, is in Scandinavia itself. I find
on comparing the different records that there are now upwards of five hundred
of them known in Norway. When we add the number known in Sweden,
which exceeds four hundred, and those of Denmark, which only amount to
thirty-eight, we have a gross total of nearly a thousand, of which the larger
portion are from Norway. No archæological period in any country is marked
by such a distinctly peculiar and characteristic type.
.fn-
.fm rend=t
We therefore see that if the sword thus found in Islay
.bn 057.png
.pn +1
had been dug up in Norway it would have taken its place as
one in a great series of the ordinary Viking type, and these
brooches from the woman’s grave would have matched
exactly with some hundreds of similar pairs from Norwegian
graves.[22] The whole group of objects would have corresponded
with the special characters of many similar groups preserved
in the Christiania Museum. The special forms of each of the
members of the groups—as, for instance, the forge-tongs, the
hammer, the adze, the axes,—are all forms that are abundantly
represented in Viking graves there. Nicolaysen gives
twenty-three instances of smithy-hammers, and seventeen
instances of forge-tongs among the articles found in grave-mounds
of the Viking time described by him, in Norway.
Several of these grave-mounds contained more or less complete
sets of smith’s tools, including anvils, chisels, files, as
well as hammers and tongs. Along with an interment of
this period at Thiele, in Jutland, there were two anvils of
different forms, four different kinds of hammers, four varieties
of pincers or forge-tongs, two chisels, two implements for
drawing wire, four files, two melting pans, a pair of scales and
weights, and a quantity of other implements. It was natural
that the smith’s craft should hold a high place in the estimation
.bn 058.png
.pn +1
of a people wholly devoted to the use of arms, and as
famous for their skill in forging, tempering, and ornamenting
weapons as for their prowess in using them. But such
homelier objects as the pot and the saucepan of the Islay
graves are common accompaniments of these interments in
Norway, and the counterparts of the implement of black glass
found in the woman’s grave may be seen in the museums of
that country, and their purpose demonstrated by specimens
that are actually still in use. Nicolaysen describes them as
lumps of glass formed like the bottom of a bottle, and the
character of the objects usually associated with them may be
indicated by the contents of one grave-mound in which this
implement occurs. The mound was a large one, 44½ feet
long, and 73 feet broad, set round the base with large stones.
It contained an interment after cremation. The ashes were
gathered into a bronze vessel, 8 inches high, and 17 inches in
greatest diameter, over which was inverted a pot of steatite,
both vessels enclosing a quantity of iron implements cemented
into a solid mass of oxidation and burnt human bones.
Among the implements were a lump of glass like the bottom
of a bottle, a knife-blade, the rings of a bridle-bit, an axe,
a sickle-blade, a whetstone, some bronze ornaments, and an
ox-horn. Alongside of the bronze vessel were a spear-head
and a frying-pan of iron, 8½ inches diameter, with 7 inches of
the handle remaining, and all around were large quantities of
clinker nails. Here the associations of the glass implement
are similar in character to its associations in the Islay graves.
Its purpose is demonstrated by the facts recorded by Nicolaysen
and Lorange, who state that in Mandal Amt and in
several remote districts on the west coast of Norway, the
women still use them for giving a gloss to their white linen
caps, and generally for getting up a gloss on linen by friction.[23]
.fm rend=t
.fn 22
In a letter to me acknowledging receipt of a copy of my “Notes of the
Relics of the Viking Period of the Northmen in Scotland,” Professor Rygh,
Curator of the Museum at Christiania, says:—“Among the oval brooches
which you have figured, there is not one that might not have been found in
Norway. The brooch from Pierowall is of a form exceedingly common with
us, of which I know no fewer than one hundred and eight specimens. The
commonest form of all in Norway is that of the brooches from Islay and Tiree,
of which we have one hundred and eighteen examples. The brooches from
the Longhills at Wick belong to a variety of the last form well known with
us, and that from Castletown in Caithness has many analogous examples here
in Norway, although they are not so common as the two previously mentioned
types.”
.fn-
.fn 23
When showing the relics from the Ballinaby graves to a lady, she
remarked that in her home in Caithness she remembered seeing a similar
article of glass, which she was told was formerly used for a similar purpose.
Though now resident in Edinburgh, she believed the implement was still
preserved, and at my request she made search for it, found it, and sent it to
the Museum. It is an implement so similar in form to the ancient specimen,
that there can be no question as to the identity of type. It is of black
bottle glass, 3 inches in diameter, and 1¾ inch thick, and is here engraved
(Fig. #28:f_28#) to the same scale as the specimen from the Ballinaby grave
(Fig. #26:f_26#). That the discovery of this lump of glass in a Pagan grave should
be the means of bringing to light the existence of similar implements in
Scotland which had continued in use till within living memory, is a curious
illustration of the rapidity with which the knowledge of special implements
and special processes becomes extinct when the implement has been superseded
by a new form and its use rendered obsolete by an improved process. The
placing of this specimen (of the modern type) in the Museum has brought
to light other three specimens of modern calendaring implements of glass.
They are of larger size and furnished with handles, which are also of glass.
.fn-
.fm rend=t
.bn 059.png
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.dv class='column-container'
.dv class='column40'
.il id=f_28 fn=fig028a_059.jpg w=100% ew=100%
.ca Back view.
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.il fn=fig028b_059.jpg w=100% ew=100%
.ca Front view.
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.il fn=fig028c_059.jpg w=100% ew=100%
.ca Section.
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.ce
Fig. 28.—Linen Smoother of Black Glass, modern (3 inches diameter).
.dv-
It has thus been demonstrated that every feature of these
two Islay burials, and every object associated with them, is
clearly of Norwegian type, and of the heathen period of their
Viking time—that is, of the period ranging between the
beginning of the eighth and the end of the tenth centuries—and
that the sword of this peculiar form and the bowl-shaped
brooch of this remarkable type are the most characteristic
objects associated with this class of burials.
The next question that presents itself for determination
.bn 060.png
.pn +1
is, What is the range or area of this type of burial, associated
with these types of objects, in Scotland?
.il id=f_29 fn=fig029_060.jpg w=400px ew=80%
.ca
Fig. 29.—Brooch found at Ballinaby, Islay, in 1788.
One of a pair (4¼ inches in length).
.ca-
On this same estate of Ballinaby, in Islay, a grave was
discovered under a large standing-stone in the year 1788.
There is no precise record of the circumstances beyond the
fact that a pair of oval bowl-shaped brooches (Fig. #29:f_29#) were
found in it. They were presented to the National Museum,
and are thus preserved. They are of the same variety of
type as those previously described, but differing somewhat
in the patterns of their ornamentation. They are 4¼ inches
in length, 2⅞ inches in breadth, and 1¼ inch in height.
Their pins were of iron and are gone, but the hinge and catch
remain in both. The central ornament of the upper shell
is a raised boss, cast hollow in the metal, chased on the upper
surface, and pierced with four holes. The channels cut in
the bands of unpierced metal between the patterns of pierced
work, and the holes through which the plaited strands of
silver wires had passed, are visible, but the wires themselves
are gone. The holes for the pins that fastened the studs of
coloured paste on the circular spaces at the junction of the
bands are there, but pins and studs are both wanting. The
patterns of the ornamentation are zoomorphic, representing
winged, dragon-like animals placed face to face. The band
.bn 061.png
.pn +1
round the lower part of the under shell of the brooch is filled
with a suggestion of zoomorphic patterns in panels, and the
flange or flat border underneath it is divided into a series of
raised and sunk spaces, produced apparently by a triangular
punch.
.il id=f_30 fn=fig030_061.jpg w=400px ew=80%
.ca
Fig. 30.—Brooch found in a grave near Newton, Islay.
One of a pair (4⅛ inches in length).
.ca-
In 1845 a similar burial was discovered in the strath
near Newton Distillery, also in Islay. No record of the circumstances
is preserved, but two oval bowl-shaped brooches
(Fig. #30:f_30#) and an amber bead, which were found in the grave,
are in the possession of Mr. John Campbell of Islay. The
brooches are each 4⅛ inches in length, 2¾ inches in width,
and 1 inch in height. The pins had been of iron and are gone,
but the hinge and catch are still traceable. These brooches
differ from those that have been already described, inasmuch
as they are not double shelled but cast in one piece, that is,
they are made of a single shell, which is chased, but not
pierced in open-work patterns. The division and the arrangement
of the patterns are much the same as in those first
described, but there are no channels in the partitions for
silver wires, and the partitions themselves are ornamented
with a species of fret. The circular spaces at the junctions
of the partitions have been ornamented with studs of paste
pinned on, but studs and pins are both gone. The patterns
of the ornamentation are executed with a graving tool, but
.bn 062.png
.pn +1
they exhibit so little coherency of design that it is impossible
to call them zoomorphic.[24]
.fm rend=t
.fn 24
A similar grave was found in Mull, and the brooches are in the possession
of Lord Northampton at Torloisk, but I have no further information
regarding them.
.fn-
.fm rend=t
.il id=f_31 fn=fig031_062.jpg w=400px ew=80%
.ca
Fig. 31.—Brooch found in Tiree.
1. Under Shell of Brooch, gilt.
2. Upper Shell of pierced and chased work.
.ca-
In the old Statistical Account of Tiree it is stated that,
in digging at Cornaigbeg, there were found at different times
human skeletons, and nigh them skeletons of horses. Swords,
it is said, were also found, but diminished with rust,—silver-work
preserved the handles; there were also shields and
helmets. In March 1847 an oval bowl-shaped brooch of
this special character, which had been found in Tiree, was
exhibited to the Society by Sir John Graham Dalzell, but it
was not left in the Museum, and it is not now known what
became of it. But in 1872, the late Rev. Dr. Norman
Macleod presented to the Museum a brooch of this character
found in Tiree (Fig. #31:f_31#), which is almost precisely of the
.bn 063.png
.pn +1
same pattern as those first found in Islay. It is 4¼ inches
in length, 2¼ inches in breadth, and 1½ inch in height. It is
double, and is here figured with the upper and under shells
separated from each other so as to show the manner in which
they were fitted and pinned together, so that the smooth-gilded
surface of the under shell might shine through the
pierced work of the upper. This brooch also presents a
peculiar appearance common to them all, but which, in this
instance, is strongly marked. The interior of the under shell
is impressed with the texture of coarse cloth so distinctly,
that the size, number, and interweaving of the threads are as
visible as in the web. The cloth seems to be coarse linen,
and the appearance is really an impression cast in the metal.
These under shells were probably cast in moulds prepared in
this way—the side of the mould corresponding to the convex
surface with its ornamental border was cut in soft stone, a
thickness of wet cloth was then fitted into it corresponding
to the thickness of the metal, and over this a lump of clay
was rammed hard; the clay was lifted and the cloth removed,
thus leaving a cavity for the metal;[25] the clay became one
side of the mould and the stone the other, and, when the
metal was run in, it produced a cast of the impression of
the cloth retained upon the backing of clay. Thus these
brooches present castings in metal of the textile fabrics of the
eighth and ninth centuries, showing the thickness of its threads,
the method of weaving, and the general finish of the fabric.
But there is a still more interesting circumstance connected
.bn 064.png
.pn +1
with them in respect to the cloth of the period when they
were made and worn. In some instances they have not only
preserved casts in the metal of the impression of cloth in the
clay of the mould, but have actually preserved portions of the
dress in which they were worn, or in which they were fixed
when committed to the grave with the body of the wearer.
I have already stated that they have usually had pins of
iron, now represented by a lump of oxidation. In this
brooch from Tiree, and also in one which I brought from
Hakedalen, near Christiania, I have ascertained by careful
examination of this lump of oxidation that it has enclosed
and protected from decay a minute portion of puckered cloth
which had been caught between the point of the thick pin
and the iron catch into which it slipped when the brooch was
fastened on the dress. I have been able to remove and
mount for microscopical examination some small scraps of
this cloth. It appears to be linen, but with a partial admixture
of another fibre, which may be hemp, and I can detect
no material difference between the cloth in the specimen
from Norway and that from the island of Tiree on our own
western coast.
.fm rend=t
.fn 25
The metal of which these brooches are made is not bronze but a very
soft brass. Professor Rygh has given the details of the analyses of four, and
the composition of the metal is as follows:—
.ta l:34 r:8 r:8 r:8
Analyses of bowl-shaped brooches. | Copper. | Zinc. | Lead.
1. From Stromsund, Norway | 74·78 | 10·44 | 14·36
2. From Braak, Norway | 72·85 | 11·90 | 15·71
3. From Gardness, Norway | 88·00 | 11·90 | ...
4. From Denmark | 84·44 | 11·00 | 3·77
.ta-
.fn-
.fm rend=t
Continuing our inquiry as to the area over which these
peculiar relics have been found in Scotland, we ascertain that
there are other instances of their occurrence in the Hebrides.
On the island of Barra a large grave-mound, crowned by a
standing stone 7 feet high, was opened by Commander Edge
in 1862. The grave contained a skeleton placed with the
head to the west, and along with it there were found an iron
sword, 33 inches in length, with remains of the scabbard, a
shield-boss of iron and some remains of the shield, a whetstone,
two oval bowl-shaped brooches of this type, and a
comb of bone, 8 inches in length.[26] A similar burial was
.bn 065.png
.pn +1
found “in the island of Sangay” (probably Sanderay)
“between Uist and Harris.” The grave contained a skeleton,
and with it were found a pair of these brooches (closely
resembling Fig. 48, from Pierowall in Orkney), together with
a brass pin and a brass needle.[27] Even in remote St. Kilda
the evidences of the occurrence of this typical form of burial
are not wanting. A pair of these oval brooches found in
that island are preserved in the Andersonian Museum,
Glasgow.[28]
.fm rend=t
.fn 26
Proc. Soc. Antiq. Lond. 1861–64, p. 230. The comb is there said to have
been of boxwood, but it seems more likely that it was of bone.
.fn-
.fn 27
One of these brooches is figured in the Vetusta Monumenta of the Society
of Antiquaries of London, vol. ii. pl. xx., and it is there said that “the
fellow of it is in the British Museum.”
.fn-
.fn 28
One of these is figured by Worsaae in the Aarboger for Nordisk Oldkyndighed
for 1873.
.fn-
.fm rend=t
Coming now to the mainland of Scotland, we find that
one of these brooches is preserved in Ospisdale House,
Sutherlandshire, of which there is no precise record; but
there is every reason to conclude that it is one of a pair
found somewhere in the neighbourhood. Another pair were
found in a grave in the neighbourhood of Dunrobin Castle,
and the under shells of them are preserved in the Duke of
Sutherland’s museum there.
.il id=f_32 fn=fig032_066.jpg w=400px ew=80%
.ca Fig. 32.—Bowl-shaped Brooch, found with a Skeleton at Castletown,\
Caithness (4½ inches in length).
In Caithness there have been occasional discoveries of
interments of this character, but unfortunately no one seems
to have thought a burial which was associated with “rusty
pieces of old iron” worthy of careful investigation. The
Rev. Mr. Pope records, incidentally,[29] a remarkable discovery
of swords “in a peat bank near the house of Haimar” in the
neighbourhood of Thurso, and dismisses the subject with the
remark that “they were odd machines resembling plough-shares,
all iron.” A pair of oval bowl-shaped brooches of
great beauty were found at Castletown in Caithness in 1786.
One of these (Fig. #32:f_32#) is in the National Museum.[30] It is 4½
.bn 066.png
.pn +1
inches in length and 3 inches in width. It is double-shelled,
and the gilding, both on the under and upper shells, is still
visible, although the “double row of silver cord along the
edge,” which is noted in the first description of the brooches
when they were presented by James Traill of Rattar in
1787, is now gone. The centre of the convexity of the
brooch is surmounted by a bold ornament, in form somewhat
resembling a crown. The ornamentation is distinctly zoomorphic,
the four projecting ornaments below the centrepiece
being carved into the form of animals’ heads. These
brooches were “dug out of the top of the ruins” of a Broch
near Castletown, and were found “lying beside a skeleton,
buried under a flat stone with very little earth above it.”
This evidently implies that the interment had been made in
the upper part of the mound covering the ruins of the
Broch.[31]
.fm rend=t
.fn 29
Pope’s Translation of Torfaeus, Wick, 1866, p. 169.
.fn-
.fn 30
The other was given to Mr. Worsaae on the occasion of his visit to
Scotland, and I had no difficulty in recognising it in one of the cases of the
Museum at Copenhagen.
.fn-
.fn 31
It was the custom of the Northmen to bury their dead in mounds raised
in their honour, but they also took advantage of mounds already raised, and
of natural or artificial mounds which were convenient for the purpose. See
also the remarks on the use of the mounds covering the ruins of Brochs as
burial-places in the subsequent Lecture on Brochs.
.fn-
.fm rend=t
.bn 067.png
.pn +1
.il id=f_33 fn=fig033_067.jpg w=400px ew=80%
.ca Fig. 33.—Oval Bowl-shaped Brooch, found in a cist in the Longhills,\
Wick.
Another pair of these oval bowl-shaped brooches from
Caithness is also in the National Museum. They
were found in a cist in the top of a natural mound
of gravel called the Longhills, on the north side of
the river, a little above the bridge of Wick, in
1840. Although found together they differ in
pattern, one being nearly similar to the Tiree
brooch, while the other (Fig. #33:f_33#) differs from all
the Scottish specimens in having eight bosses of
open work arranged round the central boss. They
retain portions of the twisted strands of fine
silver wire which lay in the channeled depressions
of the upper part.
.il id=f_34 fn=fig034_067.jpg w=100px ew=20% align=r
.ca Fig. 34.—Sword found in Rousay (39¼ inches in length).
Passing from Caithness to Orkney, we find
abundant evidence of the same form of burial
associated with objects of similar character. At
Sweindrow, in the island of Rousay, there is a
field in which there are many graves, from which
objects of iron were occasionally turned up by
the plough many years ago, when the soil had
been less frequently disturbed. In the year 1826
a fine specimen of the peculiar type of sword
associated with these burials (Fig. #34:f_34#) was thus turned up by
.bn 068.png
.pn +1
the plough in close proximity to the spot where previously
the iron boss of a shield had been similarly discovered.[32] The
sword is a long, broad-bladed, double-edged weapon, with
short straight guard and triangular pommel. It measures 3
feet 3¼ inches in total length, the blade being 2 feet 8 inches
in length. The guard is 5 inches in length and 1¼ inch in
depth. The grip measures 3¼ inches in length. The pommel
is 4¼ inches in width and 3 inches in height. The blade,
which is 2⅛ inches wide at the hilt, has been in the
scabbard at the time of its deposit, and blade and scabbard
are now converted into a mass of oxidation. The scabbard
has been made of thin laths of wood, the fibre of which is
still visible, covered in some places with leather. There are
also some remains of the side-plates of bone or horn which
made up the grip, and the gilt metallic mounting which
adorned both ends of the grip still remains. The ornament
closely resembles that of the silver mounting of the rim of a
horn or beaker (Fig. #35:f_35#), which was dug up at Burghead some
time previous to 1826, and is now in the Museum. But the
ornament of the sword has a distinctly zoomorphic feeling,
and still more closely resembles the decoration of a similar
.bn 069.png
.pn +1
mounting of the hilt of a sword of the Viking type dug up at
Islandbridge, near Dublin, and preserved in the Museum
of the Royal Irish Academy.
.fm rend=t
.fn 32
This fine sword, now broken in many pieces, was presented to the
Museum in 1874 by the representatives of the late Professor Thomas S. Traill,
through the Rev. G. R. Omond, Free Church minister at Monzie, one of
the oldest Fellows of the Society.
.fn-
.fm rend=t
.il id=f_35 fn=fig035_068.jpg w=300px ew=60%
.ca
Fig. 35.—Silver Mounting of a Drinking-Horn found at Burghead
(2¾ inches diameter).
.ca-
Except in the island of Westray (in which seven specimens
have occurred), there is no record of the discovery of
the oval bowl-shaped brooches elsewhere in Orkney. I shall
describe the remarkable group of graves in Westray in connection
with the phenomena of burial, merely remarking
here that the presence of these brooches and this type of
sword carries the area of this form of burial into the Orkney
Islands.
Two oval bowl-shaped brooches, having the usual mark
of cloth on the inside of their inner shells, are also in the
museum at Lerwick. They were found at Clibberswick, in
the north end of the island of Unst, the most northerly island
of the Shetland group. Along with them there were found a
plain silver bracelet, two glass beads ornamented with twisted
streaks of white and blue, and a trefoil-shaped brooch of a
type which is also peculiarly Scandinavian, covered with a
zoomorphic ornament consisting of dragonesque forms, whose
feet twist under and grasp parts of their bodies.[33]
.fm rend=t
.fn 33
This trefoil-shaped brooch closely resembles one figured in the
Memoires de la Société des Antiquaires du Nord, 1840-44.
.fn-
.fm rend=t
The range of these burials, distinguished (among other
features peculiar to themselves), by the presence of this
peculiar type of sword and this remarkable type of brooch,[34]
.bn 070.png
.pn +1
has thus been traced through the western and northern isles
from Islay to Unst, in Shetland, touching the mainland only
in the counties of Sutherland and Caithness. This area,
established on archæological evidence, coincides exactly with
the area established by historical record as that which was
colonised and possessed by the Norwegians in the time of
their heathenism.
.fm rend=t
.fn 34
Including those found in the Viking cemetery at Pierowall, in Westray,
Orkney, the total number of these brooches found in Scotland is thirty-two.
The total number of Celtic brooches that I was able to enumerate was fourteen.
The difference is striking, and the fact that the foreign form occurs in larger
numbers than the native form is so opposed to what is naturally expected, that
the explanation becomes of some interest. It is simple, but significant. The
largeness of the larger number is an archæological result of Paganism. The
smallness of the smaller number is an archæological result of Christianity.
The effect of Paganism was that those who had brooches were buried with
them. The effect of Christianity was that brooches ceased to be buried with
those who had them. The tendency of the one system was to take all the
brooches ultimately into the soil with the remains of the generations that
wore them; the tendency of the other system was to keep the brooches from
going underground. Hence we see that the preponderance of these foreign
relics in the soil of Scotland (which is almost destitute of native relics of the
same age and purpose) is an archæological result which is directly dependent
on the difference between Paganism and Christianity.
.fn-
.fm rend=t
.tb
I now proceed to notice other instances in which burials
with grave-goods of a similar character, though differing more
or less in certain special features, have been observed. It is
but recently that they have attracted attention, and the
interest and significance of their peculiar phenomena is only
beginning to be understood.
.il id=f_36 fn=fig036_071.jpg w=350px ew=70%
.ca Fig. 36.—Sword-hilt of the Viking time, from a Grave-mound in the island of\
Eigg (7¼ inches in length).
.pm floatimage_e f_37 fig037_072 'Fig. 37.—Side view of Pommel of Sword-hilt.' 100 20 l
About fifty years ago, a grave-mound situated between
the chapel of St. Donan and the shore in the island of Eigg,
was levelled by the tenant of the land. No observations of
the phenomena of the burial were made, but the objects
found were fortunately preserved.[35] The principal object
found in this grave-mound was a sword-hilt of bronze (Fig. #36:f_36#),
7½ inches in length. In its form it resembles the hilt of the
Islay sword, but is greatly superior to it in the beauty of its
ornamentation and the skill of its workmanship. Indeed, I
know no finer or more elaborate piece of art workmanship of
the kind, either in this country or in Norway. It is constructed
in four pieces—the triangular pommel, the cross-piece
.bn 071.png
.pn +1
under it, the grip, and the guard. Each of these has
been cast and worked separately, and they are all united by
.bn 072.png
.pn +1
the tang of the blade which passes up through them. The
decoration is difficult to describe, but it is not difficult to
perceive the harmony, elegance, and fitness of the general
design. Each of the four parts is treated with reference to its
decoration as a separate whole, but they also combine to give
to the entire object a completely harmonious design. The
triangular pommel is placed upon a cross-piece answering in
character to the cross-piece below the grip, and the grip answers
in character to both. The ends of the pommel are formed as
heads of animals, the zoomorphism more
suggested than expressed, and more distinct
in the front view of the whole hilt (Fig. #36:f_36#)
than in the side view of the pommel alone as
here represented (Fig. #37:f_37#). The grip and the
cross-piece below it are all decorated in the
same style, with a beautiful pattern formed
of a series of arcaded spaces with quadrate
ornaments between. The patterns chased in
the arcaded spaces are apparently zoomorphic
in character, and the quadrate ornaments between
them are plates of silver pinned on to
the bronze, a circle being incised round every
pin head, and each pair of circles connected
by a line drawn from the right side of the
one to the left side of the other, so as to resemble an
S-shaped scroll. The edges of the grip (Fig. #38:f_38#) are ornamented
with three sunk panels of interlaced work
alternating with four plain panels. The upper side of the
.bn 073.png
.pn +1
guard (Fig. #39:f_39#) has two ornaments of similar character, each
consisting of four loops round a pellet, the bands composing
the loops crossing each other in the centre of the figure.
There is nothing that is distinctively Celtic in the style of this
interlaced work. Indeed, there is so little of it, that it would
be difficult, from this specimen alone, to form any opinion as
to the relations of interlaced ornament to the system of
decoration characteristic of the Viking period. I have
already stated that the mere presence of interlaced work is
not a feature which can be relied on as a certain indication
either of the Celtic or the Scandinavian character of the
ornament of which it forms a part. In consequence of the
close intercourse which subsisted between the areas of the
two distinctive schools of art during the Viking time, the
influence of the one upon the other is traceable in such transitional
styles as that of the Manx crosses and the decorations
of the Skaill brooches to be hereafter described. And the
Celtic manner, with a Scandinavian spirit, is distinctly discernible
in the decoration of a sword-hilt (Fig. #40:f_40#) found in
a grave-mound of the Viking time at Ultuna, in Sweden.[36]
.fm rend=t
.fn 35
They are now deposited in the Museum, and have been fully described by
Professor Norman Macpherson, LL.D., in an elaborate paper, read before the
Society, on the Antiquities of Eigg.
.fn-
.fn 36
The tumulus contained the remains, still distinctly recognisable, of a ship in
which a warrior had been entombed along with his arms and two horses. The
iron nails which fastened the planks together were still visible in their places.
The vessel appeared to be a galley of no great size, carrying a single mast.
Alongside of the body, which was unburnt, was found a sword, the blade of
iron, and the splendid hilt of gilt bronze decorated with interlaced patterns
of extreme beauty and elegance. Remains of the wooden sheath and its gilt
mountings were also found. A helmet of iron was also found, having a crest
or ridge of bronze, containing zinc as an ingredient—the only helmet of the
Pagan period in Sweden hitherto known. There were also found a magnificent
umbo or boss of a shield, in iron plated with bronze, and adorned with
patterns of interlaced work, the handle of the shield, nineteen arrow-heads,
the bits of two bridles, a pair of shears, all in iron; thirty-six table-men and
three dice, in bone. Besides these there was an iron gridiron and a
kettle of thin iron plates riveted together, with a swinging handle, as also
bones of swine and geese, probably the remains of the funeral feast.—La
Suede Prehistorique, par Oscar Montelius, Stockholm, Paris, and Leipzig,
1864, p. 114.
.fn-
.fm rend=t
.il id=f_38 fn=fig038_072.jpg w=350px ew=60%
.ca Fig. 38.—Edge of Grip of Sword-hilt.
.il id=f_39 fn=fig039_073.jpg w=400px ew=80%
.ca Fig. 39.—Upper side of Guard of Sword-hilt.
.bn 074.png
.pn +1
.il id=f_40 fn=fig040_074.jpg w=300px ew=60%
.ca Fig. 40.—Sword-hilt found in a Grave-mound at Ultuna, Sweden.
In the grave-mound at Eigg there were found, along with
the sword-hilt, a buckle or fastener of a belt of bronze or
.bn 075.png
.pn +1
brass (Fig. #41:f_41#), attached to a thin plate of the same metal, and
a solid lump of metal apparently of a similar alloy, 2½ inches
.bn 076.png
.pn +1
in length, which appears to have been one of the feet of a
large three-footed pot.
.il id=f_41 fn=fig041_075.jpg w=350px ew=60%
.ca Fig. 41.—Buckle of Bronze (actual size), from a Grave-mound in the island\
of Eigg.
.il id=f_42 fn=fig042_075.jpg w=450px ew=80%
.ca Fig. 42.—Ground-plan and Sections of Grave-mounds in Eigg.
.dv class='column-container'
.dv class='column65'
.il id=f_43 fn=fig043_076.jpg w=100% ew=100%
.ca Fig. 43.—Brooch of Bronze, silvered, from Grave-mound\
in Eigg (2½ inches diameter).
.dv-
.dv class='column35'
.il id=f_44 fn=fig044_076.jpg w=100% ew=100%
.ca Fig. 44.—Belt-Clasp (actual size).
.dv-
.dv-
Two other grave-mounds in the same neighbourhood were
excavated in 1875 by Professor Macpherson, and I had the
opportunity of seeing them subsequently. The ground-plans
and sections of them which are here given (Fig. #42:f_42#), were
made by Mr. Arthur Joass. The largest mound was about
40 feet in diameter and from 6 to 7 feet in height, with a
circular depression in the centre. In an enclosure roughly
formed of stones in the centre of the mound and on the
original level of the surface, there were found traces of an
interment, with grave-goods, of the usual Viking character.
They consisted of an iron sword in the sheath, similar to
that found in the Islay grave, an iron axe-head, a spear-head
of iron, a penannular brooch of bronze plated with silver
and ending in knobs of the shape of thistle heads (Fig. #43:f_43#),
.bn 077.png
.pn +1
an agrafe or belt-clasp of bronze or brass, ornamented with a
scroll-like pattern in relief (Fig. #44:f_44#); a small whetstone
(Fig. #45:f_45#), and several portions of dress consisting of cloth
of three different varieties
of texture (Fig. #46:f_46#), one of
which is trimmed with fur.
.il id=f_45 fn=fig045_077.jpg w=350px ew=70%
.ca Fig. 45.—Whetstone (actual size).
.il id=f_46 fn=fig046_077.jpg w=225px ew=40% align=r
.ca Fig. 46.—Specimens of Cloth found in\
the Grave-mound.
The smaller grave-mound,
a few yards distant, contained
the fragments of an
iron sword, a whetstone, a
plain penannular brooch with
knobbed ends, of a slightly
flattened form, in bronze or
brass, and some beads of
amber and jet.
Perhaps the most remarkable cemetery of graves belonging
to this intruded Paganism of the Norsemen was that excavated
by Mr. William Rendall, of Pierowall, in the island of
Westray, in Orkney, in 1849. The graves were situated in
the sandy links at the north-west side of the head of the bay
of Pierowall. Mr. Rendall’s notes are brief and imperfect. I
have twice gone over the ground explored by him, with the
view of ascertaining certain points in connection with these
interments, and I think there is evidence on the spot that
each of them was placed on the original surface of the ground,
that they were surrounded by roughly made enclosures of stones,
and covered by a mound of greater or less bulk. Mr. Rendall
.bn 078.png
.pn +1
explored two groups of these grave-mounds, the one containing
four and the other five interments.
In the first group, grave-mound No. 1 contained a human
skeleton laid on its right side, north and south, the skull
cleft, apparently before burial, and only one half of it found.
Deposited with it there were a number of iron weapons or
implements, among which Mr. Rendall recognised an iron axe
and what he calls the half of a helmet, which I have no doubt
was half of the globular boss of a shield. Grave-mound No.
2 contained the remains of a man, a horse, and a dog. It is
not said whether the whole skeleton of the horse was in the
grave, but the remark is made that the horse was of small
size, and the bridle-bit remained between its jaws. Many
pieces of iron were found, among which were a buckle and a
spear-head or part of a sword. Grave-mound No. 3 contained
the remains of a man and a horse with fragments of iron
implements. Grave-mound No. 4 contained a skeleton only.
At a little distance to the north-east of this group of
grave-mounds was the second group. In grave-mound No.
1 was the skeleton of a man. At his head lay the cup-shaped
boss of his shield; at his left side his sword. A whetstone,
a comb, and several glass beads were also found, and many
pieces of iron of whose form and purpose there is no suggestion.
In grave-mound No. 2 was a skeleton, which Mr. Rendall
concluded to be that of a female. Two oval bowl-shaped
brooches of brass were found on the breast, and a little below
them a circular ornament and a pin of the same metal. There
were no traces of iron, or remains of iron implements or
weapons. Grave-mound No. 3 contained a small skeleton
with two oval bowl-shaped brooches and a small circular-headed
pin on the breast, and two long single-edged, round-backed
combs of bone (Fig. #47:f_47#) lay on either side of the neck.
No. 4 had been previously disturbed. In No. 5 were two
brooches, two combs, and a pin similar to those in No. 3.
.bn 079.png
.pn +1
.il id=f_47 fn=fig047_079.jpg w=350px ew=60%
.ca Fig. 47.—Round-backed Comb from a Grave-mound in Westray.
In 1851 Mr. Rendall presented to the National Museum
the contents of a grave which is not described in these notes
but was found in the same locality. It contained the skeleton
of a man, with which there had been deposited an iron
axe, a spear-head of iron, and the iron boss of a shield, an
oval bowl-shaped brooch (Fig. #48:f_48#), and a penannular brooch
of Celtic form, ornamented with interlaced work of purely
Celtic style.[37] In this remarkable cemetery we have the same
type of burial and the same typical forms of weapons, implements,
and ornaments, as in Islay and in Eigg. Of the
whole group of objects found in all these graves there is but
one, viz. the Celtic brooch last mentioned, that is of a type
native to the soil in which they are found.
.fm rend=t
.fn 37
Figured in the previous series of Lectures—Scotland in Early Christian
Times, p. 29, Fig. 22.
.fn-
.fm rend=t
.il id=f_48 fn=fig048_079.jpg w=350px ew=60%
.ca Fig. 48.—Oval Bowl-shaped Brooch from a Grave-mound in Westray.
.il id=f_49 fn=fig049_080.jpg w=350px ew=80%
.ca Fig. 49.—Iron Key, from a Grave-mound in Westray (5¾ inches in length).
.pm floatimage_e f_50 fig050_080 'Fig. 50.—1. Sheath-mounting from a\
grave in Westray, Orkney. 2. Plan of its ornament.' 200 40 l
But a still more remarkable set of graves was found at
Pierowall by Mr. Farrer and Mr. George Petrie. Unfortunately
there is the same absence of any precise and detailed
record of the phenomena. The first, which contained the
.bn 080.png
.pn +1
bones of a man and a horse, had been found at the sands of
Gill by Mr. George Petrie in 1841, and the relics from it
were deposited in the Kirkwall Museum. When that museum
was broken up and its contents sold, they were purchased by
Colonel Balfour of Trenaby, and sent to the National Museum.
They consist of the bronze cheek-ring of a bridle with part
of the iron bit, and fragments of wood with iron rivets which
were supposed to be the remains of a shield. The second
grave was explored by Mr. Farrer in 1855. There is no
record of the phenomena of the burial, but the objects found
were sent to the museum. They are an iron knife, a small
sickle of iron, an iron key of peculiar form (Fig. #49:f_49#), and a
bronze mounting of a sheath or scabbard-end plated with
silver, and ornamented with an engraved pattern suggesting
a grotesque face (Fig. #50:f_50#).
With these were found large
quantities of decayed wood
pierced with iron rivets which
were also supposed to be the
remains of a wooden shield.
The third grave-mound was
explored by Mr. Farrer and
Mr. Petrie in 1863. No record
of the phenomena exists, but
the articles found were two
iron buckles apparently of
saddle girths, and a quantity of
pieces of decayed wood varying
in thickness from 1 to 2 inches, pierced by iron rivets, and
also suggested to be portions of a wooden shield.
.bn 081.png
.pn +1
In these three instances the principal feature of the interment
is the presence of quantities of wooden planks, sometimes
as much as two inches thick, pierced by iron rivets.
When these are closely examined it is seen that the wood is
of oak, that the rivets are peculiar in character, having round
heads on one side and square heads on the other, and that
they frequently pass through the wood obliquely. These are
the characteristics of the clinker-nails which fastened the
planking of the Viking ships. They were square-headed on
one side and round-headed on the other. The fact that these
rivets pass through the wood obliquely is more suggestive of
a boat than of a shield. The thickness of wood between the
rivet-heads is more than twice that of any shield of the time
whose thickness is known. No shield-boss or handle was
found with any of these interments, and no shield of oaken
planks fastened with such rivets is known. In point of fact,
no shield could be used whose thickness was two inches of
solid oak, and the quantity of wood and iron found with the
interments seems much in excess of what would be required
for shields. I therefore conclude that, in these three instances,
the form of burial was that in which the Viking was laid in
his ship—drawn up on the strand, and set on even keel to
receive him and his grave-goods—and a mound raised over all.
The testimony of the earlier sagas is unanimous that the
common mode of sepulture in the heathen Viking time was
by raising a mound over the remains of the dead, who were
placed in their grave-mounds honourably, with abundance
of goods, weapons, ornaments, and costly garments, horses
and sometimes even thralls or slaves. Thus we are told
store of goods was placed in the grave-mound with
Hravnkel Freysgode, and all his war-suits and his good spear.
So also we learn that Skalagrim was laid in his grave-mound
with his horse, his weapons, and his smithy-tools, and Egil
was buried with his weapons and his clothing. Thorgrim,
.bn 082.png
.pn +1
priest of Frey at Sæbol was buried in his ship, over which
they raised the mound after the ancient fashion. But the
most striking of all the saga notices of heathen burial is that
of the sepulture of King Harald Hildetand, who was slain on
Braavalla Heath by his nephew Sigurd Ring, in the middle
of the eighth century. After the battle the victor caused
search to be made for the body of his uncle, which he placed
in his chariot in the midst of the grave-mound; then his
horse was slain and laid beside the dead; and Sigurd caused
his own saddle to be placed beside the horse, so that Harald
might have his choice and ride or drive to Valhalla as he had
a mind. Then Sigurd made a great funeral feast, and the
nobles threw massive rings and splendid arms into the grave-mound
in honour of the dead king.
Thus we gather from the early literature of the Scandinavians
a very vivid impression of the character and accompaniments
of their heathen burial. Yet this literary evidence
is characteristically defective on special points that are of
paramount interest to the archæologist. Hence, when it is
attempted to be used scientifically, the result is what might
be expected of a scientific operation conducted with unscientific
materials. For instance, Dr. Dasent, gathering the
literary evidence into one generalisation, concludes that the
burial took place in a how or cairn, and that the body was
laid in the how with goods and arms, sometimes in a sitting
posture, sometimes even in a ship, but always in a chamber,
formed of baulks of timber or blocks of stone, over which
earth and gravel were piled. Since it is the main object of
our science to attain to great and wide generalisations from
completed evidence, it is manifest that such a generalisation
as this, which gives us what always was the special character
of the sepulchral structure for a given period, would be one
of the most precious and costly fruits of scientific research.
Founded on purely archæological evidence, it could only be
.bn 083.png
.pn +1
the result of the completed investigation of all the grave-mounds
of the period. As here given, it is arrived at by a
much shorter process, viz. the comparison and critical interpretation
of a few texts, for it is not expressly stated in any
text, but is an inference from incidental expressions in several
of them.[38] And the interest with which we must regard the
inference lies in the fact that this special form of sepulchral
mound, which is deduced from the literary evidence as having
been always the form in use throughout the Viking period, is
a form which is almost archæologically unknown in that
period.
.fm rend=t
.fn 38
Sometimes the description of a burial mentions the digging of a grave
instead of the raising of a mound. When Thorolf died, Egil took his body
and prepared it according to the custom of the time, then they dug a grave
and placed Thorolf in it with all his weapons and raiment, and Egil placed
a gold bracelet on each of his arms, then they placed stones over him, and
earth over all.
.fn-
.fm rend=t
It is to be observed also that the saga evidence is defective
as to the customs connected with cremation.[39] The only
literary evidence we possess in regard to them is to be found
in the strange narrative by Ahmed Ibn-Fozlan, an eye-witness
of the ceremonies attending the incremation of the dead body
of a Northern chief.[40] The scene is on the banks of the Volga,
and the date is towards the close of the Viking time. The
narrator tells us that there was a temporary interment till all
the preparations were made; that a female slave who had
elected to die with her master was given in charge to an old
hag, who as mistress of the ceremonies was significantly
styled “the angel of the dead;” that the dead man’s ship was
.bn 084.png
.pn +1
hauled up on the strand and prepared to be his funeral pile;
that, when all was ready, the corpse was taken out of its
temporary grave, arrayed in fur-mounted and gold-embroidered
garments, and laid in state on the deck, where a banquet was
spread for him; that his weapons were placed ready to his
hand, and two horses, two oxen, his dog, and two fowls were
hewn in pieces with swords and cast into the ship; that the
woman who was to die, after taking leave of her friends, was
first drugged with strong drink and then brutally slaughtered
with a big knife by the “angel of the dead,” while two men
pulled the ends of a cord wound round her neck and the
crowd beat upon their shields to drown her shrieks; that she
was then laid beside her dead lord and the pile fired by his
nearest relative, and after it had burnt out a great mound was
raised over the ashes.
.fm rend=t
.fn 39
Suorri says that the custom of burning the body was over before the
time when the historical sagas begin their chronicle of events. The fact
that it is represented in the mythological sagas as the burial rite of the Æsir,
in the Twilight of the Gods, shows that it was out of memory as a human
custom in Iceland.
.fn-
.fn 40
A translation of this narrative is given in the Proceedings of the Society
of Antiquaries of Scotland, vol. ix. p. 518.
.fn-
.fm rend=t
Turning now to the evidence derived from the grave-mounds
themselves, we find that it corroborates and supplements
the literary evidence in a remarkable manner. For
instance, close above the strand at Möklebust, in Norway,
there is a semi-globular mound 12 feet high and 92 feet in
diameter; round its base there is a ditch 12 feet wide and 3
feet deep, interrupted on the south and east by accesses on
the natural level. The whole base of the mound was covered
by a layer of burnt ashes. In an oval, about 28 feet long
and 14 feet wide, lay a quantity of iron rivets and nails as
they had settled down among the ashes when the planks they
had fastened were consumed. Around the circumference of
this oval, and among these rivets, were found no fewer than
forty-two shield-bosses, mingled with pike-heads, axes, swords,
knives, and other implements of iron. Near the centre of
the oval lay a large bronze pot or caldron, one-third full of
burnt human bones, over which were heaped the bosses of
thirteen shields, now firmly rusted to each other and to the
sides of the pot. The pot itself was splendidly enamelled
.bn 085.png
.pn +1
round the rim; in fact, an exquisite work of art. Among the
bones within it was an iron pike-head, which M. Lorange, who
explored the mound, concluded to have been the weapon by
which the Viking met his death. Recounting the whole
phenomena and circumstances of the burial as observed during
the process of exploration, he says: "It seems that the sea-king’s
men had drawn his ship up on the strand, with all its
fittings as it was on the day of his death, laid the dead man
in it clad in his best and with his arms and horse; then they
hung their shields round the gunwales as they used to do
when going on a cruise, hoisted the sail, piled wood under
and around, and fired the vessel as she stood. Then, when
the fire had done its work, they gathered the burnt bones into
this splendid pot, covered them with the bosses of the burnt
shields, and placed them in the centre of the heap of ashes
over which the great mound was finally reared."
But more frequently the vessel and its contents have not
passed through the fire. One such ship I have seen. It was
found under a mound at Tune, and is now preserved in connection
with the museum at Christiania. The mound was 12
feet high and 80 yards in circumference. The vessel stood
on the original surface on even keel. It is clinker-built; the
planks of oak, the ribs of fir. The keel is 43½ feet in length,
and the ship is low and narrow for her length, which is no
more than that of a first-class herring boat of the present day
on the east coast of Scotland. Each side was of eleven
planks, an inch thick, fastened with clinker nails, having
round heads outside and square heads inside. The seams
were caulked with tarred oakum of neat’s hair. The ribs,
thirteen in number, are built of three different layers of wood
fastened with oaken trenails and iron nails. The mode in
which they are fastened to the skin of the boat is peculiar.
The upper boards alone are fastened with oaken trenails, and
the lower ones are merely attached to the planking by ropes
.bn 086.png
.pn +1
of bast passed through holes in the ribs, and then through
corresponding holes in wooden clumps on the planks. The
mast was secured in a step on the bottom lining, and the
vessel was steered by a side rudder. The Viking’s body,
which was unburnt, was placed on a wooden platform abaft
the mast. Beside it lay the bones of a horse, with remains of
the saddle. The rest of the grave-goods were of the common
character, comprising merely a few beads of coloured glass, a
few fragments of clothing, a sword of the ordinary Viking
type, a spear-head, a shield-boss, a rolled-up coat of mail, and
some tools and implements of iron.
Another of larger size was discovered last summer in a
mound at Gokstad, near Sandefiord, and is now placed beside
the Tune specimen. Its length is about 80 feet, with a
breadth of beam of 17 feet. It is of oak, and clinker-built,
the planks and the frame-timbers connected in the same
peculiar manner as in the Tune ship. All the planks have
planed and moulded edges both inside and out, but there is
no trace of the use of the saw either in the planking or framework
of the vessel. Her lines are well laid; stem and stern
are alike sharp and finely modelled. She has neither deck
nor seats for the rowers, although her sides are pierced for
sixteen oars each. The oars, some of which were found on
board, were 20 feet long. In rowing, they were passed
through circular holes 18 inches below the gunwale, and
having narrow slits cut on each side of them to allow the
passage of the blade of the oar. Like all her kind, she had
but one mast and one sail, square in form, and she was steered
by a side rudder. The vessel, though showing signs of wear,
had been comparatively new when drawn on shore to enhance
the funeral honours of its owner. A sepulchral chamber was
built of timbers in front of the mast reaching to the prow.
In this chamber the dead Viking was laid, surrounded with
his grave-goods, his arms, and ornaments. That these were
.bn 087.png
.pn +1
numerous and costly there can be little doubt, but the mound
was broken into at an early date, a great hole cut in the side
of the ship, and the funeral chamber rifled. The few relics
that were left, chiefly mountings of belts and harness, exhibit
the finest art of the Viking time, and the completeness of the
equipment of the vessel, from the row of painted shields
round the gunwale down to her cordage and anchor, and the
cooking utensils of the crew—together with the fact that the
mound also contained the remains of three boats and the
bones of eight or nine horses, as many dogs, and a peacock—testify
to the wealth and consideration of the man whose
burial rites were thus celebrated.
I have described these Viking burials found in Norway
and in Scotland partly because they enable us most vividly
to realise the peculiar characteristics of Pagan burial, but
chiefly because I am unable to illustrate the burial phenomena
of the Iron Age Paganism of Celtic Scotland from its own
remains. The archæology of Scotland is absolutely destitute
of recorded data for this purpose. The uninstructed excavators
have some respect for stone and bronze, but old iron is
shovelled into oblivion without a moment’s hesitation.
.bn 088.png
.pn +1
.sp 4
.h2
LECTURE II | (20th October 1881.) | NORTHERN BURIALS AND HOARDS.
.sp 2
.ti 0
It has now been shown that the intrusion of the Norwegian
Paganism into the northern and western area of Scotland
produced an extension into this country of types and phenomena
which are purely indigenous to the Scandinavian area.
But along with the types and phenomena that are purely
Norwegian we also find, within the area of this intruded
Paganism, a series of modified types—neither purely Celtic
nor purely Scandinavian, but partaking to some extent of
the distinctive characteristics of both. This has already been
demonstrated in so far as the products of this commingling of
distinctive styles and customs have been characterised by
indications of Christianity;[41] but there still remain to be
discussed a group of phenomena and objects of this mixed
character which either present no distinct indications of
Christian associations or exhibit characteristics that are
distinctive of Paganism.
.fm rend=t
.fn 41
Scotland in Early Christian Times (second series), pp. 226-232.
.fn-
.fm rend=t
I therefore proceed to describe a series of burials occurring
within the same area in which the distinctive form of burial
with arms, implements, and ornaments of purely Norwegian
types also occur, but differing from these, inasmuch as though
they present unequivocal indications of Paganism they do not
so distinctly indicate their origin. As we examine their
.bn 089.png
.pn +1
characteristics it will be seen that they form a group strictly
local in its range, and possessing affinities which are rather
Norwegian than Celtic.
.il id=f_51 fn=fig051_089.jpg w=500px ew=90%
.ca
Fig. 51.—Sectional view of Burials in Stronsay, Orkney.
1. Section of Cist with Stone Urn.—a. Urn, seen in section, 17 inches deep\
b. Burnt bones in the urn. c. Cist of flagstones, 2 feet square. d. Boulder\
stones supporting sides of cist.
2 and 3. Double cist with burnt bones, close to No. 1.
.ca-
.pm floatimage_e f_52 fig052_090 'Fig. 52.—Urn of Steatitic Stone from Cist\
No. 1, at Orem’s Fancy, Stronsay (17 inches high).' 225 45 l
In July 1869 the late Mr. George Petrie investigated the
contents of a burial-mound, situated on the crown of a ridge
overlooking the sea, at a place called Orem’s Fancy, in the
island of Stronsay, Orkney. The burial-mound is a low,
elongated accumulation of stones and earth, partly indistinguishable
from the natural ridge, and apparently about fifty
yards in length. Several burials had been discovered in it
from time to time in the process of bringing it under cultivation.
One of these (Fig. 51, No. 1), which was carefully examined
by Mr. Petrie, was contained in a cist of rough slabs,
the sides being 25½ inches and 22 inches in length, and the
width and depth of the cavity about 23 inches. The bottom
of the cist was formed of a rough slab, and the covering stone
of a larger slab of the same character. The cist contained a
large and somewhat irregularly-shaped urn of stone, hollowed
evidently by a metal tool. The urn (Fig. #52:f_52#) stood on the
.bn 090.png
.pn +1
bottom slab of the cist (as shown in the foregoing section)
and was covered by a thin slab of clay slate, rudely dressed
at the edges to a circular
shape. The urn was filled
to a depth of about 5 inches
with burnt bones, largely
mixed with vitrified matter,
and run together in masses.
No fragments of implements,
weapons, ornaments,
or other articles were present
among the bones.
The fragments of bone
were greatly comminuted,
but portions of the long
bones, vertebral processes,
and fragments of the skull were recognisable. The urn of stone
was therefore the only remarkable feature of the interment.
It is a rudely-formed vessel of irregularly-conical form, narrowing
from the brim to the bottom. At the brim, which is oval
in form, it measured 20¾ inches in its longer, and 18 inches
in its shorter diameter. Its depth is 17 inches, and the
greatest width across the bottom 15 inches. The rim is smooth
and slightly rounded, and the marks of the tool by which the
vessel was scooped out of the block of stone are distinctly
visible. The stone is a soft and easily-worked steatite.
Adjoining this cist there was another 31 inches long,
21 inches wide, and 12 inches deep (Fig. 51, No. 2), which
had been previously opened, and contained nothing but
earth. Underneath it was a smaller cist, 13 inches long,
9½ inches wide, and 12½ inches deep (Fig. 51, No. 3). On
the bottom stone of this under cist was a quantity of clay,
in the centre of which there was a bowl-shaped cavity (i)
nearly filled with burnt bones, and covered with a thin slab
.bn 091.png
.pn +1
of clay slate, dressed to a circular form, over which was
another layer of clay (k) about 2 inches thick, with a depression
(h) in the middle, leaving a portion of the centre of the
stone visible when the upper cover of the cist was lifted.
At a little distance another burial was discovered, placed
simply in the mound without the protection of a cist The
deposit of burned bones was contained in an urn of stone
similar to the first, but slightly smaller, measuring across the
mouth 19 inches in the longer and 15 inches in the shorter
diameter, and 15 inches in depth. The urn had been simply
set in the ground, the mouth covered with a flat stone, and a
quantity of stones and earth heaped over it, so that its covering
stone was scarcely more than 18 inches beneath the
surface.
Another urn of the same character was found, also set in
the ground about a foot below the surface. It had no covering
stone. Two small cists containing burnt bones and
ashes, but no urns, were also found in the mound separately.
At a distance of seven yards from one of these there was a
circular enclosure, formed of oblong beach stones, each about
a foot long, and standing on end about a yard apart. Within
this circle two other cists were discovered, each containing
the usual indications of a burial after cremation—burnt
bones, ashes, and charcoal—but no urns and no deposit of
arms, implements, weapons, or ornaments.[42]
.fm rend=t
.fn 42
Described by Mr. Petrie in Proc. Soc. Antiq. Scot., vol. viii. p. 367.
.fn-
.fm rend=t
.pm floatimage_e f_53 fig053_092 'Fig. 53.—Large Steatite Urn, found at\
Stennis, Orkney (20 inches high).' 225 40 l
In a large burial mound at Stennis, Orkney, excavated
by Mr. Farrer[43] in December 1854, another burial was found,
accompanied by an urn of stone of this special character.
The mound was 62 feet in diameter, and about 9 feet high,
circular and flat on the top, the sides sloping at a considerable
angle. Near the centre of the mound, and at a height of
about 3 feet above the original level of the ground, there was
.bn 092.png
.pn +1
a cist formed of massive side stones about 6 feet in length,
and end stones about 2 feet in length, set in the middle of the
space between the side stones, so that the cavity enclosed
was only about 2½ feet long, 2 feet wide, and 2 feet deep. In
the cist was an urn of steatitic stone (Fig. #53:f_53#), 22½ inches
diameter across the mouth,
and 20 inches high. It
was filled to about one-third
of its depth with calcined
bones, largely mingled with
vitrified matter. It differs
from the Stronsay urn in
having a triply incised
border immediately underneath
the rim. The burial-mound
also differs from
the Stronsay mound in
being higher and more regularly-shaped. like the
Stronsay mound, it contained more interments than one,
although the excavation only revealed two.[44] The second
burial was a little beyond the centre of the mound, to the
northward of the first, and at about the same height above
the original surface of the ground. It was contained in a cist
formed of rough flagstones placed on edge, which measured
33½ inches in length, and 19 inches in width. A small urn
of baked clay, 5 inches diameter, and 5 inches deep, stood in
the north-west corner of the cist. It contained fragments of
calcined bones, and was unaccompanied by any other relics
.bn 093.png
.pn +1
whatever. The urn fell to pieces, and has unfortunately not
been preserved. In his account of it Mr. Petrie does not
state whether it was plain or ornamented, and we are thus
left with no more definite indication of its characteristics than
that it was made of clay.
.fm rend=t
.fn 43
Proc. Soc. Antiq. Scot., vol. ii. p. 50.
.fn-
.fn 44
The unscientific method of opening a burial mound by driving a trench
across it cannot be too strongly condemned. No such investigation can be
regarded as scientific which leaves any part of the mound or of the site
beneath it unexamined; and no one should touch a burial-mound who is not
prepared both to investigate and record its phenomena in a scientific manner.
.fn-
.fm rend=t
.il id=f_54 fn=fig054_093.jpg w=225px ew=40% align=r
.ca
Fig. 54.—Urn of Steatite, found at Corquoy
(7 inches high).
.ca-
Quite recently a cluster of burial mounds at Corquoy, in
the island of Rousay, Orkney, was examined by Mr. George
M'Crie. The largest mound was about 50 feet in circumference,
and 5½ feet high. It contained a cist in the centre, and
on the level of the surrounding ground, composed of four side
stones, a bottom stone, and a covering stone, the joints being
coated with tempered clay. The cavity of the cist measured
2½ feet in length, by 2 feet in width, and 18 inches in depth.
It was almost filled with clay, ashes, and fragments of bones.
In the centre was an urn of steatite (Fig. #54:f_54#), oval in shape,
with a slightly bevelled
rim. It measures 9¾
inches in its longer, and
8 inches in its shorter
diameter, across the
mouth, and stands 7
inches high.
The other mounds
contained cists, but no
urns or remains of any
kind except comminuted
fragments of bones.
.il id=f_55 fn=fig055_094.jpg w=400px ew=80%
.ca Fig. 55.—Urn of Steatite from Rousay, Orkney (7½ inches high).
There is in the Museum
another urn of this material (Fig. #55:f_55#) also from the island
of Rousay, but unfortunately there is no record of the circumstances
of its discovery. It is of steatite, oval in shape,
the sides bulging from the bottom upwards. It measures 11
inches by 10 across the mouth, and stands 7½ inches high.
It is rudely ornamented by incised lines cut round the outside
.bn 094.png
.pn +1
immediately under the rim, and is still about one-third
full of calcined human bones.
.il id=f_56 fn=fig056_094.jpg w=225px ew=40% align=l
.ca Fig 56.—Urn of Steatite found in Shapinsay, Orkney (4 inches high).
An urn of the same character (Fig. #56:f_56#) was recently found
in making a road through a
sand hill about a mile north-east
of Balfour Castle, in Shapinsay,
Orkney. It was enclosed in a
cist in a small tumulus, the
cist being composed of four
slabs for the sides and ends,
and a slab for the bottom, with
another flat stone for a cover.
When found the urn was in
fragments, but the fragments
had been united by some kind of string, the fibrous texture of
which was discernible in the holes which had been bored on
either side of the fractures, and through which the cord had
been passed to repair the breaks.
.pm floatimage_e f_57 fig057_095 'Fig. 57.—Urn of Steatite, found\
in Fair Isle (4 inches high).' 200 40 r
In 1874 a small burial mound, about 8 feet in diameter and
.bn 095.png
.pn +1
2½ feet high, was removed in the course of the construction
of a road between the North and South Havens in Fair Isle,
lying midway between Orkney and Shetland. In the mound
there was found a large, oval-shaped, rudely-formed, and
unornamented urn of baked clay. Although imperfect it
measures upwards of 12 inches in height. Beside it there
was a smaller urn of steatite (Fig. #57:f_57#), also oval in shape, but
much more neatly formed. It
measures 5½ inches in its longer
diameter, and almost 5 inches in
its shorter diameter across the
mouth, and stands 4 inches high.
Under the rim is a bevelled band,
giving it something of an ornamental
character. Close by this
mound, in a flat space, there were
found at intervals a number of flat stones, from 6 to 12 inches
under the surface, and below each stone there was observed
what is described as “a carefully-rounded hole, about 6 inches
deep by 10 inches broad, very smooth in the inside, and
lined with about an inch thick of a soft, black, adhesive
substance, resembling a mixture of peat-moss and clay, and
containing in the bottom a whitish substance resembling
bone ash.” These phenomena thus imperfectly observed
indicate in all probability a small cemetery of urns set in the
ground, with stone covers, and having no mounds heaped
over them.
In 1821 a mound in the island of Uyea, in Shetland,
yielded a group of six interments, each consisting of an urn
of this character filled with burnt human bones and ashes.
Hibbert describes one of the urns as a well-shaped vessel,
constructed of a soft magnesian stone, having the bottom
made of a separate piece, and fitted into its place by a groove.[45]
.fm rend=t
.fn 45
Mr. Petrie notices a similar instance in Orkney, the bottom being
formed of a lozenge-shaped piece of stone, fitted into its place by a groove cut
round its circumference.
.fn-
.fm rend=t
.bn 096.png
.pn +1
In the month of August 1863, when some excavations
were being made on the summit of an eminence called the
Meikle Heog, at Haroldswick, in the island of Unst, Shetland,
for the purpose of planting a flag-staff as a fishing signal, the
labourers broke into a place of sepulture formed of upright
flagstones, and enclosing a number of skulls and bones.
Further examination disclosed another cist similarly formed.
Unfortunately there is no record of the dimensions of these
cists. In the one last mentioned there were found a human
skull, some bones of the ox, and six urns or vessels of chloritic
schist or steatite.[46] They were of different shapes and sizes, as
follows:—
.fm rend=t
.fn 46
These vessels are figured and described by Mr. G. E. Roberts in the Mem.
Soc. Anthrop. Lond., vol. i. p. 296.
.fn-
.fm rend=t
No. 1, a flat-bottomed vessel, with an unsymmetrical
four-sided outline, the corners slightly rounded, and the sides
bulging from the bottom upwards, about 7 inches high.
No. 2, a tolerably symmetrical four-sided vessel of similar
form, but thinner and better made, measuring 5½ inches in
length, 5¼ inches in width, and 3½ inches high.
No. 3, a rude thick-sided vessel of the same form, 6½
inches long, 4½ inches high, and 4½ inches wide.
No. 4, a rudely-made and unsymmetrical vessel, oval in
outline, flat-bottomed, the sides bulging from the bottom upwards,
and slightly contracting towards the rim, about 4
inches in length, 3¾ inches in width, and 4 inches high.
No. 5, a small cup-shaped vessel, oval in shape, 4½ inches
long, 3 inches broad, and 2¾ inches high.
No. 6, a rather neatly-made oval vessel, 4½ inches long,
and 4 inches wide at the brim, contracting to 2½ inches long,
and 2 inches wide at the base. It is the only one in the
group which bears any ornament, the ornament consisting of
.bn 097.png
.pn +1
two incised lines scored round the upper part of the vessel,
immediately under the rim.
These burials in the Meikle Heog differ from all the
others that have been described, inasmuch as they are burials
unburnt. The character of the vessels is also different, inasmuch
as they are not cinerary urns placed in the grave for
the purpose of containing the burned bones of the interment.
But the general form of the vessels is similar to that of those
which are found in Orkney and the Fair Isle, containing
burnt bones, and the character of the ornament and the
nature of the material of which they are made is identical.
.il id=f_58 fn=fig058_097.jpg w=400px ew=80%
.ca Fig. 58.—Vessels of Sandstone, found at Aucorn, Caithness (13 inches and 8\
inches high).
Two vessels of stone, of the same irregularly oval shape,
but slightly more ornate in character (Fig. #58:f_58#), were turned
up by the plough on the farm of Aucorn, in the parish of
Wick, in Caithness, in 1853. The larger vessel is flat-bottomed,
oval, and furnished with handles projecting from
its ends. It measures 17 inches in its longest diameter, and
16 inches in its shortest diameter at the mouth, and stands
13 inches high. The smaller vessel is without handles,
measures 10 inches in greatest, and 9 inches in its least
diameter at the mouth, and stands 8 inches high. The
ornamentation of both these vessels is similar in character to
that of all the others, consisting of incised lines drawn round
.bn 098.png
.pn +1
the outside, immediately below the rim. Unfortunately their
contents were neither examined nor preserved, but Mr. Rhind
states that it has been observed that the grain grows greener
and richer on the spot where they were turned up than anywhere
else in the field; and he infers from this, as well as from
the character of the vessels themselves, that they were
deposited with an interment or interments after cremation.
The largest vessel of this description which has been
recorded is one which was presented to the museum in
fragments in 1834. It was dug out of a mound called
Wilkie’s Knowe, in the island of Westray, in Orkney, and an
account of its discovery, which has not been preserved, was
read to the Society in April 1835. The form of the vessel is
oval, narrowing from the brim downwards. The circumference
of the upper part is about 6 feet, and the thickness of
the sides of the vessel 1½ inches. The material is the same
chloritic or steatitic stone of which the others are formed.
These examples will suffice to show the general characteristics
of this peculiar class of interments. They are interments
of bodies usually burnt, but sometimes unburnt;
usually placed in cisted mounds, sometimes singly, at other
times in groups; and generally unaccompanied by any
manufactured article except the urns. The character of the
urns is peculiar. They are not of clay, but of stone. They
are not circular, but oval or irregularly four-sided in shape.
They vary extremely in size, the largest known being 6 feet
in circumference, and the smallest less than 5 inches long and
3 inches high. They are characterised by extreme simplicity
of form and decoration. When they are ornamented the
decoration is confined to the scoring of two or more lines
underneath the rim, and rudely parallel to it. Their range,
so far as is at present known, is confined to Caithness, Orkney,
and Shetland, the area proper of the old Norwegian Earldom
of Orkney.
.bn 099.png
.pn +1
Urns of steatitic stone are of common occurrence in the
burial mounds of the Viking time in Norway.[47] But they are
rarely placed in cists of stones, and they are usually accompanied
by such deposits of arms, implements, and ornaments,
as have been described in the previous Lecture. This form of
burial, which is found in the area of the Norwegian colonisation
of the north of Scotland, is not completely comparable
to the common form in Norway. But it presents as its
characteristic feature the single point in which Norwegian
burials of that period differ from all others. Nowhere else in
Europe are urns of steatite the characteristic feature of any
class of burials. In this respect, therefore, these northern
interments in Scotland link themselves with interments of
.bn 100.png
.pn +1
the Viking time in Norway. But they are so far differentiated
from the common Norwegian type as to constitute a
distinct variety of that type peculiar to the area proper of the
Norwegian colony which founded the earldom of Orkney in
the time of the Scandinavian Paganism.
.fm rend=t
.fn 47
A few notices of these are appended to show the character of the
burials:—At Hof, in the district of Hedenmarken, round the church are
several grave-mounds. In some of these there were found, in 1842, four axe-heads,
three spear-heads, fragments of two double-edged swords, a pair of
stirrups, two bridle-bits, ten arrow-points, a fire-steel, fragments of a shield-boss,
a ring, a kind of pincers, and other fragments, all of iron, along with
two vessels of steatite, the one having an iron handle, and the other containing
burnt bones and oxidised iron fragments.—Nicolaysen’s Norske Fornlevninger,
p. 59. In a circular grave-mound at Gaarden, Ostre Alm, Hedenmark,
there was found an urn or vessel of steatite with remains of its iron
handle, a two-edged sword contorted and broken into three pieces, a bent
spear-head of iron, an iron axe-head, two shield-bosses of iron, a bridle-bit, a
pair of stirrups, a strap-buckle and two iron tags, a portion of a comb of
bone, pretty long, and toothed only on one side, made of small pieces of bone
held between two slips of bone riveted together, two hemispherical table-men
of bone, and a small figure in bone of animal resembling a dog. In
the urn lay ashes.—Foreningen for Norske Fortidsmindesmækers Bevaring,
1866, p. 88. At Nordby Sagbrug, Akershus, there were found in a small low
grave-mound, the pieces of a bowl-shaped urn of steatite, 7 inches diameter,
in which were ashes and burnt bones, and along with it a two-edged sword of
iron, the blade 30¼ inches long, a spear-head, an axe-blade, and other iron
relics.—Foren. for Norske Fortids. Bev., 1867, p. 49. At Elset, in Solum
parish, province of Bratsberg, there was found a bowl-shaped urn of steatite
of the kind so commonly occurring in graves of the later Iron Age. It had
an iron hank round the rim and an iron bow-handle, and was full of burnt
bones.—Foren. for Norske Fortids. Bev., 1868, p. 115.
.fn-
.fm rend=t
.tb
I now pass to the description of another series of objects,
having no distinct connection with interments, but possessing
associations and characteristics which also link them with the
intrusion of the Norwegian element into the northern districts
of Scotland.
In the month of March 1858 a boy, chasing a rabbit into
a hole in the links of Skaill, in the parish of Sandwick,
Orkney, found a few fragments of silver which had been
unearthed by the rabbits at the mouth of their burrow. The
news of this discovery soon spread in the neighbourhood, and
a number of people having joined in the search, a large
quantity of silver articles were found in the sand. Mr.
George Petrie of Kirkwall (a zealous corresponding member
of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland) was speedily upon
the spot, and fortunately succeeded in securing the bulk of
the articles, which had become dispersed in various hands,
and they finally found their way through the Exchequer to
the National Museum. The aggregate weight of silver thus
recovered amounted to 16 lbs. avoirdupois.
The hoard, which had apparently been deposited in one
spot, consisted of three classes of objects—personal ornaments,
ingots of silver, and coins. The personal ornaments formed
the bulk of the deposit. They were of three varieties—brooches,
neck rings, and arm rings, all of silver.
.il id=f_59 fn=fig059_101.jpg w=150px ew=30% align=r
.ca
Fig. 59.—Silver Brooch found at Skaill
(15 inches long).
.ca-
The brooches are of great size, and unusually heavy and
massive in their construction. The metal is brittle, and most
of them are more or less broken. The largest of those that
are entire (Fig. #59:f_59#) consists of a plain penannular ring, formed
.bn 101.png
.pn +1
of a solid cylindrical rod of silver, ¼ inch thick, the ring
forming an incomplete circle 6¼ inches diameter, and terminating
in bulbous knobs,
which are furnished
with expansions giving
them a strong resemblance
to thistle heads.
These knobs are each
1¼ inches in diameter.
They have been cast
hollow, with a short
cylindrical collar at
either side, through
which the ends of the
ring of the brooch pass,
to be riveted at their
terminations. A similar
knob with similar collars
at either side fits loosely
on the ring of the
brooch. Its upper part
terminates in the conventional
thistle head,
and its lower part is
prolonged into a stout
pin of great length.
This pin, which is fitted
by a socket at its upper
end upon a projection
of the bulbous head, is,
like the ring of the
brooch, a solid rod of
hammered silver, cylindrical in the upper part, passing
into a squarish section in the middle of its length, and
.bn 102.png
.pn +1
tapering gradually to a bluntish point. The total length
of the pin from head to point is 15 inches. The only
parts of the brooch that are ornamented are the knobs
and their collars, and the terminal expansions which give
their suggestive resemblance to thistle heads. The spherical
surfaces of the knobs are plain on one hemisphere, and
the other is decorated with engraved designs of zoomorphic
character (Figs. 71-73), to which I shall direct attention at a
subsequent stage, for the purpose of determining the typical
relationship of the style of ornament. The collars are
decorated by a series of bands of engraved parallel lines,
passing obliquely across the spaces they fill. The terminal
expansions are decorated with triangular spaces, filled with
parallel lines, and alternating with spaces that are plain.
Another brooch, the pin of which is gone, is a similar
ring of hammered silver, ¼ inch thick, and 6¾ inches diameter,
with bulbous knobs, which are plain, though the collars and
terminal expansions are ornamented with a T-like fret, and
with bands of triangles filled with parallel lines.
Among the other brooches there are three which present a
different variety in the ornamentation of their bulbous extremities.
The largest of these is formed of a solid cylindrical
bar of silver, ⅜ of an inch in thickness, bent into an incomplete
circle 8 inches in diameter, and terminating in bulbous
expansions 1½ inches in diameter. The pin of this brooch is
gone, but if it bore the same proportion to the diameter of
the ring as is exhibited by that of the brooch first described,
it could not have been much under 20 inches in length. The
bulbous knobs of this brooch are differently ornamented on
their opposite hemispheres. The surface of the one hemisphere
is covered with a peculiar prickly ornamentation,
which intensifies their suggestive resemblance to thistle heads.
These prickles have been cut out of the solid. They are
square at the base, cylindrical, and slightly tapering at the
.bn 103.png
.pn +1
points. They stand somewhat over an eighth of an inch in
height, and each has been separately finished in the upper
part by a hollow drill. The opposite hemispheres of the
bulbs are ornamented by engraved circular patterns of
interlaced work (Fig. #68:f_68#), and the collar of the expanded
part is also ornamented with a running pattern of interlaced
work (Fig. #70:f_70#.)
.il id=f_60 fn=fig060_103.jpg w=150px ew=30% align=r
.ca
Fig. 60.—Silver Brooch found at Skaill
(5½ inches diameter).
.ca-
The second of these three brooches (Fig. #60:f_60#), is equally
massive and handsome,
though smaller. The ring
is a solid cylindrical bar
of silver, ¾ inch in thickness,
bent into an incomplete
oval 5½ inches in
diameter. The bulbous ends
of the penannular ring are
decorated on the one hemisphere
with the prickly
ornament which has just
been described, and on the
other hemisphere by a T-shaped
fret, enclosed in a
circle placed in a lozenge-shaped
space, bordered by
incised lines, as shown in
the woodcut under the figure
of the brooch.
The third of these
brooches consists of a penannular
ring, formed of a
solid cylindrical rod of silver
¼ inch thick, and 6½ inches
diameter. It wants the pin,
but the head, which is still on the ring, is furnished with a
.bn 104.png
.pn +1
tapering projection, which fitted into a socket in the upper end
of the pin. The bulbous extremities are not ornamented on
one hemisphere with the prickly ornament, but have the one
hemisphere plain and the other decorated with patterns of
zoomorphic character (Figs. #75:f_75# and #76:f_76#), while the bulbous
head of the pin, which still remains on the ring of the brooch,
has the remarkable anthropomorphic ornamentation shown in
Fig. #77:f_77#, and on the circular top of the pin-head is seen the
interlaced ornament shown
in Fig. #69:f_69#.
.il id=f_61 fn=fig061_104.jpg w=150px ew=30% align=l
.ca
Fig. 61.—Silver Brooch found at Skaill
(5 inches diameter).
.ca-
Another brooch with bulbous
extremities, which also
wants the pin, has its bulbs
plain. Along with these
bulbous ring-brooches there
are other three examples of
the same type which present
variations in the form of the
extremities of the pin and
the penannular ring.
The largest of these (Fig.
61) consists of a solid cylindrical
rod of silver, ¼ inch
in thickness, bent into an
incomplete circle 5 inches in
diameter. The pin, which
wants the point, has a bulbous
head of the same character
as those previously
described, but the prickly ornamentation is merely indicated
by incised lines crossing each other diagonally. The other
hemisphere of the bulbous head of the pin is decorated with
a circle enclosing an equal-armed rectangular cross. The
top of the pin presents a similar ornament, which might be
.bn 105.png
.pn +1
described as a St. Andrew’s Cross; but there is nothing in the
character of either of these figures which might not be present
in a purely geometric ornament, and they need not therefore
be supposed to possess a symbolic significance. The ends of
the penannular ring of the brooch, instead of being furnished
with bulbs, are slightly flattened and expanded, and their
ornamentation consists of a simple dotted margin, with a
triplet of larger dots placed in triangular form at the extremities
of the expansions of the ring.
Other two brooches of this form are smaller, and their
pins have no bulbous heads, but are simply looped on to the
ring of the brooch. The smaller of the two is perfectly plain;
the larger has the expanded ends of the ring ornamented
with zoomorphic interlaced work, slightly engraved in the
silver with a very fine point.
It is thus evident that the special peculiarity of
these brooches is their excessive size, their massiveness
and solidity of construction, the bulbous form of their
terminal expansions, and their prickly and engraved ornamentation.
We pass now to the examination of the neck and arm
rings found with them. The commonest form of the neck
rings is a circlet of about 5 inches diameter, composed of a
series of thicker and finer strands, twisted spirally together,
and passing at the ends into flattened expansions, terminating
in hooks. One, 5¼ inches diameter (Fig. #62:f_62#), is composed of
two thick strands, spirally intertwisted with two sets of finer
wires, each set consisting of a plait of two very thin wires,
bordered by a single fine wire on each side. These lie in the
hollows of the twists between the thicker strands, and add
greatly to the beauty of the necklet. The ends of all the
strands are united together, forming terminal flattened expansions,
which are provided with recurving hooks to fasten
the ring when worn. There are ten examples of this type,
.bn 106.png
.pn +1
differing only in the arrangements of thicker strands, with
twisted wires of various degrees of fineness.
.il id=f_62 fn=fig062_106.jpg w=500px ew=90%
.ca Fig. 62.—Neck Ring of Silver found at Skaill (5¼ inches diameter).
Another variety, an example of which is shown in Fig. 63,
is formed of seven hammered rods of equal thickness, closely
interplaited like the thong of a whip. The central portion of
the ring is a solid knob, oval in shape, from which the strands
decrease in thickness towards the extremities, where they are
soldered together and drawn out into a cylindrical tapering
rod, which is coiled into a spiral termination, and the two
.bn 107.png
.pn +1
ends recurved so as to hook into each other when the ring
was worn.
.il id=f_63 fn=fig063_107.jpg w=500px ew=90%
.ca Fig. 63.—Neck Ring of Silver found at Skaill.
Another of these interplaited rings (Fig. #64:f_64#) is formed of
three plaits of two strands each, spirally twisted together,
and intertwisted with double strands of very small wires,
also plaited together, which lie in the interstices of the larger
plaits. The thicker wires taper slightly towards the extremities,
where they are soldered into solid flattened ends, one of
which terminates in a hook, while the other is furnished with
an eye to fasten the ring when worn. The flattened ends are
.bn 108.png
.pn +1
ornamented with punched triangular depressions, having a
raised dot in the centre.
.il id=f_64 fn=fig064_108.jpg w=450px ew=80%
.ca Fig. 64.—Neck Ring found at Skaill (5¼ inches diameter).
There are two of the arm rings which are of the same
construction as the neck rings. Both are closed rings, though
both are treated with respect to their ornament as if they
were penannular. One is formed of a series of thick strands
and finer wires, spirally intertwisted. The other (Fig. #65:f_65#) is
of more elegant design. It is 3¼ inches in its inner diameter,
and is formed of four sets of two strands of wire, each set
being separately twisted, and the four double twists intertwisted
spirally. The strands decrease in thickness from the
middle of the armlet towards the ends, where they are soldered
to a bar, formed into the semblance of two animal’s heads,
grasping in their mouths the part which forms the junction
between the penannular ends of the ring.
.bn 109.png
.pn +1
.il id=f_65 fn=fig065_109.jpg w=400px ew=75%
.ca Fig. 65.—Armlet of Silver found at Skaill (3¼ inches diameter).
.il id=f_66 fn=fig066_109.jpg w=350px ew=67%
.ca Fig. 66.—Armlet of Silver found at Skaill (3¼ inches diameter).
Besides these neck rings and armlets formed of intertwisted
rods and wires, there were in the hoard twenty-five
solid penannular rings of silver, bent to an elongated oval,
and tapering slightly towards the extremities. They vary in
size from 2½ to 3¼ inches in the long diameter, and are thus
of a size sufficient to enclose the wrist. They are either
quadrangular or circular in section, and, except in one
instance, they bear no ornament whatever. The solitary
exception (Fig. #66:f_66#) is ornamented by a series of triangular
.bn 110.png
.pn +1
markings impressed by a punch, having three dots in the
field. Another armlet of a different form (Fig. #67:f_67#) is a flat
thin band of silver, wider in the middle than towards the
ends, and terminating in a hook at one extremity, the other
being broken. This example is the only one of its kind in
the hoard. It is also ornamented with a double row of
impressed triangles, having two dots in the field.
.il id=f_67 fn=fig067_110.jpg w=350px ew=67%
.ca Fig. 67.—Flat Arm Band found at Skaill (2¾ inches diameter).
With these personal ornaments of various kinds, which
constituted the bulk of the hoard, there was a small quantity
of bullion, and a few coins.
The bullion consisted of a number of ingots of silver,
some entire, others cut, and a quantity of fragments of
brooches and arm-rings chopped up into small pieces, as if
with an axe or chisel. The largest ingot is 3¼ inches in
length, and weighs 1089 grains.
The coins were few—at least few were recovered—although
from their small size and thinness they were more
liable to be overlooked in the hasty and promiscuous grubbing
of many treasure-seekers. One is a St. Peter’s penny struck
at York, of tenth century date. Another is a penny of King
Æthelstan (A.D. 925), struck at Leicester. All the others are
Asiatic, of the time when the seat of the Mohammedan
Caliphate was at Cufa or Bagdad. Three of these Cufic
coins belong to the Abbaside Caliphs, and seven to the
Samanian dynasty. They range in their dates between A.D.
887 and 945, and the places of mintage, still legible, are
Al-shash, Bagdad, and Samarcand.
.bn 111.png
.pn +1
Let us now group the characteristics of this deposit. It
is a hoard buried in the earth, but with no indication of its
having been in any way connected with the rites of sepulture.
It is a large hoard, altogether amounting to 16 lbs. in weight.
It is entirely of silver, and consists of personal ornaments,
ingots, and coins. The ornaments are brooches, neck rings,
and arm rings. The brooches are of penannular form, but
differ in their character from those we have learned to
recognise as distinctively Celtic. The neck rings and arm
rings present no features of a specially Celtic character. The
coins are Cufic and Anglo-Saxon, dated mostly in the end of
the ninth and the first half of the tenth centuries.
No similar hoard has been discovered in any other part
of Scotland. But in its general composition the Skaill
hoard resembles a considerable number of other hoards of
similar articles which have been found in other countries.
They are most abundant in the eastern parts of Sweden, less
common in Norway, and of occasional occurrence in Denmark.
In none of these countries has there been found a hoard
consisting of such a large number of personal ornaments as
that found at Skaill, but the forms and the character of the
ornaments found in these hoards of silver, associated with
mintages of the ninth and tenth centuries, are always the
same. The specialty of these hoards so found in Scandinavia
is that they are largely composed of Cufic and Anglo-Saxon
coins.[48] The personal ornaments associated with them consist
for the most part of large rings for the neck, formed of
intertwisted rods and wires; arm rings of similar character, or
of solid bars, circular or quadrangular in section, bent into
a penannular oval, and ornamented with the peculiar triangular
patterns impressed by a punch, with dots in the field.
The brooches, with long pins and bulbous ends like thistle
.bn 112.png
.pn +1
heads, are less common, but occur occasionally in such hoards
in all the three Scandinavian countries. In many of the
hoards there are also ingots, and dismembered ornaments cut
and hammered into lumps of mere bullion. “This fact,” says
Hildebrand, “shows that they had no value with the people
who possessed them, except the intrinsic value of the metal.”
Weighing scales and weights are sometimes also found with
them, and close examination reveals the fact that the ornaments
and portions of ornaments have been often tested with
a cutting instrument to try their purity. This again reveals
the trafficker rather than the plundering Viking, who carries
off his spoil without any such careful examination; and,
according to this view, Mr. Hildebrand concludes that the
silver ornaments and the Cufic coins must be considered as
equally foreign to Scandinavia. “There can be no doubt,”
he says, “that these ornaments, ingots, and lumps of silver
were brought with the coins from Asia, where silver is more
easily obtained than in the northern parts of Europe.” With
reference to this conclusion it may be remarked that while
the derivation of the Cufic coins needs no demonstration, and
while it may be admitted that other products of the Arab
civilisation of the time were brought by the same stream of
commerce through Russia to the Scandinavian countries, and
thence to Scotland, England, and Ireland, it still remains to
be shown that these silver ornaments are Oriental in their
origin. This can only be demonstrated by showing that they
are allied by their forms and ornament to the Oriental types
of that period; or, if this cannot be done, it must at least be
shown that they differ so widely in form and ornament from
the types of the western lands in which they are found as to
forbid the supposition that they may be of western origin.
.fm rend=t
.fn 48
Upwards of 20,000 Cufic and 15,000 Anglo-Saxon coins have been
enumerated from hoards of this period in Sweden alone.
.fn-
.fm rend=t
We have no knowledge of the types of personal ornaments
in use in Asia at the time indicated by the dates of
mintage of these Cufic coins. It is impossible, therefore, to
.bn 113.png
.pn +1
establish the Oriental origin of these silver ornaments by
demonstrating their identity of type with Oriental ornaments
of that period. The question which remains for discussion,
therefore, is, whether their forms and ornament present such
relations to the forms and the ornament of any of the western
countries in which they are found, as will correlate them with
known types of native origin.
In 1840 a large hoard of silver ornaments, weighing
upwards of a thousand ounces, along with a quantity of silver
coins, from six to seven thousand in number, was discovered
concealed in a leaden chest, and buried in the soil at Cuerdale,
near Preston, in Lancashire. The coins consisted chiefly of
Anglo-Saxon pennies, with a few of French and some Cufic
mints, and the inference from the data they afford is that the
deposit was probably made at some time subsequent to the
commencement of the tenth century. The personal ornaments
in the hoard consisted chiefly of rings of various sizes
and of similar character to those that have been described
as occurring in the deposit at Skaill. Some of the larger
rings were composed of interplaited rods and twisted wires
like those from Skaill, and the solid rings were also ornamented
with patterns produced by impressions of a triangular
punch, with dots in the field. There were also some fragments
of the peculiarly-shaped brooches, with bulbous knobs
and prickly ornamentation. One object in the hoard was
distinctively Scandinavian—a small Thor’s hammer of silver,
such as were commonly worn as amulets in the heathen time.
Among the fragments described at the time as incapable of
being determined, there are four which may now be said
with certainty to be portions of penannular brooches of the
distinctively Celtic form. This Celtic relationship was not
perceived by Mr. Hawkins (who described them), except in
one instance, which he recognises as “so much resembling
the patterns on early crosses and architectural remains, that
.bn 114.png
.pn +1
it is difficult to assign to it any other than a Northern origin.”
But his general conclusion is that “it is scarcely consistent
with sound reasoning upon all the facts of the case to assign
any but an Oriental origin to these objects.” In this he is
supported by Mr. Worsaae, who says that as these silver
ornaments are not found in the west of Europe except in
association with Cufic coins, and do not occur at all in the
interior or southern parts of Europe, he regards it as without
doubt that Mr. Hawkins has been perfectly right in giving an
Oriental origin to at least a great part of the silver ornaments
found at Cuerdale.
Setting aside these conclusions, in so far as they are
merely conjectural, it appears established that the area over
which these deposits of silver ornaments are found is limited
to the three Scandinavian countries and the British Isles. It
is certain that among the ornaments so found some are
distinctively Scandinavian, and others distinctively Celtic,
while the remainder, which constitutes the bulk of the
deposits, is of unknown derivation, but has been conjecturally
assigned to an Oriental origin, on account of its association
with the Cufic coins. I therefore proceed to the examination
of these objects which are of undetermined origin, with the
view of ascertaining the special characteristics and relations
of their form and ornament.
I have already remarked that the form of these bulbous
brooches is that which is distinctive of the Celtic brooch—penannular,
with expanded ends. Its special peculiarities
are exaggerations of the specialties of form by which the
Celtic type is distinguished from all others; and in this
respect the form assumed by these bulbous brooches, though
Celtic in type, is so strongly differentiated from the purely
Celtic form, that it may be regarded as a distinct variety. No
other form of brooch is so huge and massive, with such a
length of pin. The Celtic brooch-maker was so much more
.bn 115.png
.pn +1
of an artist than the mere silversmith that he flattened the
ring of the brooch and broadened its terminal expansions in
order to provide space for the elaborate surface decoration in
which he delighted. The maker of these bulbous brooches,
on the other hand, is so much more of the silversmith than of
the artist that the bulk of his work is merely finished with
the hammer—the ring and the pin are beaten into form, and
the expansions made globular instead of flat. The form of
these brooches, therefore, agrees with the Celtic form in its
main features, its penannular character, and its length of pin,
loosely looped on the ring of the brooch.
But if the form of these brooches be thus closely allied to
the Celtic form, their ornament is no less closely allied to the
Celtic system of ornamentation. The peculiar prickliness of
the bulbs, which is the most marked feature of their character,
is not distinctively Celtic, but a suggestion of it is occasionally
found on Celtic silver-work, as, for instance, on the almost
globular head of a Celtic brooch in the National Museum, and
on a gold brooch found near Coleraine.[49] But the reverse
hemispheres of the bulbous terminations of the Skaill
brooches, which present this prickly ornamentation on the
obverse, are also decorated with engraved designs. These are
of two varieties, simple interlaced ribbon patterns and
zoomorphic patterns. The character of the interlaced work so
closely resembles the Celtic style that it may be said to be
more Celtic than Scandinavian. The character of the
zoomorphic work, on the other hand, is more Scandinavian
than Celtic, and is suggestive of the style and treatment of
the designs on the Manx crosses, while it more closely
resembles some of the more characteristic designs of the
purely Scandinavian metal-work of the heathen time.
.fm rend=t
.fn 49
The gold brooch is figured in the Ulster Journal, vol. iv. p. 1.
.fn-
.fm rend=t
The interlaced work is present on the reverse hemispheres
of the bulbs of one of the largest of the prickly brooches, in the
.bn 116.png
.pn +1
form of a circular pattern (Fig. #68:f_68#) which is common in Celtic
work, and may be seen on several of the sculptured monuments
of the east coast of Scotland. Another circular pattern
of interlaced work (Fig. #69:f_69#), differing in its construction, but
possessing the Celtic peculiarity of the divided bands, is found
on the head of the pin of another brooch. The collars of the
first-mentioned example are also surrounded by bands of
interlaced work in a running pattern (Fig. #70:f_70#), which is
common on Celtic stone and metal work.
.dv class='column-container'
.dv class='column'
.il id=f_68 fn=fig068_116.jpg w=100% ew=100%
.ca
Fig. 68.—Circular pattern on reverse\
of the bulbs of the brooch described\
p. 80 (actual size).
.ca-
.dv-
.dv class='column'
.il id=f_69 fn=fig069_116.jpg w=100% ew=100%
.ca
Fig. 69.—Circular pattern on the head\
of the pin of brooch, described pp.\
81-82 (actual size).
.ca-
.dv-
.dv-
.il id=f_70 fn=fig070_116.jpg w=350px ew=60%
.ca Fig. 70.—Pattern on the reverse of the bulbs of the brooch described p. 80\
(actual size).
.il id=f_71 fn=fig071_117.jpg w=400px ew=80%
.ca Fig. 71.—Zoomorphic pattern on bulb of the brooch in the Skaill hoard, shown\
as Fig. 59.
.il id=f_72 fn=fig072_117.jpg w=400px ew=80%
.ca Fig. 72.—Ornament on bulb of brooch, shown as Fig. 59 (actual size).
.dv class='column-container'
.dv class='column'
.il id=f_73 fn=fig073_118.jpg w=100% ew=100%
.ca Fig. 73.—On the pinhead of\
brooch, shown as Fig. 59\
(actual size).
.dv-
.dv class='column'
.il id=f_74 fn=fig074_118.jpg w=100% ew=100%
.ca Fig. 74.—On a single bulb of a brooch\
in the Skaill hoard (actual size).
.dv-
.dv-
.dv class='column-container'
.dv class='column'
.il id=f_75 fn=fig075_118.jpg w=100% ew=100%
.ca Fig. 75.—On one of the bulbs\
(actual size).
.dv-
.dv class='column'
.il id=f_76 fn=fig076_118.jpg w=100% ew=100%
.ca Fig. 76.—On one of the bulbs\
(actual size).
.dv-
.dv-
.pm floatimage_e f_77 fig077_119 'Fig. 77.—On the bulbous head\
of the pin (actual size).' 175 30 r
.pm floatimage_e f_78 fig078_119 'Fig. 78.—Axe-head inlaid with silver, from\
the Mammen How, Denmark.' 250 50 l
The zoomorphic patterns consist mostly of animal forms,
which are treated in a freer manner than is usual in Celtic
work. One of these occupying the reverse of a single bulb
with prickly ornament, is shown in Fig. 74. The irregularity
of the design, its want of balance and symmetry, and the
tendency of the interlacements of the intertwisted members
to break off in scroll-like terminations, are all features which
are usually present in Scandinavian work, and as usually
absent in the work of the pure Celtic school. The body of
.bn 117.png
.pn +1
the beast, seen sideways, is outlined with a double line, as is
usual in the Celtic style. Its head is thrown back, its mouth
open and tongue protruding; a single tooth appears in each
jaw. Its feet are furnished with two toes, and its tail and
crest, convoluted with the body and limbs, terminate in
irregular scrolls. The patterns on the bulbous terminations
of another brooch (Figs. 71, 72, 73), have a curious resemblance
to this one, while presenting points of difference. It is
the same beast, almost in the same attitude, but differing in the
treatment of the details in both representations. In Fig. 72
the body of the beast is covered with scale-like markings, and
the same tendency of the convolutions of the crest to break
off in scroll-like terminations is visible in both. The figure
.bn 118.png
.pn +1
on the bulbous head of the pin of this brooch (Fig. #73:f_73#) differs
from those on the bulbous terminations of its ring in being
more bird-like than beast-like, and its convolutions more
broken into indefinite scrolls and whirls. It is noticeable,
however, that the crest, the eye, and the two-toed foot of this
bird-like figure are the same as those of the beast which
appears in the patterns previously described, and re-appears in
conjunction with a more remarkable figure on another brooch
(described pp. 81-82) in the Skaill deposit. The figures on its
bulbous terminations (Figs. 75, 76) are finely engraved. They
represent the same beast which is figured on the others, with
but slight variations of detail, but the bulbous head of the pin
.bn 119.png
.pn +1
shows quite a remarkable deviation from the general form
of these representations. Instead
of the conventional beast, we
see here (Fig. #77:f_77#) a quasi-human
figure worked up into a
pattern of interlacements. The
treatment of this anthropomorphic
form is peculiar. It presents a
bearded face, which is curiously
elongated and triangular in outline;
the nose is represented by a
curved line, and the eyes are connected by double lines
across the upper part of
the nose. The hands are
bound with interlacements,
and the body is
treated as the bodies of
the beasts commonly
used for zoomorphic
patterns. This bearded,
broad-nosed, goggle-eyed
figure has no Celtic relations,
but we meet with
the same typical face in
Scandinavia, occasionally
placed in association
with zoomorphic patterns,
which are almost
identical with those of
the Skaill brooches in
motive and style.
.il id=f_79 fn=fig079_121.jpg w=175px ew=35% align=r
.ca Fig. 79.—Thor’s Hammer in silver,\
from Skane, Sweden (actual size).
For instance, the
motive and the style of
the decoration of an
.bn 120.png
.pn +1
iron axe-head (Fig. #78:f_78#), inlaid with silver, which was
found in a grave-mound of the heathen time called the
Mammen How, near Viborg, in Denmark,[50] are almost
identical with those of the engraved designs on the Skaill
brooches. There is the same scale-covered beast, in the same
attitude, rendered with the same conventionality of treatment,
and the convolutions of the tail and crest which interlace
with the limbs and body of the creature exhibit the same
tendency to break off in scrolls. In the upper part of the
axe we have the same triangular, broad-nosed, goggle-eyed
face which also appears on one of the brooches from Skaill.
The same face appears on the pendants representing Thor’s
Hammer, which are occasionally found in hoards of personal
ornaments of the heathen period in Scandinavia. They are
usually of silver, sometimes parcel-gilt, and decorated with
.bn 121.png
.pn +1
filigree work. One of these (Fig. #79:f_79#), found in Skane,
Sweden, bearing the typical
face with the goggle-eyes and
the bar between them, is here
figured of the actual size.[51]
The same face occasionally
occurs on Runic monuments
of the heathen time. It is
seen on a stone 5 feet high
by 3 feet broad, and from 2 to
16 inches thick, at Skjern, in
North Jutland (Fig. #80:f_80#), which
is here reproduced from the
engraving given by Professor
Stephens, who thus describes
the figure:—“In the centre is the head of Thor, wild and
bearded. There is no manner of doubt that he is here introduced
and invoked to bless and protect the deceased and his
tumulus, grave-stone, and funeral-marks.” That the face is
really intended for that of Thor appears to be demonstrated
by its occurrence upon the small amulets representing Thor’s
Hammer in silver, and by such monumental sculptures as
that on a stone at Aby, in Sodermanland, Sweden (Fig. #81:f_81#),
where a similar face, though less conventional in treatment,
occurs in association with a sculptured representation of a
Thor’s Hammer. But it is quite immaterial to our present
purpose to determine whether this peculiar type of face is
more of a mythological conception than a conventionality of
art. The point which concerns our inquiry is that we have
localised the typical form definitely within the Scandinavian
area, and demonstrated its association with the art of the monuments
and the metal work of the Scandinavian heathen time.
.il id=f_80 fn=fig080_122.jpg w=350px ew=67%
.ca Fig. 80.—Runic Monument at Skjern, North Jutland, with Thor’s face\
(5 feet high).
.fm rend=t
.fn 50
In this remarkable sepulture the body was found in a pit 6 feet beneath
the natural surface, under the centre of the mound, laid in a chest constructed
of oaken planks, axe-dressed, and fastened together with large round-headed
iron nails. The chest had somewhat of the form of a closed bedstead,
for it was supported by six posts driven into the soil at the bottom of
the pit. On the bottom planks of this rough bedstead the skeleton lay
extended on cushions filled with feathers, with the head to the north-east.
It had been clothed in garments worked with gold thread, of excessive richness
and beauty. The fragments preserved include portions of a girdle of
silk, ornamented with fretwork and gold tissue; a mantle of woollen cloth,
with a band of foliageous scroll-work interwoven with figures of human heads
and hands, and further ornamented with figures of animals, and patterns
worked in gold thread; and portions of cuffs or bracelets, also of silk,
ornamented with gold thread. In the interior of the chest or bedstead, along
with the skeleton, there were found the fragments of a sword and scabbard,
with its mountings, inlaid with silver, and two axes, of which the one was
plain, the other inlaid with zoomorphic patterns in silver, as shown in Fig. 78.
On the lid of the chest there stood at the one end a cauldron of thin brass,
two buckets, constructed of oaken staves hooped with iron, and at the other
end lay a wax candle, 22 inches in length, which had burned for some time,
probably during the funeral ceremonies.—La sepulture de Mammen, par J.
J. A. Worsaae, in the Memoires de la Royale des Antiquaires du Nord:
Copenhagen, 1870.
.fn-
.fn 51
This and the two following figures are copied from Professor Stephen’s
Thunor the Thunderer: Copenhagen, 1879, folio.
.fn-
.fm rend=t
.bn 122.png
.pn +1
.pm floatimage_e f_81 fig081_123 'Fig. 81.—Runic Monument at Aby, with\
representation of Thor’s Head and Hammer.' 250 50 r
The general result of this examination of the typical form
and ornamentation of these bulbous brooches is that they are
found to possess features that are Celtic, in combination with
features that are distinctive of the art of the Scandinavian
heathen time. The obvious inference is that the birthplace
of the type is to be looked for in an area in which the population
were partly Celtic and partly Scandinavian in their
extraction. At the period indicated by the range in date of
.bn 123.png
.pn +1
these silver hoards,[52] and for a considerable time previous to
the earliest date assigned to them, this was the character of
the mixed race of the Gall-gael
of the Western Isles,
and it was also to a certain
extent the character of the
inhabitants of the northern
isles of Orkney and Shetland,
though there the Celtic
element was feeble and the
northern element strong.
But this is precisely the
nature of the mixed art of
these brooches. It is more
northern than Celtic, and
seeing that the deposit is
found in the very area where
this was the special character of the population, the conclusion
seems irresistible that the type is the product of the area
in which it is found. There is no evidence whatever of its
having come from the east—no evidence of its having come
from Scandinavia itself. The only other example of the type
that has occurred in Scotland—the plain bulbous brooch of
silvered bronze—which was found with a heathen burial in
the island of Eigg (Fig. #43:f_43#), also occurs within the area of
the mixed population. A few specimens have occurred
sporadically in England,[53] but there they are confined to the
north-western area—that is, the portion adjacent to the
.bn 124.png
.pn +1
insular territories possessed by the Norse colonists of the
Western Isles. A few specimens have been found in Ireland,
chiefly isolated, but in one remarkable instance associated
with brooches and other metal work of pure Celtic types.[54]
In Scandinavia itself they do not occur in such abundance as
to suggest that they were common ornaments characteristic
of the people or the time. While, therefore, they are partially
Scandinavian in the character of their art, they occur so
sparsely in the Scandinavian countries that they cannot be
considered as products that are characteristic of that area, or
indigenous to it, and their presence in such limited numbers
in the archæological deposits of Norway, Sweden, and Denmark,
is not inconsistent with the conclusion that the type
may have had its birthplace in the Scandinavian colonies
planted in Celtic soil, between whom and the fatherland
there was always such a closely-knit connection and continuous
intercourse.
.fm rend=t
.fn 52
The approximate dates of the hoards are indicated by the coins found
with them.
.fn-
.fn 53
Besides the fragments that occurred in the Cuerdale hoard, two entire
brooches of this type have been found in England—one near Kirby Lonsdale,
in Westmoreland, 5½ inches diameter; and one near Penrith, in Cumberland,
which is the largest on record, the ring being 8¼ inches in diameter, the pin
21 inches long, and the weight of the whole brooch 25 ounces avoirdupois.
.fn-
.fn 54
One of these brooches occurred in the remarkable hoard of silver objects
found in the Rath of Reerasta, Ardagh, in Limerick, in 1868. The hoard
consisted of a silver chalice of exquisite beauty, one other vessel of bronze,
three brooches of pure Celtic type, decorated like the chalice with interlaced
designs in panels, in the best style of the art, and a fourth brooch of the
bulbous or “thistle-headed” form.—Transactions of the Royal Irish Academy,
vol. xxiv. p. 433.
.fn-
.fm rend=t
In passing finally from the examination of these brooches,
it may be desirable to refer briefly to the materials composing
the dress in which such gigantic ornaments were worn. The
perishable nature of these materials precludes the possibility
of obtaining such specimens of them as would suffice to show
the form and appearance of the garments themselves. But
there are occasional instances in which the natural circumstances
of the deposit have been more than usually favourable
to their preservation, and there may be cases in which
exceptional carefulness in the examination of these circumstances
may preserve not only the texture but even the form
.bn 125.png
.pn +1
and appearance of the garment. I have already alluded to
the fact that small portions of the dress from a grave of the
Viking time in the island of Eigg exhibit distinctly the
.bn 126.png
.pn +1
texture of the woollen fabric, and retain portions of its
mountings of fur. Similar discoveries in Denmark and
Norway have established the truth of the Saga narratives,
which testify to the excessive richness of the ornamentation,
and the costly nature of the materials of the dress of this
period.
.il id=f_82 fn=fig082_125.jpg cw=120% w=316px ew=60%
.ca
Fig. 82.—Hood found in a Moss in St. Andrew’s Parish, Orkney.
(27 inches in length.)
.ca-
.pm floatimage_e f_83 fig083_127 'Fig. 83.—Portion of the Fabric of the Hood.' 250 50 l
The fact that a few examples from Scottish graves have
shown the possibility of obtaining even from these perishable
materials the tangible evidence of the form and fashion of the
garments that clothed the men and women who made and
wore these ornaments, gives room for hope that with increasing
interest and greater care the products of future investigations
may complete this evidence. In the meantime we have
but one piece of dress which retains its form, and which may
with some degree of probability be attributed to the mixed
population of the Scandinavian colony. It is a hood of a
coarse woollen fabric (Fig. #82:f_82#), woven with a peculiarly
twilled texture, and decorated with a long fringe of pendent
and knotted cords, formed by twisting the doubled end of a
thread with two contiguous threads of the warp. It was dug
up in a peat moss in the parish of St. Andrews, in the mainland
of Orkney, many years ago, and came into the possession
of the late Mr. George Petrie of Kirkwall, after whose death
it was acquired for the National Museum, along with his
general collection. It measures 32 inches in height and 17
inches in greatest width. The border to which the fringe is
attached is 3 inches in width. The fringe itself is 15 inches
in depth. The fabric of which the body of the hood is composed
is worked in alternate stripes, presenting at their
junction the appearance shown in the woodcut (Fig. ).
The fringe of two-ply cords (Fig. #84:f_84#), which is its most
peculiar feature, presents a striking similarity to the fringe
(Fig. #85:f_85#) of a portion of the dress of a woman whose body
was discovered in 1835 in digging peats in the Moss of
.bn 127.png
.pn +1
Haraldskjaer, in Jutland. The body, which was stretched on
its back, was pegged down in the moss by hooked branches
of trees driven into the
peat so as to fasten down
the legs and arms at the
knees and elbows, and
further secured by other
branches placed across the
breast and abdomen, and
staked down at the ends.
The dress was well preserved
when first discovered,
but only a few
fragments were saved, and
among them is a portion
with a fringe of two-ply cords (Fig. #85:f_85#), bearing a suggestive
similarity to the fringe of the Orkney hood. This similarity,
so far as it has any value as an indication of relationship,
links the Orkney specimen with the Scandinavian, and thus
gives apparent ground for the inference that the hood may
.bn 128.png
.pn +1
belong to the period of the Scandinavian colonisation of the
islands, and that, like the brooches, it may represent a typical
variety of head-dress peculiar to the colony.
.dv class='column-container'
.dv class='column'
.il id=f_84 fn=fig084_127.jpg w=100% ew=100%
.ca Fig. 84.—Part of the Border and Fringe of the Hood.
.dv-
.dv class='column'
.il id=f_85 fn=fig085_127.jpg w=100% ew=100%
.ca Fig. 85.—Woollen Fabric from the Moss of Haraldskjaer, Jutland.
.dv-
.dv-
The typical form of neck ring and arm ring (Figs. #64:f_64#, #65:f_65#),
which is associated with the bulbous brooches in these
hoards, composed of hammered rods and intertwisted wires
of silver plaited manifoldly, and formed into a circlet by
soldering the ends, does not occur again in Scotland. But
it has obvious relations with a group of personal ornaments
in gold, which present similar features of form and construction.
They are of smaller size than the silver rings, all
that are known being obviously finger-rings.
.il id=f_86 fn=fig086_128.jpg w=500px ew=90%
.ca Fig. 86.—Gold Rings found at Stenness (actual size).
Two of these (Fig. 86, Nos. 2 and 3) were dug up in the
month of August 1879, in a field near the shore of the Loch
of Stenness, in Orkney, and are now in the National Museum.
The largest is formed of two double twists of gold wires,
hammered round, and tapering to the small ends, which are
connected by a lozenge-shaped bezel. The smaller of the two
is composed of three strands of gold wire, similarly shaped
by the hammer alone, and intertwisted, and the small ends
soldered together. With them there were also found two
plain flat hoops or circlets of gold, of about an inch in
diameter, ¼ inch wide in the widest part, and tapering to the
ends, which are unjoined (Fig. 86, No. 1).
There is also in the Museum a hoard of gold objects of
this character, consisting of six finger-rings of plaited wires,
.bn 129.png
.pn +1
a plain solid ring formed of a tapering rod (Fig. #87:f_87#), with
the ends unjoined, two portions of plaited rings cut off, and
two portions of plain solid rings similarly cut. Two of the
plaited rings (one of which is shown in Fig. #87:f_87#) are formed
of three wires each, intertwisted, and the ends soldered
together; the wires or rods are simply rounded by the
hammer and tapered to either end. The other four rings are
slightly larger. They are composed of eight wires, each
similarly fashioned by the hammer alone, and ingeniously
interplaited, so that two strands of the plait form a ridge
all round the convexity of the ring, the ends united and
worked flat to form a bezel. Unfortunately we are unable to
localise this hoard more closely than that it was found somewhere
in the Hebrides.
.il id=f_87 fn=fig087_129.jpg w=350px ew=70%
.ca Fig. 87.—Gold Rings found in the Hebrides (actual size).
.pm floatimage_e f_088 fig088_129 'Fig. 88.—Ingot of Silver (actual size).' 200 40 r
Another hoard of somewhat similar character was found
in June 1863, in the island of Bute, about 300 yards distant
from the old church of St. Blane, in Kingarth. The hoard,
which was deposited beneath
a large stone, consisted of
two gold rings, three long,
narrow fillets of thin gold,
a small ingot of silver (Fig.
88), weighing 228 grains, and a number of silver coins,
of which twenty-one were pennies of David I. of Scotland,
three of King Stephen, and one of King Henry
.bn 130.png
.pn +1
I. of England. Of the two gold rings, one (Fig. 89, No. 1) is
a plain solid ring, formed of a rod rounded by the hammer,
and tapered to both ends, and the ends unjoined. The other,
shown in Fig. 89, No. 2, is composed of three similarly-hammered
rods or wires twisted together, and the ends joined
into a lozenge-shaped bezel. The largest of the three fillets
found with them is (Fig. #90:f_90#) 17 inches in length, and about
inch wide in the centre, tapering to both ends until it
expands into a small terminal loop. The others are similar
in form. They are scarcely thicker than stout writing-paper,
and the largest, though 17 inches in length, weighs only 55
grains. Their ornamentation consists of zig-zag running
patterns, and beaded work in repoussé.
.il id=f_89 fn=fig089_130.jpg w=400px ew=75%
.ca Fig. 89.—Gold Rings found in Bute (actual size).
It is thus evident that this typical form of construction of
personal ornaments in the precious metals by interplaiting
and intertwisting slender rods of metal, rounded and tapered
by the hammer alone, and their ends soldered together, comes
.bn 131.png
.pn +1
down at least to the twelfth century, and appears in associations
in which there is no suggestion of an Oriental origin.
Its area, so far as our present knowledge enables us to define
it, appears to be limited to the northern and western isles,
no well-authenticated instance having been recorded from the
mainland of Scotland. On the other hand, the area of the
type extends eastwards into Scandinavia, but there the type
itself is regarded as one which is not indigenous.
.il id=f_90 fn=fig090_130.jpg w=500px ew=90%
.ca Fig. 90.—Terminal portions of two Gold Fillets found in Bute (actual size).
The type of penannular arm ring, which is of rounded or
quadrangular section, with tapering or slightly flattened ends,
of which so many examples were associated with the twisted
rings and bulbous brooches in the Skaill hoard, has not
occurred in any other metal than silver. Like the other
types associated with them, they have not been found in
Scotland beyond the area of the Scandinavian colonisation.
Within that area, however, they appear not unfrequently.
Wallace records the discovery of a hoard of nine in one of
the mounds at Stennis, in Orkney. Another hoard, of which
the precise number is not given, was found in 1774 at
Caldale, near Kirkwall, with a horn containing 300 silver
pennies of Canute the Great. In 1830 six or seven were
found at Quendale, in Shetland, with a horn full of Anglo-Saxon
coins of Ethelred, Ethelstan, Edwy, and Edgar.
In 1850 a hoard of at least six were found in the island
of Skye, but in circumstances of which there is no record.
.il id=f_91 fn=fig091_131.jpg w=350px cw=120% ew=67%
.ca Fig. 91.—Penannular Arm-ring of Silver, one of a hoard of eight, found at\
Burn of Rattar, Caithness (3½ inches diameter).
In 1872 a hoard of eight were found in a cist of stones in
or close to an ancient burying-ground near where the burn of
.bn 132.png
.pn +1
Rattar enters the Pentland Firth, in Caithness. One of these
is shown in Fig. 91.
All these are similar in form to each other, and to the
rings of the same type found in Scandinavia in association
with the other types of silver ornaments previously described.
They are more frequently plain than ornamented, and when
ornamented their decoration consists simply of a series of
impressions formed by a triangular punch, with one, two, or
three dots in the field. This species of ornamentation is only
found on these silver ornaments in Scotland, but in Scandinavia
it is common to them and to the oval bowl-shaped
brooches of brass which were the characteristic personal
ornaments of the closing period of the Scandinavian Paganism.
It follows from this enumeration of the characteristics of
form and ornament exhibited by the different varieties of
these silver ornaments which have been deposited in hoards
within the area of the Scandinavian colonisation of Scotland,
that they possess a character which is distinctive and peculiar,
being neither wholly Celtic nor wholly Scandinavian, but
owing its individuality to an intermixture of characteristics
derived from forms and systems of ornament which are
peculiar to each of these racial areas.
The deposit of such hoards of ornaments and coin is a
custom more characteristic of the Scandinavian than of the
Celtic area. Deposits of this character may have been placed
in the soil for simple concealment at any time, but they are
much more frequent in this particular period than in any
other, and there was a motive connected with the Pagan faith
of the people which may have operated to increase their
abundance. We learn from the Saga of Egil Skalagrimson
that there was a belief among the Pagan Northmen that
treasure thus buried during their lifetime would be available
for use or display in the life to come.
But whatever may have been the manner or the motive
.bn 133.png
.pn +1
of their concealment, the fact, which is of special importance
for the purpose of the present investigation, is that they are
for the most part relics which, by their forms and the
characteristics of their art, are but feebly linked with the
forms and art of the Celtic area in which they are found, and
strongly linked by their art characteristics with the art of the
Scandinavian Paganism, which was contemporary with the
art of the Christian Celtic school. The soil in which they are
found is within that area of Scotland which was occupied by
a mixed population, composed of the two races whose special
art instincts are visible in the mixed art of the objects—the
dominant race, moreover, being that whose art is dominant in
their decoration.
The colonisation of the northern and western coasts of
Scotland by the heathen Northmen forms an episode in the
history of our country only second in importance to the
earlier colonisation of its southern districts by the Romans,
and far surpassing it in the interest of its historical annals.
Its archæological interest may be estimated by the number
and variety of the relics which have now been shown to
belong to the Viking period of the Northmen in Scotland—a
period of singular interest alike in connection with its history,
its archæology, and its art.
.bn 134.png
.pn +1
.sp 4
.h2
LECTURE III. | (October 24, 1882.) | THE CELTIC ART OF THE PAGAN PERIOD.
.sp 2
.ti 0
In this Lecture I shall deal with certain groups of relics
which present in their forms and their decoration features
which we have learned to recognise as distinctively Celtic.
About the year 1820 a singular object was found in a
morass on the farm of Torrs, in the parish of Kelton, Kirkcudbrightshire.
Having passed into the possession of Mr.
Joseph Train, it was presented by him to Sir Walter Scott,
and it still remains in the Museum at Abbotsford.[55] It is of
the form of an elongated mask (Fig. #92:f_92#), somewhat resembling
the frontal of a horse. It measures 10½ inches in total
length, but the tip is apparently imperfect. Its breadth in
a straight line across the lower margin is 3⅝ inches, and
about 8½ inches on the round outside. Its greatest breadth
in a straight line across the back is 6 inches, and 11 inches
on the round outside, immediately above the insertion of the
.bn 135.png
.pn +1
horns. At a height of 3 inches above the lower straight
margin are placed two circular holes, one on each side, each
measuring 2 inches in diameter. From between these eyelike
holes, and a little above the level of their centres, two
curiously curved, cylindrical, tapering horns spring close
together on either side of the median line. The diameter of
each of the horns at the base is 1⅜ inch, and they rise to a
.bn 136.png
.pn +1
height of 8¾ inches to the top of the curve, the whole length
of the perfect horns along the curve of the outer edge being
16½ inches. The horns are hollow, the whole object being
formed of thin beaten bronze.
.fm rend=t
.fn 55
This and many of the other objects referred to in this Lecture have been
described in the Proceedings of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland by Dr.
John Alexander Smith, who has specially illustrated the interesting relics
which I regard as belonging to the closing period of Scotland’s Paganism.
They have been referred by Mr. Franks and others to a special school of art
which they have denominated the “Late Celtic,” but from my point of view
I must regard them as the work of the early Celtic school, which was the precursor
and parent of the greater school of Celtic art of the Christian time
which I have already described.
.fn-
.fm rend=t
.il id=f_92 fn=fig092_135.jpg w=472px ew=85%
.ca Fig. 92.—Bronze object found at Torrs, Kirkcudbrightshire (10½ inches in\
length).
Its ornamentation is as peculiar as its form. It consists
of a series of irregularly divergent spirals in repoussé work
repeated symmetrically but not identically on either side of
the median line of the front of the object. These spirals or
scroll-like figures are formed of curves which are long and
flattened, passing suddenly into curves of quicker motion,
and ending in volutes. These curves, though proceeding in
the same direction, do not proceed at parallel or regular
distances from each other, but converge and diverge so as to
enclose between them alternate spaces of varying extent of
surface. The spaces enclosed between the curves are raised,
and the spaces enclosed by their convolutions are flat, but
the raised spaces are modelled so as to express the confluence
of solid curves of the peculiar forms already indicated. These
trumpet and spiral scrolls, as they are called, enclosing irregularly
formed curvilinear spaces, and producing designs
which are similar but unsymmetrical, are repeated in different
varieties of pattern on the outer sides of the horns (Fig. #93:f_93#).
In the terminal convolutions of the scrolls the curves are
sometimes arranged so as to produce a zoomorphic effect,
which differs from the later zoomorphism of the metal-work
of the Christian time and of the later manuscripts, in being
more geometrical in form and character. The zoomorphic
termination of the horns has also more of a geometric character
than is usual in the Christian period.
.il id=f_93 fn=fig093_137.jpg w=500px ew=90%
.ca Fig. 93.—Plan of the Horns and their Ornament. (1) The right horn. (2) Zoomorphic\
termination of the right horn seen frontwise. (3) The left horn.
The object being incomplete, its purpose is not obvious.
But it is suggestive of the probability of its having formed
part of a helmet that Diodorus Siculus, writing only a few
years after the conquest of Gaul by Julius Cæsar, describes
the military equipment of certain Gallic tribes as including
.bn 137.png
.pn +1
“bronze helmets with lofty projections rising out of them,
which impart a gigantic appearance to the wearers; for
upon some are fixed pairs of horns, upon others the shapes
of birds and beasts wrought out of the same metal.” These
horned helmets are represented on some of the consular
medals, and the whole description of the Gallic equipment
is so similar to what we know of the habits of the Celtic
tribes of Britain, that it may be concluded that in this
respect their customs may not have been greatly dissimilar.[56]
.bn 138.png
.pn +1
And, in point of fact, there is in the British Museum a
bronze headpiece found in the river Thames, near Waterloo
Bridge, which, from its peculiar form, was at first considered
to be a jester’s cap. But Mr. Franks has shown that it is a
military helmet of native workmanship. It consists of a cap of
thin bronze, with an additional plate at the back, decorated
with scrolls of this peculiar character in low relief, among
which are cross-hatched discs once coated with red enamel.
From each side of the cap projects a conical horn terminating
in a moulded button, and upon one side of the horn runs a
string of small projecting studs.
.fm rend=t
.fn 56
The common denarius of the family Furia exhibits a trophy formed of
the horned helmet, the tunic of mail, the peculiarly ornamented oval shield,
and the large war trumpet. On a denarius of Servilia a Gaul wearing the
horned helmet appears aiming a back-handed blow with his long sword at a
Roman antagonist. The name “Cornuti” itself is suggestive of this peculiarity.
.fn-
.fm rend=t
.il id=f_94 fn=fig094_138.jpg w=225px ew=90% align=l
.ca Fig. 94.—Bronze Plaque found in Oland\
(actual size).
It is therefore not improbable that this object at Abbotsford
may have been
the front part of a
military helmet, or
of a headpiece used
for display. Such
a headpiece with
similarly large and
curving horns, terminating
in similar
zoomorphic endings
is seen (Fig. #94:f_94#) on
the head of a warrior
who appears to be
engaged in mimic
combat with another
accoutred as fantastically as himself, and whose grotesque
headpiece bears a resemblance still more remarkable to
.bn 139.png
.pn +1
another bronze object of the same character which I have
next to describe. These representations occur on a bronze
plaque dug up in the island of Oland, and they have
therefore no necessary connection with the usages of the
Celtic people. They merely show that in assigning such a
purpose to these objects we are not attributing to them a
purpose to which they were never applied. But the special
use of the object is really of no great moment for the purpose
of the present investigation. That purpose is fulfilled
when we are enabled to say, from an examination of its
special characteristics, that it has certain typical relations
linking it with other objects, forming a distinct group and
occupying a definite place in the series of types which characterise
the area now termed Scotland. I therefore proceed
to the description of other objects distinguished by the same
characteristics.
.il id=f_95 fn=fig095_139.jpg w=500px ew=90%
.ca Fig. 95.—Bronze object in the form of a swine’s head found at Liechestown,\
Deskford, Banffshire (8½ inches in length).]
.bn 140.png
.pn +1
At Liechestown, in the parish of Deskford, Banffshire,
about the year 1816, a remarkable relic (Fig. #95:f_95#), now in the
Banff Museum, was found in a mossy piece of ground, at a
depth of about 6 feet, and resting on a bed of clay at the
bottom of the moss. This object, which is equally peculiar
alike in respect to its form and ornamentation, is in the
shape of a boar’s head of thin beaten bronze 8½ inches in
length by 5½ in greatest breadth. The lower jaw is movable.
.bn 141.png
.pn +1
The eyes are circular holes 1¼ inch in diameter.
The whole head is formed of four plates of bronze, the snout,
the palate, and the lower jaw (Fig. #96:f_96#) having been each
made separately, and attached to the posterior part of the
head, which consists of an embossed plate bent to the shape.
A disc-like plate, which was found with it, is now attached
to the open back of the head, but does not quite fit, and it is
doubtful whether it had been so placed originally. The
ornamentation of this singular object is of the same character
as that of the Torrs bronze, but simpler, being merely
a series of trumpet-shaped ridges in repoussé work round the
eyes. But this ornament, simple as it is, is quite sufficient
to determine the relations of the relic to that general group
of objects of which it and the bronze from Torrs are the most
remarkable specimens.
.il id=f_96 fn=fig096_140.jpg w=495px ew=90%
.ca Fig. 96.—Plates of thin bronze forming separate parts of the swine’s head.\
(2) The lower jaw. (3) The palate. (4 and 5) Posterior and lateral views\
of the palate.
.il id=f_97 fn=fig097_142.jpg w=100px cw=110% ew=15% align=l
.ca Fig. 97.—Sword-sheath found near Mortonhall (23½ inches long).
It is obvious that if these objects had any relation to
military equipment, we ought to find the very peculiar art
which is so conspicuous in their decoration, also exhibiting
itself in the decoration of the weapons and other war-gear
in use among the same people. Diodorus, in fact, informs us
that the Gauls used oblong shields as tall as the man, and
painted after a peculiar fashion. Some of these shields, he
also says, had figures of animals in relief of bronze, not
merely for ornament but also for defence, and very well
wrought. It has been already remarked that it is probable
that the military equipment of the Gallic tribes resembled
that of the British; and it is the fact that oblong shields,
decorated with the peculiar patterns characteristic of the style
of art exhibited by the two headpieces which have been
described, having these patterns further adorned by coloured
enamels, and also possessing the distinctive feature of figures
of animals in relief in bronze, have been found in England.[57]
.fm rend=t
.fn 57
A bronze shield, found in the river Witham, 3 feet 8½ inches long, and
nearly 14 inches wide, with straight sides and rounded ends, is decorated with
studs of red coral, and had the figure of an animal
attached to it by rivets. Another, found in the Thames,
2 feet 6½ inches long and 14½ inches wide, is ornamented
with enamelled patterns in this peculiar style, and of
singular beauty and remarkable excellence of design and
workmanship. They are figured in colours of the originals
in the Horæ Ferales, edited by A. W. Franks, of
the British Museum (4to. London, 1863), Plates XIV.-XV.
.fn-
.fm rend=t
.bn 142.png
.pn +1
No shields of this character have yet been
discovered in Scotland, but there are other
objects of a military kind which exhibit the
same peculiar art in a sufficiently characteristic
manner. One of these is a sword-sheath
(Fig. #97:f_97#) of bronze, 23½ inches in length by
1¼ inch in width, which was found at the
foot of the Pentlands, near Mortonhall, and
is now in the Museum. It is formed of thin
beaten bronze; the ornamental cup-shaped
expansions at the lower end are solid castings,
and the ornamental strap carrying the loop in
front is fastened on with pins. The back of
the sheath is a thin slip of bronze sliding in
grooves in the inner margins of the two sides.
This is the only example of a sword-sheath of
this style and period known to have been
found in Scotland. Several sheaths of the
same character have been discovered in England.
Perhaps the most characteristic of these
is one in the collection of Canon Greenwell
at Durham, which exhibits, in a very special
manner, the peculiar style of ornament of
which I have given so many illustrations. The
swords which these sheaths contained were
of iron and have perished. One found in the
.bn 143.png
.pn +1
Thames has the blade still within it, 3 feet 1½ inch in
length, but a mere mass of oxide.[58] These swords differ
greatly in the length and form of the blade from the leaf-shaped
swords of bronze which were in general use at an
earlier period, and their sheaths differ still more widely in
form and ornament from the sheaths of the leaf-shaped swords.
.fm rend=t
.fn 58
The specimens of these iron swords with bronze sheaths found in different
parts of England are enumerated by Mr. Franks in the Proceedings of
the Society of Antiquaries of London, vol. iv. p. 166; and several are figured
in Horæ Ferales, Plates XIV.-XVIII.
.fn-
.fm rend=t
Another class of objects, which are more of the nature of
harness-mountings or horse-furniture, also exhibit this peculiar
style of ornamentation, in some cases combined with the
remarkable feature of having their sunk spaces filled with
coloured enamels.
.bn 144.png
.pn +1
.il id=f_98 fn=fig098_143.jpg w=300px ew=50%
.ca Fig. 98.—Mountings of Cast Bronze (5 inches in length).
A pair of massively-formed objects (Fig. #98:f_98#), the precise
use of which is not apparent, were found in a bank of clay on
a spur of the Cheviots at Henshole on Cheviot. They are of
cast bronze, and consist of an oblong body, hollow, rounded
at one end and flattened at the other; the upper and lower
surfaces inclined towards the small end, which is narrower
than the width at the middle. A stout tang of about 2 inches
in length is carried on a bar which crosses the open part of
the small end, and the convexity of the larger end bears the
mark of hammering as if to drive the tang home. They
are destitute of surface decoration, but they seem to be allied
by the characteristics of their form to other objects which are
less indefinite in the indications of their art.
.il id=f_99 fn=fig099_144.jpg w=400px ew=80%
.ca Fig. 99.—Bronze Ornaments found in a Cairn at Towie, Aberdeenshire.
.pm floatimage_e f_100 fig100_145 'Fig. 100.—Mounting in Cast Bronze\
from Dowalton Loch (2 inches in diameter).' 200 35 r
In a large cairn on the farm of Hillock Head, in the
parish of Towie, Aberdeenshire, which covered an interment
placed in a cist with an urn, there were found a number of
bronze objects, all of which were lost except two (Fig. #99:f_99#),
which are now in the Museum. They are in the form of
oval hollow rings, expanding on the inferior side, and having
an oval opening in the under part, which shows the remains
of an iron pin fastened at each side of the opening with lead.
Their general appearance is suggestive of the mountings of
horse-harness, but their precise purpose is not obvious, and
the articles found in association with them are undescribed.
Although the testimony is singularly defective on that point,
.bn 145.png
.pn +1
it is not probable that they had any connection with the
interment in the “short cist” which contained bones and an
urn. A similar object in bronze, also presenting the remains
of iron fastenings in the lower part, was found under a large
stone on the hill of Crichie, near Kintore, along with a
number of globular balls of shale each about 1¼ inch in
diameter, slightly flattened on one side, and having the
remains of iron loop-like fastenings in the flattened side.[59]
A number of rings and harness-mountings found at Middleby,
in Annandale, in 1737, and
now preserved in Penicuick
House, exhibit the same style
of decoration in a more pronounced
and characteristic
manner.[60]
.fm rend=t
.fn 59
Proc. Soc. Antiq. Scot., vol. v. p. 111.
.fn-
.fn 60
They have been figured by Dr. Daniel Wilson in The Prehistoric Annals
of Scotland, vol. ii. p. 156.
.fn-
.fm rend=t
A mounting in cast bronze
(Fig. #100:f_100#), 2 inches diameter,
the sunk spaces of which had
probably been filled with
enamels, was recently found
in the dry bed of the loch of
Dowalton, which was drained
about eighteen years ago. It
is formed of a combination of segmental spaces, the curves
of which are those of the divergent spiral, each space being
surrounded by a raised border, and the sunk surfaces roughened
with a tool.
.il id=f_101 fn=fig101_146.jpg w=175px ew=35% align=l
.ca Fig. 101.—Bridle-bit found in a Moss at Birrenswark, Dumfriesshire (6¾ inches in length).
A bridle-bit (Fig. #101:f_101#), found in a moss at Birrenswark,
in Annandale, before 1785, and now in the National Museum,
exhibits the characteristics of this peculiar phase of art in a
very striking manner. It is no less peculiar in its design
.bn 146.png
.pn +1
and construction than in the character of its ornamentation.
It is a single casting of
bronze. The loops of the
cheek-rings have been cast
within the loops of the
centre-piece, an operation
implying technical skill
and experience of complicated
processes of moulding
and casting. The design,
however, is the most remarkable
feature of the
object. It is designed as
carefully as if it were a
piece of jewellery. The
rings, though cast in one
piece with the loops, are
penannular in form, grasping
the neck of the loop
between their expanded
ends. The two rings differ
slightly in size, and the
loops differ greatly in form.
The one is treated as a loop
formed of a cylindrical rod
bent to the shape of a loop,
and carrying the ornamented
open-work of its
terminal part as between
its extended ends. The
other loop is treated as a
solid form, and in its ornamental
termination there
is no open work. The two rings are similar, but not identical.
.bn 147.png
.pn +1
The idea of openness suggested by the modelling of the one
loop is carried into the construction of the terminal portions
as open work, and the idea of solidity is similarly carried
out in the other loop. The surface decoration of the terminal
portions of the loops is of the same character in the parts of
both that are similar, and is partly carried also into the
parts of the one which are wanting in the other. It consists
of red and yellow enamel champléve, the colours alternating
in alternate rows of triangular and oval spaces. A double
spiral and trumpet pattern appears in the open work of the
one loop. The loops and rings are greatly the worse for wear,
and have been strengthened by thin pieces riveted on.
It is certainly a peculiar feature of an art so singularly
decorative that it was applied so largely to the ornamentation
of objects that were appropriated to the commonest uses.
Enamelled horse-trappings of the most finished and beautiful
workmanship have frequently been found in England, sometimes
associated with the remains of chariots.[61] Not only is
the use of enamel in the decoration of such objects unknown
beyond the area of the British Isles, but the special system of
design which accompanies its use is also confined within that
area. And it is an interesting fact that there is historical
evidence as to the nationality of these remains. The only
classical author who mentions the art of enamelling is
Philostratus, a Greek sophist in the household of Julia
Domna, wife of the Emperor Severus. In a notice of the
variegated trappings of the horses in a painting of a boar-hunt
.bn 148.png
.pn +1
he accounts for their peculiar appearance as follows:—“They
say that the barbarians who live in the Ocean pour
such colours on heated brass, and that they adhere to it,
become as hard as stone, and thus preserve the designs that
are made in them.” It is matter of inference what people
they were who are thus styled “barbarians in the ocean,” but
it is matter of fact that horse-trappings of bronze (or brass)
decorated with coloured enamels have hitherto been found
in the British Islands alone.
.fm rend=t
.fn 61
They have been found at Polden Hill, near Bridgewater (Archæologia,
vol. xiv. p. 90); at Hagbourn Hill, Berkshire (Archæologia, vol. xvi. p. 348);
at Stanwick, Yorkshire, with chariot-wheels (York Volume of the Archæological
Institute, p. 10); at Arras and Hessleskew, in the same county, with
chariot-wheels and the bones of horses (Ibid. p. 28), and other places. A
synopsis of the whole group of objects characterised by this decoration is given
by Mr. Franks in Horæ Ferales (4to., London, 1863), pp. 172, 196, and many
figures in the coloured plates (Plates XIV.-XX.).
.fn-
.fm rend=t
But this peculiar style of art was not confined to the
decoration of such objects as parts of military equipments or
harness of horses. It was largely employed in the decoration
of personal ornaments and objects of personal use.
.il id=f_102 fn=fig102_148.jpg w=200px ew=35% align=l
.ca Fig. 102.—Quern Stone of sandstone found\
at Balmaclellan (14 inches in diameter).
.pm floatimage_e f_103 fig103_149 'Fig. 103.—Bronze Mirror found\
at Balmaclellan (8 inches in diameter)' 175 25 r
In the parish of Balmaclellan, in Kirkcudbright, a number
of bronze articles were found in draining a bog. It is stated
that they were found about 3 feet under the surface in four
parcels, each wrapped in
coarse linen cloth. Close
by them the upper stone
of a quern was also found.
The quern stone (Fig. #102:f_102#)
is ornamented, but the
ornament possesses none
of the distinctive features
of the decoration of the
bronzes. They consisted
of a circular mirror with
handle, and a number of thin
plates of bronze, some being
long narrow bands, others
curved and cut into various shapes. The mirror (Fig. #103:f_103#) is
of the form so commonly seen on the sculptured monuments
of the Celtic Christian time in Scotland. The circular part
is 8 inches in diameter, and the handle 5 inches in projection
.bn 149.png
.pn +1
from the circumference of the circular part. The body of the
mirror is a thin plate of bronze, surrounded by a plain-rolled
edging. The handle, which is also a
thin plate of bronze similarly edged,
is attached to the circular plate by
rivets, and the junction is concealed
by a finely-ornamented plate (Fig.
104), presenting a pattern composed
of those peculiar raised surfaces
formed by the meeting of curves
rising from the flat at different
angles, and traversing the ground
also in curves, which converge and
diverge in a manner pleasing to the
eye, but difficult to describe. The
upper part of this ornamental plate is
tri-lobate, the lobes bounded by curves
of peculiar form, and bordered by an edging of studs embossed
on the metal.
The central ornament of each lobe is a circular
device, with a central boss surrounded by a circle of oval-raised
surfaces, and presenting a nearer approach to the effect
of a floral decoration than is usually seen in this style of
.bn 150.png
.pn +1
ornament. The handle of the mirror is pierced with three
segmental openings formed of the curves of the divergent
spiral. A crescentic collar-shaped plate of bronze (Fig. #105:f_105#), 13
inches in diameter, and 2 inches in the width of the band, is
decorated with a chased pattern of similarly convergent and
divergent curves, the spaces enclosed by the curves being
hatched with parallel lines. The remaining plates (Fig. #106:f_106#),
of which there are a considerable number, are of various
forms. Some have straight outer edges, and the interior edges
cut into curves, meeting each other with long and short points;
.bn 151.png
.pn +1
others are triangular pieces, with one convex and two concave
edges, while others again are long narrow bands with
straight edges. They are all bordered with an edging of thin
metal doubled over and pinned on, and they seem themselves
to have been attached by pins to some object of a more
perishable nature. What their precise purpose was—whether
they were mountings on wood or leather, or whether they
formed parts of some object constructed wholly of thin plates
of metal (as the two objects previously described are constructed)—it
is not necessary to conjecture since the form and
condition of the objects themselves give no definite indications
on these points. Their being wrapped in cloth in
separate parcels may imply that they are not all parts of the
same object, and their local association with objects of such
incongruous purposes, as a mirror and a quern, may imply
that they were not necessarily even associated with each
other when in use. There is no evidence that the deposit
was in any way connected with sepulture, although the
mirror of this form, and bearing precisely the same kind of
.bn 152.png
.pn +1
ornamentation, has been found associated with interments of
Pagan time in Britain.
.dv class='epubonly'
.il id=ef_104 fn=fig104_149.jpg w=500px ew=90%
.ca Fig. 104.—Ornamental Plate of thin bronze, embossed, at the junction\
of the mirror with its handle (actual size).
.il id=ef_105 fn=fig105_150.jpg w=500px ew=90%
.ca Fig. 105.—Half of the Crescentic Collar-like Plate of Bronze found with\
the Mirror at Balmaclellan.
.dv-
.il id=f_106 fn=fig106_151.jpg w=500px ew=90%
.ca Fig. 106.—Form of the Bronze Plates found with the Mirror at Balmaclellan\
(26 inches in length).
At Mount Batten, near Plymouth, a series of graves were
discovered in 1865,[62] which presented phenomena of a very
peculiar character. They were pits 4 or 4½ feet in depth,
one foot of which only was soil, the remaining three feet
being sunk in the disintegrated surface of the underlying
rock. They were very numerous, sometimes close together
and irregular in form, and had mostly been refilled with the
materials removed in making them. They contained fragments
of pottery of black and yellow ware, and wheel-made.
Some fragments of glass vessels, portions of iron implements,
among which were a pair of shears, bronze rings and fibulæ,
and jointed armlets of bronze, with a knife or dagger in a
sheath of thin bronze, were also found. But the most interesting
.bn 153.png
.pn +1
part of the discovery was the circular plate of a
bronze mirror (Fig. #107:f_107#), 8 inches in diameter, which lay on
its face at the bottom of one of the graves. It is a very thin
plate of bronze, with a rolled edging. The back is ornamented
with three circular engraved patterns of spirals formed of the
same peculiar curves, converging and diverging, the spaces
between the lines forming the curves being filled with hatching.
So closely do the patterns resemble those on the collar-like
object from Balmaclellan, and so similar is the style of
the work, that the conclusion is unavoidable that the two
objects belong to the same school of art, and cannot be very
far apart in time.
.il id=f_107 fn=fig107_152.jpg w=400px ew=80%
.ca Fig. 107.—Bronze Mirror found in a grave at Mount Batten, Plymouth\
(8 inches in diameter).
.fm rend=t
.fn 62
Described in a paper by Mr. Spence Bate in Archæologia, vol. xl. p. 500.
.fn-
.fm rend=t
Another mirror, which is almost precisely similar in form
and ornamentation, was found in 1833 at Trelan Bahow,[63] in
the parish of St. Keverne, Cornwall. In the course of the
construction of a new road a group of graves was discovered.
Each grave was formed of six slabs set on edge, two forming
each side of the grave, and one at each end. They were from
two to three feet under the surface, and covered with large
stones. In one of the cists, apparently with the remains of a
female, there were found the bronze mirror almost perfect,
some rings of bronze or brass, fragments of fibulæ, and other
personal ornaments, and several beads of variegated glass.
The mirror is circular, 6 inches in diameter, with a looped
handle 2½ inches in length. The back of the mirror plate
has a marginal ornament of triangular spaces alternately
plain, and filled with short parallel lines struck by a
punch. Across the central line of the mirror are two
circles enclosing smaller circles and curvilinear spaces alternately
plain, and filled with punched lines in a style similar
to that of the ornament on the collar-like object from Balmaclellan.
.fm rend=t
.fn 63
Archæological Journal, vol. xxx. p. 268.
.fn-
.fm rend=t
.il id=f_108 fn=fig108_154.jpg w=400px ew=80%
.ca Fig. 108.—Back of a Bronze Mirror found in a grave at Birdlip, near\
Gloucester (10⅝ inches in diameter).
Another mirror of the same character, found at Birdlip on
.bn 154.png
.pn +1
the edge of the Cottiswold Hills, near Gloucester, in 1879,[64]
exhibits the same style of ornamentation. Three cists were
discovered in a group, containing skeletons placed with their
feet to the south. The first and third were apparently adult
males, and with them no manufactured objects were found.
.bn 155.png
.pn +1
The second was apparently a female. On the face of the
skeleton was placed a large bronze bowl, 9 inches in diameter,
inverted; and among the other contents of the cist were a
smaller bowl of bronze, 4 inches in diameter, a harp-shaped
fibula of silver plated with gold, a bracelet and four rings of
brass, a key-handle, a knife-handle terminating in the head
of an animal, a string of large beads of jet and amber, and a
mirror made of a massive bronze plate, weighing 38¼ ounces.
The back of the mirror (Fig. #108:f_108#), which is of a slightly oval
form, measures 10⅝ inches in its greatest, and 9¾ inches in
its least, diameter, and is beautifully ornamented with a
triple scroll-like pattern of flowing curvilinear spaces filled
with hatchings of short lines in chequers, or groups disposed
at right angles to each other. The pattern is so managed
that the hatched spaces and the plain spaces alternate and
form symmetrical arrangements, producing a pleasing effect.
At the lower part, where the handle supports the mirror, is a
triple arrangement of trumpet-shaped scrolls in relief, enclosing
spaces which are similarly decorated. The handle is
elegantly formed from a prolongation of the marginal beading
of the mirror, which gradually thickens towards the lower
margin to trumpet-shaped endings on either side of the
handle, which takes the form of a double-loop, drawn out
from the marginal bead, and terminating in a ring partly
filled by an ornamented disc.
.fm rend=t
.fn 64
Proceedings of the Bristol and Gloucester Archæological Society, vol. v.
p. 137, and Plate XIV., from which the figure here given is copied by permission.
.fn-
.fm rend=t
These mirrors all differ in their form and in the composition
of the metal from Roman mirrors, and they differ in
certain characteristics of their ornament still more widely
from the Roman style. But the peculiar characteristics which
form the special features of their decoration are identical
with those of a large class of objects which we have now
learned to recognise by the character of their art as distinctively
Celtic.
.il id=f_109 fn=fig109_156.jpg w=298px ew=60%
.ca Fig. 109.—Bronze Spoon-like object (one of a pair) found at Weston,\
near Bath (actual size).
The same character is exhibited by the ornamentation of
.bn 156.png
.pn +1
a series of spoon-like objects[65] found in England and Ireland,
of which Fig. #109:f_109# is a characteristic example. Four of
these are in the National Museum, and though no specimens
.bn 157.png
.pn +1
have yet been met with in Scotland, I notice them here,
because their decoration is so nearly related to that of the
Scottish school. In the case of the pair of these peculiar
objects found in excavating for a quarry at Weston, near
Bath, the backs of the circular projections or handles (Fig.
110) are ornamented with patterns of this character in relief.
The front of the disc is ornamented with a series of circular
concentric mouldings, and the bowl of the spoon is quartered
by incised lines. It is a peculiarity of these objects, that
though found in pairs, the two members of the pair, though
similar, are not identical. In some cases it is apparent that
they have even been cast in different moulds. Usually one
of the pair has its bowl quartered by incised lines, while the
other has a small hole pierced near the edge of the bowl.
Another pair, also in the Museum, were found in 1861 in a
railway cutting in Llanfair parish, Denbighshire. They are
slightly smaller in size, and differ in the ornamentation of the
front of their discs. One of them (Fig. #111, No. 2:f_111#) is here
shown along with the second of the Weston specimens.
.fm rend=t
.fn 65
These have been conjectured to be of Christian time, and to have been
used in connection with the celebration of the Eucharist, but the evidence is
insufficient to carry this conclusion. See the papers by Albert Way in
Archæological Journal, vol. xxvi. p. 52; and by Rev. E. L. Barnwell in
Archæologia Cambrensis, vol. viii. (Third Series) p. 208, and vol. x. p. 57.
.fn-
.fm rend=t
.il id=f_110 fn=fig110_157.jpg w=500px ew=90%
.ca Fig. 110.—Backs of the Handles of the pair of Spoon-like objects found\
at Weston, near Bath (actual size).
The same characteristic style of art is seen in the decoration
of a massive collar of cast bronze (Fig. #112:f_112#), which was found
.bn 158.png
.pn +1
in digging a well at Stitchell, in Roxburghshire, in 1747, and
is now in the National Museum. Like the armlets found in
.bn 159.png
.pn +1
the Plymouth graves, this collar is jointed, opening on a
hinge in the centre, and fastening in front by a pin and
socket. It is a very massive and heavy ornament, the width
of the opening being 6 inches by 5, and the breadth of the
flattened ring varying from 1¾ inch to ¼ inch. The character
of the ornament is simple, but highly peculiar, and bearing
a strong family likeness to the double escaping and divergent
spirals of the later Celtic art. All the patterns are in relief and
cast in the solid, except those on the two panels on either side
of the central opening, which are in repoussé on a thin plate of
bronze fastened to the collar by pins at the four corners.
.il id=f_111 fn=fig111_158.jpg w=500px ew=90%
.ca Fig. 111.—Bronze Spoon-like objects found at Weston and Llanfair.
.il id=f_112 fn=fig112_158.jpg w=275px ew=60%
.ca Fig. 112.—Jointed Collar of Bronze found at Stitchell, Roxburghshire.
Closely akin to this jointed collar in the idea of its construction
and the form of its ornament is an elegant armlet of
thin bronze (Fig. #113:f_113#), found in 1826 near Plunton Castle, in
the parish of Borgue, in Kirkcudbright. It is of thin beaten
bronze, 1½ inch wide and 2½ inches in diameter, and,
like the collar, it is made to open on a hinge in the
centre, and close by a pin and loops. It is ornamented
by three raised mouldings, beaten up from the back, which
pass round it horizontally, but these are concealed on either
side of the hinges by two plates of thin bronze of quadrangular
.bn 160.png
.pn +1
form, ornamented in repoussé by trumpet-shaped ornaments
connected by peculiar curves, and having studs placed in the
concavities of the curves. These plates are fastened to the
armlet at the four corners by pins, and bordered by a single
row of small studs.
.il id=f_113 fn=fig113_159.jpg w=350px ew=75%
.ca Fig. 113.—Bronze Armlet found in the Parish of Borgue, Kirkcudbright.
In the month of March 1806 a herd boy, passing along the
side of the Shaw Hill, near the House of New Cairnmuir, in the
parish of Kirkurd, Peeblesshire, saw something glitter in the
ground, and on scraping the place with his foot he unearthed a
hoard of gold objects, consisting of two twisted arm-rings, each
weighing 8 oz. 12 dwt., a broken ring of the same form weighing
8 oz. 10 dwt., forty small studs, each weighing about half a
sovereign, and a hollow spherical ornament weighing 4 oz. 5
dwt.—the bullion value of the whole being about £110. One
of the twisted arm-rings passed into the possession of Sir George
Montgomery of Macbiehill; the spherical ornament and two
of the small studs were obtained by Mr. John Lawson of
Cairnmuir and placed in the National Museum; the rest of
the hoard is believed to have been melted. The three arm-rings
are spirally twisted rods of gold, with flat circular ends
bent round to encircle the arm. The studs or pellets are
nearly spherical, about the size of a large pea, and marked on
the surface with a cruciform ornament in relief. The spherical
ornament (Fig. #114:f_114#) has some resemblance to the pommel
of a sword, although its form gives no obvious indication of
its purpose. It is 2½ inches in length by 2 inches in width, and
about 1¼ inch in thickness. It has been cast hollow, with
an opening through the centre of the rounded part, and must
have been made by a very skilful workman. One side of it
is plain, the other ornamented in repoussé work of great
beauty. The style of the ornament is simple, elegant, and
highly effective. The surface to be decorated is broken up
into irregular spaces by a system of the peculiar curves, which
are so characteristic of the style of art of the bronzes which
.bn 161.png
.pn +1
have been already described. Some of these spaces are further
ornamented by a peculiar pitting of the surface seen in some
of the decorated stone balls (Fig. #146:f_146#); others are raised in
solid curves of the same peculiar form, while the interspaces
follow the form of the object itself. Studs and prominences,
with spirals in relief, are introduced to give emphasis to the
general design, which commends itself at once to the eye of
taste as one of the most fitly beautiful and unaffected forms
of surface-decoration which could be applied to such a
purpose.
.il id=f_114 fn=fig114_161.jpg w=500px ew=90%
.ca Fig. 114.—Gold Ornament found on the Shaw Hill, near Cairnmuir, Kirkurd.\
Front and back views (actual size).
In this group of objects in bronze and gold we have
characteristic examples of the work of this early school of
decorative art, which in some of its features bears certain relations
to the work of the later school of Celtic art of the
Christian time. But the elements of its decoration are fewer.
It has no interlaced work and no fret—nothing but curves and
spirals. It does not systematically break up its surfaces in
panels, but distributes its decorative effects in spaces that are
.bn 162.png
.pn +1
circular or oval, or bounded by intersecting curves. Its prevailing
features are not the production of intricately symmetrical
and geometrically regulated patterns, but the production
of effects of balance and beauty by the rhythmic
recurrence and variation of curves and spaces with solid
forms which, though not symmetrical, are similar. Their
characteristic curves, as seen in the outlines of their figures
and the sections of their solid forms, are specially peculiar,
while the marked preference for relief in metal-work is in
striking contrast to the general prevalence of chased and
engraved designs in the later school.
It is to this characteristic treatment of the decoration of
their metal-work by this early school of Celtic art that Mr.
Kemble refers in the following remarks:—“When, as is often
the case in metal, this principle of the diverging spiral line is
carried out in repoussé—when you have those singularly
beautiful curves, more beautiful perhaps in the parts that are
not seen than in those that meet the eye, and whose beauty
is revealed in shadow more than in form—you have a peculiar
characteristic, a form of beauty which belongs to no
nation but our own, and to no portion of our nation but the
Celtic portion. It deals with curves which are not arcs of a
circle; its figures are not of the class we usually designate
by the term geometrical; and above all it calls in the aid of
enamel to perfect its work—not cloisonné like the enamel of
the East; not mosaic work of tesseræ like so many so-called
enamels of the Romans, but enamel champléve as Philostratus
has described the island barbarians to have invented it. The
engraved spiral line, with double winding, is found from
America to the Baltic, from Greece to Norway, but the divergent
spiral repoussé in metal and ornamented with champléve
enamel, is found in these British Islands
.tb
I now proceed to notice another group of objects in metal
.bn 163.png
.pn +1
possessing peculiar features still more strongly marked, but
exhibiting also the distinctive characteristics of the same
style of art.
.dv class='column-container epubonly'
.dv class='column'
.il id=ef_115 fn=fig115_163.jpg w=100% ew=100%
.ca Fig. 115.—Bronze Armlet, with enamelled ornaments\
(one of a pair), found at Castle Newe,\
Aberdeenshire. Front view (5¾ inches in diameter).
.dv-
.dv class='column'
.il id=ef_116 fn=fig116_164.jpg w=100% ew=100%
.ca Fig. 116.—Bronze Armlet, found at Castle Newe,\
Aberdeenshire. Back view (5¾ inches in diameter).
.dv-
.dv-
A pair of these objects were found imbedded in the earth
over the entrance to a curious underground structure in the
garden at Castle Newe in Aberdeenshire. The structure was
a long narrow curved subterranean gallery about 50 feet in
length and 7 feet wide on the floor. What remained of the
walls was only 4½ feet high, but showed that it had been roofed
over by bringing the walls gradually towards each other
as they increased in height, till the space could be covered
with flat stones of moderate length. This form of structure,
as we shall see in a subsequent Lecture, is typical, and extends
over the Celtic area. The pair of objects found in association
with this typically Celtic structure are of quite a remarkable
character. They are massively formed, but highly
decorated objects of cast bronze. It is obvious from their
form and decoration that they are designed for an ornamental
purpose. It is impossible
that they
could have been
worn as personal
ornaments either
with comfort or
convenience, but
that impossibility
does not necessarily
invalidate the conclusion
that they
were personal ornaments,
because such
things have been
worn in all ages, although they have entailed discomfort
and inconvenience to the wearers. The special form of the
.bn 164.png
.pn +1
objects and the circumstance that a pair of them were found
together are suggestive of their use as armlets. Their form, as
shown in Fig. 115, is the typically Celtic form—penannular,
with rounded and slightly-expanded ends. These terminal
expansions have circular spaces in the centre, bordered by a
double raised edging, and filled with plaques of bronze
ornamented with chequered
patterns of red
and yellow enamels.
These bronze plaques
are fixed in their
places by iron pins.
The body of the armlet
(Fig. #116:f_116#) is
divided longitudinally
into three distinct
ridges or bands with
convex surfaces, separated
by narrow bands
of a tooled chevrony ornament, which lie along the furrows
between the ridges. At intervals there rise from the ridges
solid, flattened, and curvilinear projections of about ¾
inch in length, placed obliquely across the ridges, and
standing in rows from side to side of the armlet. These
are connected longitudinally by less highly raised trumpet-shaped
scrolls, slightly curved, and passing obliquely across
till they meet in the centre. The median ridge stops
short at the circular spaces in the terminal expansions,
while the exterior ridges on either side pass round to
form the border of the expansion on which the projecting
ornaments are continued in a less pronounced form. The
general contour of the armlets is that of an oval slightly
compressed from front to back. Their greatest diameter is
5¾ inches, their greatest depth 4½ inches, and the weight of
.bn 165.png
.pn +1
each is 3¾ lbs. They do not commend themselves to our
notions of elegance and comfort as articles of personal decoration,
but they possess a strong individuality of character,
combined with an ingenious and highly-effective style of
decoration which is not met with on any other class of objects
in metal.[66]
.fm rend=t
.fn 66
A denarius of the Emperor Nerva was subsequently found close by the
place where the armlets were discovered. The underground structure
appears, like many of its class, to have been associated with an overground
habitation, the site of which was marked by fire-burnt pavement, remains
of querns, beads, etc., found near the present surface.
.fn-
.fm rend=t
.il id=f_117 fn=fig117_165.jpg w=400px ew=80%
.ca Fig. 117.—Enamelled Plates of each of the pair of Bronze Armlets found\
at Pitkelloney, Perthshire.
Another pair of similar armlets found within a few feet
of each other, and slightly covered with earth, on the farm of
Pitkelloney, near Muthil, in Perthshire, are now in the British
Museum. They are not exactly similar in size, though their
forms are similar, and their ornamentation almost the same.
One measures 16 inches in circumference, the other only 15
inches, but the smaller is the heavier of the two, weighing
3 lbs. 10 oz., while the larger only weighs 3 lbs. 3 oz. The
circular spaces in the expanded ends of the armlet are filled
with enamelled plates, fastened in their places by iron pins.
The enamels are champléve in flat plates of bronze, the colours
red and yellow. The patterns (Fig. #117:f_117#) are not chequered
like those in the Castle Newe armlets. One presents a plain
rectangular cross-like figure in yellow on a red ground, with a
.bn 166.png
.pn +1
circle of red in the centre. The other has a double quatrefoil
in yellow and red on a red ground, with a yellow centre.
.il id=f_118 fn=fig118_166.jpg w=300px ew=40% align=l
.ca Fig. 118.—Bronze Armlet found at Auchenbadie,\
Banffshire. Front view (6½ inches in diameter).
.pm floatimage_e f_119 fig119_166 'Fig. 119.—Bronze Armlet found at Auchenbadie,\
Banffshire. Back view (6½ inches in diameter).' 300 50 r
.pm floatimage_e f_120 fig120_167 'Fig. 120.—Plan of Ornamentation of\
Bronze Armlet found at Auchenbadie, Banffshire.' 175 20 r
An armlet of similar character was ploughed up in a field
on the farm of Mains of Auchenbadie, on the estate of Montblairy,
in Banffshire,
in 1866, and is now
in the National
Museum. Seen in
front (as in Fig. #118:f_118#)
it is penannular and
oval in shape, measuring
6½ inches in
its longest diameter,
and 4 inches from
front to back. Its
width across the
middle of the back
(where it is narrowest) is 3¾ inches, and its greatest width
across the terminal expansion is 5⅜ inches. Its weight is
3 lbs. 9 oz. Like
those already described,
it is a solid
casting of bronze,
having its exterior
surface (Fig. #119:f_119#)
divided longitudinally
into three
bands—convex exteriorly,
concave interiorly—the
middle
band stopping short
at the circular aperture
in the centre of the terminal expansion, the others
passing round it and uniting at the completion of the
.bn 167.png
.pn +1
circle. A boldly chased pattern of zig-zag ornament lies in
the furrow between each contiguous pair of bands, and along
the slightly depressed furrow
at the edges of the
outer bands. The convexity
of the exterior surfaces
of the bands is studded
at equal intervals with bold
projections nearly an inch in
length, placed transversely
across the ridges, and standing
in rows from side to side
of the armlet. From the
outer edges of each of these
to the inner edge of the next
a slightly curved and highly
raised projection passes
obliquely across the ridge,
those on the two outer
ridges running parallel to
each other, and those on the
central ridge in the reverse
direction. The circular
spaces in the terminal expansions
(shown in Fig. #118:f_118#)
have lost their enamelled
plates, but the traces remain
of the pins and fastenings
by which they were secured
in their places. The accompanying
plan in outline (Fig.
120) of the form and ornamentation
of the armlet,
shown as it would appear if completely flattened out and
.bn 168.png
.pn +1
seen from above, will render these details more intelligible.
From this it appears that the system of arrangement of the
members of the ornament is that of the escaping double
spiral, while the solid forms of the projecting masses are
bounded and outlined by curves of the same formation.
.il id=f_121 fn=fig121_168.jpg w=275px ew=60%
.ca Fig. 121.—Bronze Armlet found at Drumside, Belhelvie, Aberdeenshire.\
Front view, seen sideways (4½ inches in diameter).
.il id=f_122 fn=fig122_168.jpg w=275px ew=60%
.ca Fig. 122.—Bronze Armlet found at Drumside, Belhelvie, Aberdeenshire.\
Back view (4½ inches in diameter).
.bn 169.png
.pn +1
.il id=f_123 fn=fig123_169.jpg w=175px ew=30% align=r
.ca Fig. 123.—Plan of the Ornamentation\
of Bronze Armlet found at Drumside, Belhelvie, Aberdeenshire.
An armlet of similar character, found 6 feet under the
surface at Drumside, in the parish of Belhelvie, in Aberdeenshire,
is also in the National Museum. It is considerably
smaller in size (though it is here
shown in Fig. 121 to a larger
scale), and measures 4½ inches in
its longest diameter, and 4½ inches
in greatest width across the
centre of the circular expansion
of the terminal portion. Its
weight is only 28 oz. Like the
others, it is a solid casting in
bronze, the exterior surface
(Fig. #122:f_122#) triply ridged and
studded with projections of the
same flattened oval character as
those previously described. The
less highly raised ridges that
pass obliquely from projection
to projection are more distinctly
trumpet-shaped on the circular
terminal part than on the middle
portion of the armlet, and a comparison
of their forms with the
ornament round the eye-holes
of the swine’s head from Banffshire
(Fig. #95:f_95#) will show their
relationship at a glance. In its
form, and the disposition of the
members of its ornamentation
(as shown on the accompanying
plan in outline, Fig. #123:f_123#), this armlet presents a striking
similarity to the one from Achenbadie. It wants the chased
border round the exterior edges of the outer bands, but the
furrows between the ridges of the contiguous bands are
.bn 170.png
.pn +1
similarly ornamented in both. Like the Castle Newe and
Pitkelloney examples, this armlet is one of a pair which
were found together. It is not known what became of the
other specimen of the pair.
.il id=f_124 fn=fig124_170.jpg w=500px ew=90%
.ca
Fig. 124.—Armlet of Brass found near Aboyne (4¼ inches in diameter).
(1) Front view, seen sideways. (2) Back view.
.ca-
Three others were found in ploughing a piece of new land
three miles north-west of Aboyne, in Aberdeenshire, and
are now in the possession of the Dowager-Marchioness of
Huntly. Two of the three are similar in size and pattern of
ornament, though not identical, one being slightly smaller
than the other. One (Fig. #124:f_124#) measures 4¼ inches in the
longer and 3¼ in the shorter diameter internally, 2¼ inches
in width or height in the middle of the back, and 3 inches
across the middle of the rounded extremity. Its weight
is 20 ounces. The other, which is precisely similar in
the pattern of its ornamentation, measures 4 inches in
the longer and 3 inches in the shorter diameter internally,
and weighs 14¼ ounces.[67] Both these examples show an
.bn 171.png
.pn +1
excess of wear at the edge on one side, where fully half the
width of the outer band is worn away. The third armlet
(Fig. #125:f_125#) is broken and slightly twisted. It is much
plainer, and wants the bold projecting parts of the ornament
which are so conspicuous on the others.
.fm rend=t
.fn 67
These armlets were analysed by Professor Church, and the composition
of the metal determined as follows:—
.ta l:10 r:4 r:6 r:4 r:4 r:6 r:4
| Armlet No. 1.|| | Armlet No. 2.||
Copper | | 86·49 | | | 88·19 |
Tin | | 6·76 | | | 3·64 |
Zinc | | 1·44 | | | 9·13 |
Lead | | 4·41 | | | — |
.if t
Loss | | ·90 | | | — |
| | ——— | | | ——— |
.if-
.if h
Loss | | ·90 | | | — |
.if-
| | 100·00 | | | 100·96 |
.ta-
.fn-
.fm rend=t
.il id=f_125 fn=fig125_171.jpg w=500px ew=90%
.ca Fig. 125.—Armlet found near Aboyne. Back and side view.
.il id=f_126 fn=fig126_171.jpg w=500px ew=90%
.ca
Fig. 126.—Bronze Armlet in the National Museum. Back and front views
(4½ inches in diameter).
.ca-
An armlet of the same class, preserved in the National
Museum (Fig. #126:f_126#), has both its ends considerably cut away,
so as to widen the opening. It measures 4½ inches in greatest
diameter, and 3¼ inches in greatest width across the circular
extremity. The locality in which it was found is unknown,
although there is some probability that it may be one of two
said to have been found in the neighbourhood of Bunrannoch,
Perthshire. In the pattern and arrangement of its ornamentation
.bn 172.png
.pn +1
it has a strong resemblance to the one next to be described.
In all the previous cases these remarkable objects have been
found unassociated with other articles, but in the case which
follows there was an association which is suggestive of the
period of the type.
In 1876, Mr. Lindsay, the tenant of the farm of Stanhope,
in Peeblesshire, in searching for a rabbit underneath a
large flat stone on the hillside, found the following articles
among smaller stones underneath the larger one:—(1) a
bronze armlet of the special character of those that have
been described; (2) two flat circular buckle-like articles of
bronze; and (3) a well made saucepan of bronze with a long
side handle. The place where they were discovered is a
small hollow close to the brow of a crag some 400 feet high,
and lying below the summit of the hill, so that it cannot be
seen unless by coming close to the brow of the hill overlooking
it.
.il id=f_127 fn=fig127_172.jpg w=500px ew=90%
.ca Fig. 127.—Bronze Armlet found at Stanhope, Peeblesshire. Front and back\
views (4½ inches in diameter).
The armlet (Fig. #127:f_127#), which is similar in form and
ornamentation to those which have been described, measures
4½ inches in greatest diameter internally, and 4 inches
from front to back. It is 3 inches wide across the middle
of the back where it is narrowest, and 4½ inches across
the centre of the terminal expansions. Its weight is 1 lb.
.bn 173.png
.pn +1
14¾ oz. The enamels which usually filled the circular
spaces in the terminal expansions are absent, and there is no
trace of the fastenings which held them in their places. The
analysis of this armlet by Dr. Stevenson Macadam shows it
to be a true bronze consisting of:—
.ta l:30 r:8 w=40%
Copper | 90·69
Tin | 9·29
Loss | ·02
| ————
| 100·00
.ta-
.il id=f_128 fn=fig128_173.jpg w=200px ew=40% align=r
.ca Fig. 128.—Buckle-like object of Bronze\
found at Stanhope, Peeblesshire.
The buckle-like objects (Fig. #128:f_128#) are slightly oval in
shape, formed of a single
casting in bronze, consisting
of an oval penannular ring
2¾ inches in diameter, convex
exteriorly, and slightly
hollow behind. It is decorated
with two oval ornaments,
with bosses at one
side, and furnished with a
somewhat rectangular projection,
having a loop at the
back. The ornamentation
presents the same character as that of the armlet, but is
lower in relief, consisting of curved and trumpet-like forms
projecting from the surface.
The saucepan (Fig. #129:f_129#) is also a single casting in bronze,
thin and beautifully finished, and tinned inside. The bowl
of the pan is 6 inches wide at the mouth, the sides slightly
bulging in the middle, and contracting to a diameter of 3¾
inches across the bottom. Its depth inside is 3⅞ inches. The
bottom of the vessel is ornamented on the outside by four
projecting concentric bands which give it strength, while the
.bn 174.png
.pn +1
thinning of the metal in the interspaces would serve to transmit
the heat quickly. It is furnished with a flattened side
handle 5½ inches in length, having a circular expansion at
the end. This special form of saucepan of tinned bronze,
with the long flat side handle terminating in a circular ornamented
and perforated expansion, is found all over the area of
the Roman Empire.[68] They seem to have spread over the area
of the Roman colonisation with other products of Roman manufacture,
and when they are found in association with objects
that are not Roman in form and style of decoration, their presence
is an indication that the period of the deposit cannot be
widely distant from the time of the Roman occupation. The
conclusion drawn from the association of this saucepan with
these objects of native workmanship decorated in this purely
indigenous style of art, is plainly that this native style of art
was already in the period of its highest development at or
about the time of the Roman occupation of the southern portion
of Scotland.
.fm rend=t
.fn 68
Another saucepan of this form found in the Loch of Dowalton, and
bearing the maker’s name stamped on the handle, is described in connection
with the relics from Crannogs in Lecture VI.
.fn-
.fm rend=t
.il id=f_129 fn=fig129_174.jpg w=400px ew=75%
.ca Fig. 129.—Saucepan of Bronze found with the Bronze Armlet, etc., at Stanhope,\
Peeblesshire.
All these armlets are of one special variety of form, penannular,
with expanded ends, having the exterior surface
.bn 175.png
.pn +1
divided into three parallel bands, the middle band stopping
short at the circular opening in the expanded extremity, and
the bands on either side of it passing round the openings to
unite as one endless band.
.dv class='column-container epubonly'
.dv class='column'
.il id=ef_130 fn=fig130_175.jpg w=250px ew=100%
.ca Fig. 130.—Bronze Armlet, locality unknown,\
but probably from Bunrannoch, Perthshire (4½ inches in diameter).
.dv-
.dv class='column'
.il id=ef_131 fn=fig131_175.jpg w=250px ew=100%
.ca Fig. 131.—Bronze Armlet. Back view.
.dv-
.dv-
.dv class='epubonly'
.il id=ef_132 fn=fig132_176.jpg w=125px ew=20% align=l
.ca Fig. 132.—Plan of Ornamentation of Bronze Armlet.
.dv-
There is another variety of form exhibited by some armlets
of this character, which constitutes a link of connection
between them and an equally
remarkable class of armlets
characterised by the same
style of art, but exhibiting
in their form a more distinctly
zoomorphic feeling.
Of this intermediate variety
there are two specimens
known in Scotland. The
locality of the first specimen
(Fig. #130:f_130#) is unknown, although there is some probability
that it may be one of the two previously mentioned as having
been found at Bunrannoch,
in Perthshire. It
measures 4¼ inches in
its greatest internal
diameter, and 3 inches
in greatest width across
the middle of the circular
expansion at the
extremity. Its weight is 31¾ oz. The openings in the
terminal expansions are smaller than in the other armlets,
and the projecting ornaments bolder and less uniform in
character. Seen from the back (Fig. #131:f_131#) it presents an
appearance so similar to the form of those previously described
that it is difficult to detect the variation. But on
comparing the plans of the armlet given in outline (Fig. #132:f_132#)
with those of the other armlets (Figs. #120:f_120# and #123:f_123#), the
.bn 176.png
.pn +1
difference is apparent at a glance. By throwing the furrows
obliquely, which in the other armlets are parallel to the major
axis of the form, and by cutting off the
marginal ridges abruptly at the expansions
of the rounded ends, the form of
this armlet is changed into the similitude
of a continuous band folded back
upon itself from the two ends in opposite
directions. Although it possesses
no distinctly zoomorphic character, it
thus assumes a suggestively serpentine
appearance. This special variety of
form is also exhibited by an armlet
(Fig. #133:f_133#), found near Seafield Tower,
in the neighbourhood of Kinghorn, in
Fife, which is at present exhibited in
the Museum. Its ornament (Fig. #134:f_134#)
is somewhat different in character, and
the projections less prominent. It
measures 5¼ inches in its longest
diameter internally, and 2⅞ inches
across the middle of the circular expansions
at each extremity.
.il id=f_133 fn=fig133_177.jpg w=350px cw=115% ew=67%
.ca Fig. 133.—Bronze Armlet found near Seafield Tower, Fife. Front view, seen\
sideways (5¼ inches in diameter).
.il id=f_134 fn=fig134_177.jpg w=350px cw=115% ew=67%
.ca Fig. 134.—Bronze Armlet found near Seafield Tower, Fife. Back view\
(5¼ inches in diameter).]
.il id=f_135 fn=fig135_177.jpg w=350px cw=115% ew=67%
.ca Fig. 135.—Bronze Armlet found near Newry, County Down, Ireland\
(5 inches in diameter).
From these descriptions it appears
that there are two distinct varieties of
one strongly-marked typical form of
massive bronze armlet, decorated in a
style of art which is remarkable for the
special Celticism of its characteristics.
It is a form which is found over a wide
area in Scotland, and has only been once
found out of Scotland. The single example
which carries the area of the form beyond the bounds
of this country was found near Newry, in County Down,
.bn 177.png
.pn +1
Ireland (Fig. #135:f_135#). It is 5 inches in its greatest diameter,
and 3½ inches in height, and belongs to the transitional
.bn 178.png
.pn +1
variety, which links this typical form with the zoomorphic
type, which I next proceed to describe.
.il id=f_136 fn=fig136_178.jpg w=400px ew=80%
.ca Fig. 136.—Bronze Armlet found in the sands of Culbin. Front view (3½ inches\
in diameter).
Some time before 1827 a man shooting over that wide
waste of sand known as the Culbin Sands, near the mouth of
the Findhorn, accidentally lost his gun-flint. He knew, however,
that in a special locality among these sand hills there is,
on the site of an ancient settlement of the hunters of prehistoric
times, a spot which is thickly strewn with fragments
of flint, which these early hunters, who also used this material,
had accumulated in the manufacture of their arrow-heads and
other implements. Accordingly, he proceeded to this ancient
flint factory to furnish himself with a new gun-flint, and
when looking about for a suitable flake for his purpose he
found a large and finely-made armlet of bronze (Fig. #136:f_136#),
which he carried with him and sold to a shopkeeper in Forres
for half-a-crown. It subsequently passed into the possession
of Lady Cumming of Altyre, by whom it is now exhibited
in the Museum. It was described by Sir Thomas Dick
.bn 179.png
.pn +1
Lauder, and engraved in the Transactions of the Society so
long ago as 1827. At that time it stood alone, and was regarded
more as a curiosity than as a work of art. Now it
stands as the representative of a peculiar class of art-products,
which, so far as we know, are confined to Scotland alone.
Its form is that of an armlet, formed of a coiled, double-headed
serpent. It measures 3½ inches in diameter, and the
same in depth externally. Its internal diameter is 2½ inches,
and its weight 2 lbs. 9½ oz. It is a single casting in bronze,
convex externally, concave internally, throughout the length
of the coils, which, though closely contiguous, are completely
separate, so that a sheet of paper can pass between them.
There are three complete coils, and the middle coil (as seen in
Fig. #137:f_137#) is symmetrically ornamented with lozenge-shaped
spaces, bounded by curves, and of considerable prominence.
Each end terminates in a snake-like head, the eyes of which
are set with blue glass. In front of the eyes is a round disc,
sunk in the metal, which has probably been filled with
.bn 180.png
.pn +1
enamel. The upper part of the head and neck is ornamented
with raised trumpet-shaped scrolls, and about three inches
behind the terminal head there is a simulation of a second
head, the eyes of which are also set with blue glass. Speaking
of it as a work of art, Sir Henry Ellis unhesitatingly
calls it Roman work of the very best period, while Sir Thomas
Dick Lauder observes that its workmanship is most beautiful.
The taste which it displays, he says, is exquisite, and the
detail executed with the greatest delicacy. And he further
remarks that the natural form of the serpent has not been
servilely and awkwardly copied, “as one might expect that a
workman in an infant state of society would have done.”
But there is nothing in the character of the work, or in the
nature of the art, to suggest that the workman belonged to an
infant state of society. The technical skill displayed in
modelling and casting such a difficult piece of work is undoubtedly
of a very high order, and he would be considered
a good workman to-day who could turn out an equally
well finished casting of the kind. As to the design of the
decoration there can be but one opinion. It possesses the
merits of originality of conception, boldness of treatment,
purity of style, and freedom of execution. It is decoration,
also, of that complex kind which unites the effects of colour
with those of form, and deals harmoniously with the results
of such diverse processes as modelling in relief, chasing and
engraving, the setting of jewels, and the fixing of enamels.
The qualities of brain and hand that conceived and executed
this piece of metal-work are not to be estimated solely by the
results they have obtained in this single example. The man
who did this was capable of much higher work if higher work
had come in his way, and this solitary specimen of the work
of an unknown artist is at least as interesting for the potentiality
which it reveals as for the actual ability which it so
clearly displays.
.bn 181.png
.pn +1
.il id=f_137 fn=fig137_179.jpg w=400px ew=80%
.ca Fig. 137.—Bronze Armlet found in the sands of Culbin, Elginshire. Back view.
.il id=f_138 fn=fig138_181.jpg w=300px ew=60% align=r
.ca Fig. 138.—Bronze Armlet found at Pitalpin, near Dundee.
In the same year in which this armlet was first exhibited
to the society (i.e. in
1827) another of similar
character (Fig. #138:f_138#) was
presented to the Museum
by the Dowager-Countess
of Morton.
It had been found at
Pitalpin, near Dundee
in 1732; but no record
of the circumstances
in which it was found
is now extant. It is
smaller than the one
previously described,
though still of greater
size and weight than
would now be considered convenient for wear as an article
of personal adornment. It measures 3 inches in diameter,
and about 3¼ inches in width externally, and has an internal
diameter of 2½ inches. Its weight is almost 2 lbs. It is a
single casting of bronze, consisting of three coils, of a serpentine
form, convex externally and slightly concave within.
The serpent-like body of the armlet is ornamented with
transverse grooves on either side of a double furrow, running
from end to end along the centre of the coils. The terminal
portions are formed into the similitude of heads, but there are
no settings for the eyes, and the zoomorphic character of the
work is but feebly expressed. Nevertheless it is clearly an
example of the same typical form and character of art as the
Altyre specimen.
.pm floatimage_e f_139 fig139_182 'Fig. 139.—Bronze Armlet (locality unknown).' 200 35 l
Another example, of smaller size (Fig. #139:f_139#), is also in the
Museum, but unfortunately nothing is known regarding its
locality and the circumstances in which it was found. Like
.bn 182.png
.pn +1
the others it is a single casting of bronze, of three coils of a
serpentine form, closely contiguous
but not joined to each
other by their edges. The coils
are ribbed or banded transversely,
with smoothly rounded
sections on the surface between
the bands. The ends are
formed into the similitude of
animals’ heads. The metal is
thin and finely patinated, and
the size and weight of the armlet
are not excessive. Its internal
diameter is 2½ inches,
its depth across the coils 2¼
inches, and its weight 9¾ oz.
.il id=f_140 fn=fig140_182.jpg w=225px ew=35% align=r
.ca Fig. 140.—Bronze Armlet found at Grange of Conan, near Arbroath, Forfarshire\
(2¾ inches in diameter).'
A fourth of these armlets (Fig. #140:f_140#), closely resembling
the last in form and character,
but slightly larger in
size, was found in 1874 in
the course of the excavation
of an underground structure
at Grange of Conan,
near Arbroath, in Forfarshire.
The structure was of
the same character as that
in connection with which
the pair of massive bronze
armlets with enamels (Figs.
115, 116) were found at
Castle Newe, in Aberdeenshire.
The special features
of these structures with their contents, and their relations,
will be discussed in a subsequent lecture, and it is only
.bn 183.png
.pn +1
necessary in this connection to mark the association of the
two forms of armlets with the one type of structure. The
armlet itself (Fig. #140:f_140#) is a single casting of bronze, consisting
of three coils, of a serpentine form, divided from each other
by a somewhat wider interspace than in any of the other
instances, and slightly more convex externally. The metal
is thin, and the size and weight of the armlet are not excessive.
Its internal diameter is 2⅝ inches, and its depth across
the coils 2¼ inches, its weight being about 10 oz.
In these spiral snake-like armlets, we have a class of
objects exhibiting a distinct and strongly marked typical
character. They are articles of personal adornment, possessing
a very special form and style of ornament. Both by the
peculiarity of their form and the specialty of their style of
ornament they are closely allied to the class of more massive
and more peculiar articles of adornment previously described.
Like them also they are peculiarly restricted in range. The
area over which they have been found, so far as we know, is
confined to the eastern portion of Scotland, between the
Moray Firth and the Firth of Tay. No specimen is known
beyond the bounds of Scotland.
.tb
In this connection, also, there falls to be described a class
of objects of peculiar type, presenting features of decoration
which are essentially Celtic in character. They are mostly
carved in stone, but there is one example in bronze which
supplies the link between them and the metal-work to which
by their decoration they are most closely allied.
.il id=f_141 fn=fig141_184.jpg w=400px ew=80%
.ca Fig. 141.—Ball of cast bronze, found at Walston, Lanarkshire (actual size).]
This object (Fig. #141:f_141#) is a ball of cast bronze, found at
Walston, Lanarkshire, long in the collection of the late Adam
Sim, of Coulter, and now in the National Museum. It is
1½ inch in diameter, divided into hemispheres, which differ
considerably in the colour of the metal. Each hemisphere has
a different variety of ornament, although the arrangement is the
.bn 184.png
.pn +1
same in both. The surface of the ball is divided into six discs,
three in the one hemisphere and three in the other. The discs
are separated from each other by deeply hollowed grooves, and
each disc in the upper hemisphere is ornamented by a spiral
groove, terminating in a zoomorphic ending. The lower
hemisphere is similarly treated, except that the spirals are
simply geometric in their character.
.il id=f_142 fn=fig142_184.jpg w=350px ew=70%
.ca Fig. 142.—Ornamented Slate Ball, from Elgin (actual size).
.bn 185.png
.pn +1
A ball of clay slate, 2⅞ inches diameter, from Elgin
(Fig. #142:f_142#), of which there is a cast in the Museum, has
its surface divided into four projecting discs of considerable
convexity, one of which is completely covered
with a double spiral pattern, from which smaller spirals
escape, but not in the regular manner so characteristic of
the double spirals of the Celtic manuscripts and monuments
of the Christian time. Another disc shows the
commencement of an unfinished spiral. The two remaining
discs are plain.
.il id=f_143 fn=fig143_185.jpg w=250px ew=45% align=r
.ca Fig. 143.—Ornamented Stone Ball found in\
the Glas Hill, Towie, Aberdeenshire\
(3 inches in diameter).
At the Glas Hill, in the parish of Towie, Aberdeenshire,
in 1860, a finely ornamented ball of this description (Fig.
143) was found in digging
a drain, and is now in
the National Museum.
It is of clay slate, fine-grained
in texture, and
dark in colour. It
measures almost 3 inches
in diameter, and has its
surface divided into four
boldly projecting discs
with considerable convexity,
three of which
are elaborately carved
and the fourth plain.
Its ornamentation consists
of double spirals, wavy lines arranged concentrically,
interrupted concentric circles and escaping spirals, but the
lines are not continuous, and the patterns are not worked
out with the regularity and precision so conspicuous in
the style of the Christian time when the escaping double
spiral formed such a characteristic element of Celtic
decoration. In the triangular space between the three
.bn 186.png
.pn +1
ornamented discs is a group of three dots arranged as a
triangle.[69]
.fm rend=t
.fn 69
This arrangement of triple dots is a very characteristic feature of the
illuminated Celtic manuscripts. It appears also on the monuments and metal
work of the Christian time. This is the only instance of its occurrence on
these balls, and though it may be held to suggest a possible connection, the
suggestion is too feeble to imply distinct relationship.
.fn-
.fm rend=t
.dv class='column-container'
.dv class='column bot'
.il id=f_144 fn=fig144_186.jpg w=100% ew=100%
.ca Fig. 144.—Ornamented Stone Ball\
found at Freelands, Glasterlaw,\
Forfarshire (3 inches in diameter)
.dv-
.dv class='column bot'
.il id=f_145 fn=fig145_186.jpg w=100% ew=100%
.ca Fig. 145.—Ornamented Stone Ball\
found at Fordoun, Kincardineshire\
(2¾ inches in diameter).
.dv-
.dv-
A ball of fine-grained clay slate (Fig. #144:f_144#) found at Freelands,
near Glasterlaw, Forfarshire, has six projecting discs of
slight convexity arranged upon its surface; but the discs are
small in proportion to the size of the ball and the interspaces
wide. The discs themselves are plain, but the interspaces are
partially ornamented. In the space between three contiguous
discs is a pattern composed of three triangular figures within
each other, formed by the meeting of curved or segmental
lines. In the next contiguous space is a double spiral.
A ball of fine-grained dark-coloured sandstone (Fig. #145:f_145#),
found at Fordoun, in Kincardineshire, has its surface divided
into seven circular compartments, some of which are simply
incised with concentric circles, while in others there is a
.bn 187.png
.pn +1
border of chevrony ornament enclosing the concentric
circles.
.il id=f_146 fn=fig146_187.jpg w=350px ew=70%
.ca Fig. 146.—Ornamented Stone Ball, in the collection of Sir J. Noel Paton\
(2¾ inches in diameter).
An example in the collection of Sir J. Noel Paton (Fig.
146) presents a different style of ornament. It is of hornblendic
schist, 2¾ inches in diameter, and has its surface
divided into six projecting discs, carved with concentric
bands of slight convexity, the bands increasing in width
and prominence towards the centre of the disc. The spaces
between the discs are ornamented by irregular scoopings of
the surface as if with the point of a gouge-like tool—a
variety of decoration also seen in the gold object found on
Cairnmuir (Fig. #114:f_114#).
.il id=f_147 fn=fig147_188.jpg w=125px ew=20% align=l
.ca Fig. 147.—Ornamented Stone\
Ball found at Ballater,\
Aberdeenshire (2⅞ inches\
in diameter).
On the top of Craig Beg, near Ballater, previous to 1864,
three stone cists were found containing interments which,
from the presence of ashes and bones, were assigned to the
Pagan custom of cremation. Each cist was also surrounded
by a number of boulder-stones arranged in a circle of about
15 feet in diameter. Close to one of these cists a stone ball
.bn 188.png
.pn +1
(Fig. #147:f_147#) was found, having its surface divided into six circular
discs of slight convexity, and
some of the interspaces between
the discs ornamented with small,
rounded, slightly projecting knobs.
.il id=f_148 fn=fig148_188.jpg w=350px ew=70%
.ca Fig. 148.—Ornamented Stone Ball found in the Tay near Perth.
A ball of fine-grained claystone,
in the Perth Museum (Fig. #148:f_148#),
which is said to have been dredged
up from the Tay, has its surface
divided into four circular discs
which scarcely project beyond the
circular outline of the ball, and impinge
upon each other. In one of
the discs the ornament consists of projecting knobs, arranged
in rows both ways by the channels between them crossing
each other at right angles. The knobs rise from a square
base, and are rounded at the summits. This is also the
.bn 189.png
.pn +1
character of the prickly ornament of the hemispheres of the
terminal bulbs of the penannular brooches of silver found at
Skaill, to which the ornament on the disc of this stone ball
has a distinct resemblance. The treatment of the segmental
spaces between the discs is also seen in the example from
Freelands, Glasterlaw (Fig. #144:f_144#), and the simply incised
ornament of the remaining discs occurs on two other balls
(Figs. 149, 150), which have each but one of their discs
ornamented.
.dv class='column-container'
.dv class='column bot'
.il id=f_149 fn=fig149_189.jpg w=100% ew=100%
.ca Fig. 149.—Ornamented Stone Ball\
found at Inverawe (2⅝ inches\
diameter).
.dv-
.dv class='column bot'
.il id=f_150 fn=fig150_189.jpg w=100% ew=100%
.ca Fig. 150.—Ornamented Stone Ball\
found at Loch Lochy (3 inches\
diameter).
.dv-
.dv-
.il id=f_151 fn=fig151_189.jpg w=175px ew=30% align=r
.ca Fig. 151.—Ornamented Stone\
Ball found in the Isle of\
Skye (2¾ inches in diameter).
An example from the island
of Skye (Fig. #151:f_151#) has its surface
covered with small hemispherical
protuberances. This
variety is akin to another which
has the whole surface studded with
projections of a pyramidal form.
Two balls of this latter variety (Figs.
152, 153) were found in one of the
chambers of a curious composite
structure, or group of structures,
situated close to the shore on the
south side of the Bay of Skaill, in the mainland of
.bn 190.png
.pn +1
Orkney.[70] One of these (Fig. #152:f_152#) has the central portion
pierced with a hole. The perforation is roughly made, and
considerably wider at its external orifices than in the centre,
where it is less than half an inch in diameter.
.fm rend=t
.fn 70
This structure, which was explored by Mr. William Watt, consisted of
several sub-rectangular chambers with rounded corners, having small cell-like
constructions opening off them. The chambers were arranged on both sides
of a long winding passage. Their door-ways had checks for the doors, and
bar-holes behind them. The largest chamber was about 20 feet square. From
6 to 8 feet of the height of the walls remained. They were dry-built, and
converged towards the upper part as if to form beehive roofs. Hearths of
square form, surrounded by flagstones on edge, were found in the floors.
Many implements of stone and bone were found in the chambers, and a large
accumulation of bones and horns of animals, among which those of the red-deer
and the Bos primigenius were abundant. Among the stone implements
were several polished celts. The collection is preserved at Skaill House.
.fn-
.fm rend=t
.il id=f_152 fn=fig152-153_190.jpg w=400px ew=75%
.ca Figs. 152, 153.—Stone Balls found in an ancient structure at Skaill, Orkney\
(3½ inches and 3 inches in diameter).
Another Orkney example (Fig. #154:f_154#) is allied to these two
by the character of its ornamentation. One of its ends is
studded with pyramidal projections, the middle portion is
ornamented by a continuous spiral, and the other end is filled
by a peculiar arrangement of segmental curves.
.il id=f_154 fn=fig154_191.jpg w=500px ew=90%
.ca Fig. 154.—Ornamented Stone Ball found at Hillhead, near Kirkwall, Orkney.\
Obverse and Reverse (2¾ inches diameter).
.dv class='column-container'
.dv class='column'
.il id=f_155 fn=fig155_191.jpg w=100% ew=100%
.ca Fig. 155.—Stone Ball found in Dumfriesshire.
.dv-
.dv class='column'
.il id=f_156 fn=fig156_191.jpg w=100% ew=100%
.ca Fig. 156.—Stone Ball found at Dudwick, Aberdeenshire.
.dv-
.dv-
.dv class='column-container'
.dv class='column'
.il id=f_157 fn=fig157_191.jpg w=100% ew=100%
.ca Fig. 157.—Stone Ball found at Mountblairy, Banffshire.
.dv-
.dv class='column'
.il id=f_158 fn=fig158_191.jpg w=100% ew=100%
.ca Fig. 158.—Carved Stone found at Muckle Geddes, Nairn.
.dv-
.dv-
Many of these balls, however, have their discs destitute
of ornament. But whether decorated or undecorated, they
.bn 191.png
.pn +1
usually present the strongly marked typical form, which varies
from the approximately circular with rounded discs, like the
examples shown from Dumfriesshire (Fig. #155:f_155#), and Dudwick,
in Aberdeenshire (Fig. #156:f_156#), to those from Mountblairy,
.bn 192.png
.pn +1
in Banffshire (Fig. #157:f_157#), and Muckle Geddes, in Nairnshire
(Fig. #158:f_158#), which take the form of a cylindrical axis with flat-ended
cylindrical projections radiating round its circumference.
In all their varieties of form, these objects present certain
features which are suggestive of a possible use as weapons.
Their ornate character, their specialty of form, which renders
them capable of being swung by thongs or bound to the end
of a handle, and the fact that one example is pierced by a hole,
are indications in this direction. Although there is no conclusive
evidence of the fact, it is at least conceivable that they
may have been mounted as mace-heads similar to those metal
mace-heads with pyramidal projections which are found occasionally
among the relics of the Iron Age, and continued in
use in the early Middle Ages, and similar, at least in appearance,
to the mace-heads shown (Fig. #159:f_159#) in the hands of
unmounted men in the Bayeux Tapestry.[71]
.il id=f_159 fn=fig159_192.jpg w=500px ew=90%
.ca Fig. 159.—Unmounted men armed with maces. From the Bayeux Tapestry.
.fm rend=t
.fn 71
Dr. John Alexander Smith has discussed this point fully in his
exhaustive notice of these Stone Balls in Proc. Soc. Antiq. Scot., pp. 56-62.
Dr. John Evans remarks that “it seems probable that they were intended
for use in the chase or in war when attached to a thong which the recesses
between the projecting discs seem well adapted to receive.” He also states
that "these Scottish Stone Balls seem to belong to a recent period, as compared
with that to which many other stone antiquities may be assigned."—Ancient
Stone Implements, etc., of Great Britain, pp. 377-379.
.fn-
.fm rend=t
.bn 193.png
.pn +1
But whatever may have been their special purpose or the
precise manner of their use, it is of greater importance for
the purposes of our inquiry that we should be able to determine
their typical relations and ascertain the area to which
they are confined. It is clear that they possess a typical
form which has no distinctly definable relations with any other
class of stone implements. The type is so peculiar and so
strongly marked, that if it exists anywhere out of Scotland
we should probably have known of its existence. But, with a
single exception, said to have been found in Ireland, there is
no record that I can discover of the occurrence of any specimen
beyond the bounds of Scotland. Within that area it is
widely diffused. There are so many specimens in private
hands of whose localities we possess no record, that it is
impossible to ascertain with any degree of precision the relative
frequency of their occurrence in different districts of the
country. But their known range comprehends an area which
is but little short of the whole area of Scotland. They are
most abundant in the north-eastern districts, but they occur
as far north as Caithness and Orkney, as far south as
Dumfries, and as far west as Argyle. Whether they belong
wholly to the Pagan time or partly to the Christian period, it
is clear that the prevailing features of their decoration, though
distinctly Celtic in character, are not those of the fully developed
style of Celtic ornament which prevailed throughout the
early Christian time. Nor does it possess the most striking
characteristics of the decoration of these objects in metal, of
which so many characteristic examples have now been given.
But the zoomorphic ending of the spiral pattern on the bronze
.bn 194.png
.pn +1
ball from Lanarkshire, and the double and escaping spirals
of the Towie, Elgin, and Glasterlaw specimens, are sufficiently
distinctive to claim for them a place in the same system of
design which produced the peculiar patterns of the Pagan
period, and developed from them the more elaborate systems
of decoration so widely applied in the early Christian art of
Scotland.
.tb
In the whole group of objects described in this Lecture
we have a series of examples of the art which characterised
the Iron Age Paganism of Scotland—the period that lies
beyond the Christian time and reaches back until it merges
into the Bronze Age culture. The outcome of the whole
examination thus appears to be that the early Christian art
of Scotland, although it had close relations with that of
Ireland, was nevertheless based upon a pre-existing system of
Pagan art peculiar to the area of the British Isles. Although
remotely connected with certain developments of art that
appear obscurely among the Iron Age relics of Central and
Southern Europe, this special system of design received its
highest development and attained its full maturity in the
British Isles alone. There it became a distinctive school of
decoration, exhibiting different aspects in England, Scotland,
and Ireland, and attaining in each of these areas a separate
development marked by a distinct individuality of character.
Its manifestations in Scotland are those of a peculiar and
highly characteristic style, confining itself to curvilinear forms,
combining its simple elements in a manner that is neither
rigidly geometric nor fettered by conditions of absolute symmetry,
but producing by the variation and rhythmic recurrence
of its peculiar features a series of designs characterised by
beauty of form, balance of parts, and harmonious combination.
It differs from the art of the Christian time, inasmuch as it presents
no intermixture of forms and features that are common
.bn 195.png
.pn +1
to Greek, Roman, or Etruscan art—no interlaced work, no
meanders or key-patterns, or fretwork, and no similitude of
foliage, or foliageous scrolls. It is zoomorphic, but its zoomorphism
is chiefly apparent in the forms of the objects, and seldom
exhibited in the designs with which they are decorated. It
is more partial to the modelling of solid forms of ornament than
to the elaborate enrichment of surface by intricate engraved
work, and these solid forms of its surface ornament rarely
become zoomorphic. When engraved or chased ornamentation
is employed, it is used chiefly to produce broad effects
by the contrast between plain spaces in the design and spaces
filled with punctulations or chequers of short parallel lines.
We find this peculiar style of art employed chiefly in the
decoration of metal-work in bronze and gold. The objects so
decorated are personal ornaments, arms, harness, and horse-trappings.
The technical skill displayed in the fabrication
and finish of these objects is great, and the quality of the art
displayed in their decoration is high. There is implied in
their production a special dexterity in preparing moulds and
compounding alloys, in casting, chasing, and engraving, in
the polishing and setting of jewels, in the composition and
fixing of enamels. But there is further implied an artistic
spirit controlling and combining the results of these various
processes, giving elegance and beauty of a peculiar cast to
the forms of the objects, and increasing the intrinsic elegance
and beauty of the form by the harmonious blending of its
special varieties of surface decoration, in which forms that
are solidly modelled are intermingled with chased or engraved
patterns and spaces filled with colour. A style of art
characterised by such originality of design and excellence
of execution must count for something in the history of a
nation’s progress, must have its place to fill in the history of
art itself, when once we have begun to realise the fact that
art was not the exclusive privilege of classic antiquity.
.bn 196.png
.pn +1
.sp 4
.h2
LECTURE IV. | (28th October 1881.) |THE ARCHITECTURE OF THE BROCHS.
.sp 2
.ti 0
In this Lecture I have to deal with the products of a school
of architecture, Celtic in its character, and absolutely peculiar
to the Scottish area.
On the small uninhabited island of Mousa, lying off the
east coast of the mainland of Shetland, there stands a solitary
stone structure, massive in size, peculiar in appearance, and
still more peculiar in character. It is a tower of circular
form, wide and lofty, but constructed of undressed stones laid
upon each other without mortar or other binding material,
so that the mass of its uncemented wall coheres simply by
its own vertical pressure.
Its situation is peculiar. The island is small, not over a
mile in length, and less than half a mile in width, bare, flat,
and rocky. The tower is placed on a small promontory on
the west side of the island at the point nearest to the mainland.
It stands about 20 feet back from the edge of the rocks,
which slope irregularly to the tide-mark about 20 feet below.
There are slight remains of an intrenchment on the sides
which look landward, those facing the rocks and the sea are
protected by the natural features of the ground.
.il id=f_160 fn=fig160_197.jpg w=450px ew=80%
.ca Fig. 160.—Exterior View of the Broch of Mousa, Shetland.
The material of which the tower is built is the fissile flag
of the island. The stones are flat, sometimes as much as 2
feet in thickness, but mostly much less, and they rather
.bn 197.png
.pn +1
diminish in size towards the top of the tower. The stones
bear no mark of a tool, and the masonry is not coursed, but
compactly fitted together. The wall goes up with a curve like
that of a lighthouse, and its external appearance (Fig. #160:f_160#) is
suggestive of great solidity and strength. This suggestion of
solidity, which is due to the bulk of the building rather than
to the character of its masonry, is further intensified by the
absence of external openings, the whole exterior surface being
unbroken by a single aperture except the doorway. It is on
the level of the ground on the S.W. side, and is about 5 feet
3 inches high by 2 feet 11 inches wide, passing straight
through the thickness of the wall, but widening considerably
at a distance of about 7 feet from the outside and rising in
the roof. Entering by this tunnel-like passage through a wall
15 feet 6 inches thick, the visitor finds himself in the interior
of a circular well-like court, open to the sky above, but
completely surrounded by a wall of that thickness and 45 feet
in height. From the inner circumference of this court (as
seen in the ground plan, Fig. #161:f_161#) there open at various places
.bn 198.png
.pn +1
other doorways leading into oval chambers constructed in the
thickness of the wall nearly on the ground level. These
chambers are three in number. One placed to right of the
entrance is 16 feet in length, 5 feet 9 inches wide, and 9 feet
9 inches high. Its doorway is small, 3 feet high and 2 feet
wide, passing through 4 feet of the thickness of the wall. A
second chamber opposite the main entrance is 14 feet long,
6 feet 10 inches wide, and 10 feet 6 inches high. Its doorway
is also small, 3 feet 4 inches high and 2 feet 9 inches wide,
passing through a thickness of 4½ feet of walling. The third
chamber, situated to the left of the main entrance, is 14 feet
long, 5 feet 6 inches wide, and 9 feet 6 inches high. Its
doorway is 3 feet 2 inches high and 2 feet 3 inches wide,
.bn 199.png
.pn +1
passing through 4 feet of walling. All these chambers are
irregularly oval in form on the ground plan. They are roofed
in a peculiar manner. At variable distances from the floor
the walls begin to be brought inwards by projecting each
stone slightly beyond the face of the stone below it. In this
way the distance between the opposite walls is gradually
lessened as they rise in height until they come near enough
to admit of single stones being laid across the space between
wall and wall. This style of converging the walls inwards to
obtain support for a roof of single stones is not new to us.
We have met with it in the beehive houses of the early
Christian monasteries and in the inverted boat-shaped roofs
of their churches, built of uncemented stones on a rectangular
ground-plan. It is the style of roof which is common to all
dry-built structures that are roofed, whether they be of Pagan
or of Christian time, because it is the style that is best suited
to the material and the manner of construction. The builders
of this edifice had no stones long enough to span chambers of
six feet wide, and if they had had them long enough they
would have been too weak to bear the superincumbent weight
of a wall forty feet in height. Therefore they made their
chamber-roofs semi-vaulted, while the doors and passages,
which were narrow, were simply spanned with strong flat
lintels. These chambers on the ground floor are lighted by
window-like openings above the doorways, which rise one
over the other, and serve not only to admit light and air, but
to distribute the weight to be borne by the lintels. In each
of the chambers there are small ambry-like recesses in the
walls, but no fireplace or chimney. They are small, dimly-lighted,
dungeon-like rooms, but neither smaller, worse-lighted,
or more dungeon-like than many rooms in the lime-built
castles of the nobles of the Feudal ages.
.il id=f_161 fn=fig161_198.jpg w=500px ew=90%
.ca Fig. 161.—Ground Plan of the Broch of Mousa, Shetland. (From Plan by\
Sir Henry Dryden.)
Half-way between the chamber facing the main entrance
and the one to the left of it there is a doorway placed at a
.bn 200.png
.pn +1
height of four feet above the ground level. This doorway,
which is higher and wider than those which lead into the
chambers, is slightly larger than the main entrance itself,
being 5 feet 4 inches high and 3 feet wide. It leads to a stair
constructed like the chambers within the thickness of the wall.
At the foot of the stair there is an oval chamber, from one end
of which the stair rises in a steep slope, but following the curve
of the wall to the top. The steps are single flat stones,
varying in width from ten inches to two feet, undressed, and
laid above each other so that they give a tread of about five
inches and nearly the same of a rise. The upper part of the
tower which is traversed by the stair is differently constructed
from the lower part. To the height of about eleven feet above
the ground level the wall of the tower is carried up solid
except for the vacancy occasioned at intervals in its thickness
by the chambers and their accesses. But above this height
.bn 201.png
.pn +1
the wall is carried up with a vacancy in its centre (as seen
in the section Fig. #162:f_162#) so as to form a series of circular
galleries placed one immediately over another, and crossed
successively from the lowest to the highest by the rise of the
stair which gives access to them.
.il id=f_162 fn=fig162_200.jpg w=500px ew=90%
.ca Fig. 162.—Section of the elevation of the Broch of Mousa. (From Plan by Sir H. Dryden.)
These galleries, situated in the heart of the wall, are six
in number. Each begins about 3 feet 9 inches in front of the
stair, and goes round the whole tower on the level till it comes
against the back of the stair, which closes it at that end, so
that entrance to the gallery or exit from it can only be obtained
by stepping across the space intervening between the end
of the gallery floor and the steps of the stair. The floors
of the galleries are formed of flat undressed slabs, the end
of which reach into the walls on both sides. These slabs
are about 6 inches thick, and those whose under surfaces
form the roof of the first gallery present their upper surfaces
as the floor of the second, and so throughout. None of the
galleries exceed 5 feet 6 inches in height or 3 feet 2 inches in
width, and some of the upper spaces are now much narrower;
but as the position of the upper walls has evidently shifted,
the original dimensions of the upper galleries cannot be
ascertained. Four of the galleries that now remain (for the
tower is incomplete at top) are lighted by four vertical ranges
of windows all looking into the interior court. One range of
fourteen openings is over the main entrance. Another of
eighteen openings is over the entrance to the stairs. The third
set has seventeen openings, and the fourth is imperfect, many
of the lintels having been broken out. The peculiarities of
these windows are—(1) that they are placed close to each other,
vertically, with merely the thickness of a lintel between each
opening; (2) they are wider than they are high, the greatest
width being 2 feet 9 inches, and the greatest height not
exceeding a foot; (3) they diminish in size gradually from
the lowest to the highest; and (4) they do not range so far
.bn 202.png
.pn +1
upwards as to include the two upper galleries, which are
windowless.
Let us now group the main features of this singular building.
It is a circular tower, composed of a dry-built wall 15
feet thick, enclosing a court 20 feet in diameter. The wall
rises to a height of 45 feet, and has no opening to the outside
except the doorway which gives access to the court. Opening
from the court are a series of chambers on the ground floor
constructed in the thickness of the wall and rudely vaulted
with overlapping masonry. Above these are successive ranges
of level galleries, also in the thickness of the wall, each going
round the tower, and placed so that the roof of the one below
always forms the floor of the next above. These galleries are
crossed successively by a stair from which access to them is
obtained by facing round in the ascent and stepping across
the vacant space forming the well of the stair. The three
lower galleries only are lighted, and the windows are placed
in vertical ranges so close to each other as to be separated
only by their upper and lower lintels.
Each of these features, taken by itself, is specially remarkable,
and the presence in the one building of such a group of
features that are wholly unfamiliar to us invests it with a
character that is distinctly peculiar. From this examination
of its character, it becomes obvious that although the construction
and arrangements of the building are clearly those
of a place of strength, it is incapable of association by way of
relationship with any variety of castle known in historic
times. But a wider survey of the remains of the ancient
strongholds of the people who have occupied the land in
times of which we have no distinct or detailed historic record
will show that it has relationships so close as to amount
to an almost actual identity with many similar structures in
different parts of Scotland.
.il id=f_163 fn=fig163_203.jpg w=500px ew=90%
.ca Fig. 163.—View of external aperture of doorway of Broch in Glenbeg. (From\
a Drawing by J. Romilly Allen.)
.il id=f_164 fn=fig164-165_203.jpg w=500px ew=90%
.ca Figs. 164, 165.—Ground plan and section of elevation of doorway and passages\
through the wall of Broch in Glenbeg. (Drawn by J. Romilly Allen.)
For instance, in the small valley of Glenbeg, which runs
.bn 203.png
.pn +1
nearly parallel with Glenelg, in the west of Inverness-shire,
there are two such structures. One is situated on the edge
of the meadow which lies in the bottom of the valley. It is
greatly destroyed; more than half the circle of the wall is
gone, and part of the height of the portion that remains is
wanting. The internal diameter of the tower, at the level of
the rubbish which encumbers the floor, is 33½ feet, and the
thickness of the wall 11 feet. The doorway (Fig. #163:f_163#), which
is the only opening to the outside, is 3 feet 5 inches wide
at the head, the lower part concealed with rubbish. About
4 feet inside the outer plane of the wall there is a rebate for
a door (Fig. #164:f_164#), with checks in the shape of large slabs set
.bn 204.png
.pn +1
edgewise in the wall. Within these checks the passage widens
to 5 feet, and the roof rises as shown in the section, Fig.
165. On the south side of the passage there is a guard-chamber
opening from it, and constructed in the thickness of
the wall. Three galleries and part of a fourth remain, but
the stair is gone. The galleries are lighted by vertical ranges
of windows looking to the interior. The greatest height of
wall remaining is not over 30 feet, but 7 feet of its height
were taken by the contractor for the Bernera Barracks in
1722. It must therefore, before that time, have been nearly
as high as Mousa now is.
.il id=f_166 fn=fig166_204.jpg w=500px ew=90%
.ca Fig. 166.—Section of the elevation of Broch in Glenbeg, near Glenelg. (From\
Plan by Sir H. Dryden.)
At the distance of less than a mile up the valley on the
same side, and placed on a considerable eminence, is another
ruined structure of the same kind (Fig. #166:f_166#), but more dilapidated.
No part of the height now exceeds 25 feet. The
diameter of the tower internally has been about 30 feet, and
the wall is 12 feet thick. Traces of chambers on the ground
floor are visible, but choked with rubbish. The door and stairs
are gone. Three galleries remain in part. The first is 6 feet
high and 4 feet wide, the second 6 feet high and 3½ feet wide,
the third inaccessible and somewhat smaller.
.bn 205.png
.pn +1
These structures, so far as their distinctive features remain
unobliterated, present a striking similarity alike in the manner
of their construction and the nature of their arrangements to
those of Mousa. They vary in certain details, as in size, in
thickness of wall, in the presence of a guard-chamber in connection
with the passage, but in all the essential features of
plan, construction, and arrangements they are substantially
the same.
.il id=f_167 fn=fig167_205.jpg w=375px ew=66%
.ca Fig. 167.—Ground plan of doorway of Broch at Loch Duich, with its guard-chamber.\
(Wall 12 feet thick.)
.pm floatimage_e f_168 fig168_206 'Fig. 168.—Sectional elevation of S.E.\
side of entrance passage of the\
Broch at Loch Duich, showing\
doorway of guard-chamber, and\
bar-hole (wall 12 feet thick).' 200 40 l
Near the head of Loch Duich, a few miles from Glenelg,
is another ruined tower. It stands on the slope of an eminence
close under a high crag. The lower part of the structure
is entire, but little remains of its height. Its internal diameter
is 31 feet, its thickness of wall 12 feet. The doorway is in
the lower side of the building facing the N.E. It is 3 feet
wide at the outside, and at 4 feet 3 inches within the outer
plane of the wall (Fig. #167:f_167#) there is a rebate for a door
with checks formed of long slabs 9 inches thick, set edgewise
in the wall. Behind these is a bar-hole on either side for a
long stout bar. The hole, on one side, is long enough for the
bar to lie in it permanently, and on the other only long enough
.bn 206.png
.pn +1
to receive its end when pulled across behind a door either
constructed of wood or formed of a slab of stone set up
against the checks. On the S.E. side of the entrance passage
(Fig. #168:f_168#) is a doorway 18 inches wide and 3 feet high, giving
access to an oval guard-chamber
constructed in the
thickness of the wall, 12 feet
long, 6 feet wide, and about
7 feet high, roofed in the
usual manner by overlapping
masonry and flat stones laid
across. There are traces of
other chambers on the ground
floor, and part of a gallery
remains over the entrance,
but all above is gone. The masonry of this tower is more
massive than that of those in Glenbeg, but the general plan
and manner of construction are precisely similar in character.
In point of fact there is so little deviation from the typical
plan of construction among all the examples that are known,
that the detailed descriptions of them are for the most part
repetitions of features that are closely similar. But as we
are dealing with buildings that are in ruins, and, as it
appears, with a class of buildings of which no complete
example is now known to exist, it is important to determine
if possible whether there may be sufficient ground for assigning
to the class the general feature of height, of which, in the
majority of cases, no direct evidence now remains.
.dv class='column-container'
.dv class='column'
.il id=f_169 fn=fig169_207.jpg w=100% ew=100%
.ca Fig. 169.—Broch known as Cole’s Castle,\
Sutherlandshire. (From a Sketch\
by Dr. Arthur Mitchell.)
.dv-
.dv class='column'
.il id=f_170 fn=fig170_207.jpg w=100% ew=100%
.ca Fig. 170.—Dun Dornadilla, in Strathmore,\
Sutherlandshire. (From a\
Sketch by Dr. Arthur Mitchell.)
.dv-
.dv-
There is distinct evidence on record that a number of
these massively built towers were of considerable height.
George Low, in 1774, says of the ruined tower or Broch
of Burraness, in the island of Yell, in Shetland, that it
had an inside diameter of 31 feet, a thickness of wall of
10 feet, and a total height of 20 feet. Of the Cullswick
.bn 207.png
.pn +1
Broch he says that its internal diameter was 26 feet 6 inches,
its thickness of wall 18 feet, and the total height remaining
23 feet. Castle Cole (Fig. #169:f_169#), at the junction of the Blackwater
and the Brora, was then 15 feet in height, and part of it
still remains of about that height. Dun Dornadilla, in Sutherlandshire
(Fig. #170:f_170#), as described by Mr. Cordiner in 1776,
and Mr. Pope of Reay, in 1777, had an internal diameter of
27 feet, and the total height then remaining was estimated at
25 to 30 feet, with three galleries and part of the stair.
Maitland, in 1757, describes Dun Alisaig, in Ross, as being
30 feet internal diameter, with 12 feet thickness of wall, and
three of the galleries remaining, which implies a height of
25 to 30 feet. Dun Carloway, in Lewis, was 40 feet high in
the end of last century, and showed the plan of its galleries
with their vertical ranges of windows almost as completely
as Mousa. Judging from these examples, which still have,
or which in recent times have had a considerable portion of
their height remaining, and taking into account the quantity
of material which envelops the bases of most of those that
have been reduced to the condition of mere mounds of
.bn 208.png
.pn +1
ruin, it seems established by evidence that there were many
cases in which the total original height could scarcely have
been less than that of Mousa, and that height, as well as
bulk, was one of the main features of the typical structure.
These examples will suffice to convey a clear idea of the
distinctive features of the type of structure with which we
are dealing. Its main features of distinction, by which it
separates itself from all known types, are (1) that it is a
circular tower of dry-built masonry, wide and lofty, and
enclosing within it a central area open to the sky; (2) that
all its apertures, except the external opening of the entrance
to the central area, look into this enclosed interior court;
and (3) that its chambers, stair, and galleries are contained
within the thickness of this enclosing wall.
Having thus obtained a distinct conception of the type,
we now proceed to determine its range or area. For this
purpose it is necessary to ascertain what structures exist in
Scotland, or out of it, possessing these typical features.
.il id=f_171 fn=fig171_209.jpg w=388px ew=70%
.ca Fig. 171.—General plan of Broch and its fortifications on Cockburn Law,\
Berwickshire.
On the northern declivity of Cockburn Law, in Berwickshire,
there is a natural platform projecting from the shoulder
of the hill over the valley of the Whitadder water, about 250
feet above the bed of the stream. On this platform there is
an irregularly oval enclosure (Fig. #171:f_171#), the outlines of which
are formed by the remains of two parallel earthworks and an
outside ditch. The space thus enclosed is occupied by the
remains of various smaller enclosures, some circular and others
irregular in form. They are nearly all so ruined that nothing
can be made of their details. But the principal structure
within the enclosure is still capable of such examination as
will suffice to determine its typical relationship with the
Brochs of the extreme north. It is circular, consisting of a
wall 17 feet thick, enclosing an area of 56 feet in diameter.
In the thickness of this wall are two elongated oval-shaped
chambers, one of which is 33 feet long and 7 feet wide, the
.bn 209.png
.pn +1
other 23 feet long and 7 feet wide. In 1793 the roofs were
still on them, and it was then seen that they were covered
.bn 210.png
.pn +1
with a rude vaulting of overlapping masonry. Both these
chambers open to the inner area. The only access to this
area from the outside is the main doorway, which passes
straight through the wall, and is flanked by a guard-chamber
constructed in the thickness of the wall on either side. To
the left of the doorway are the remains of the staircase, with
an elongated chamber opposite the foot of the stair. No
remains of galleries exist owing to the absence of the whole
upper part of the structure, but the presence of the stair
implies that they once existed. The masonry is massive in
character (Fig. #172:f_172#), and the structure is also remarkable for
its great size, being three times the width of Mousa and twice
that of the Glenelg Brochs. But its features of form and
character, and all the arrangements of its details, so far as
they now exist, are those of the typical Broch structure; and,
taken together, they form a group of features and arrangements
which do not exist in any other type of structure.
.il id=f_172 fn=fig172_210.jpg w=500px ew=90%
.ca Fig. 172.—Masonry of Broch on Cockburn Law.
On the highest elevation of the Torwood, in the parish of
Dunipace in Stirlingshire, are the remains of a circular structure,
excavated in 1864 by Colonel Joseph Dundas. Its
.bn 211.png
.pn +1
appearance previous to its excavation was that of a conical
hillock situated nearly on the verge of a precipitous crag, and
enclosed on the accessible side by the remains of a double wall
of fortification. After excavation it was found to be the ruin
of a circular tower of uncemented masonry which, by the
gradual dilapidation of its walls, had become a conical hillock
of stones covered with grass and heather, and overgrown by a
clump of large fir-trees. The structure, now cleared from the
superincumbent mass of ruin, is a circular wall 15 feet thick,
enclosing a central area of 35 feet in diameter. The entrance
doorway has some of the massive lintels still upon it. It is
about 7 feet high and 3 feet wide at the door-checks, behind
which are the usual bar-holes (shown at A A in the ground
plan and section, Figs. 173, 174). To the left of the doorway
is the staircase, as usual in the thickness of the wall. The
height of wall remaining is not sufficient to show any traces of
the galleries, but the presence of the stair implies their former
.bn 212.png
.pn +1
existence. There are no chambers in the thickness of the
wall on the ground floor, but all the other features of the
building are those of the typical Broch structure.
.il id=f_173 fn=fig173-174_211.jpg w=500px ew=80%
.ca Figs. 173, 174.—Ground plan and section of elevation of doorway in Broch\
at Torwood, Stirlingshire. (Drawn by J. Romilly Allen.)
.il id=f_175 fn=fig175_212.jpg w=500px ew=80%
.ca Fig. 175.—Ground plan of the Broch of Coldoch, Perthshire.\
(From a Plan by Mr. Ballingall.)
On the other side of the valley of the Forth, and farther
west, at Coldoch, in Perthshire, a similar mound, covering the
ruins of a circular tower of uncemented masonry, was excavated
in 1870. The structure consists of a circular wall (as shown
on the ground plan, Fig. #175:f_175#) 17 feet thick, enclosing a central
area of 30 feet in diameter. The doorway on the east side
passes straight through the wall, and is three feet wide, with
checks for the door about half-way through the thickness of the
wall, and immediately behind them the usual bar-holes. To
.bn 213.png
.pn +1
the left of the doorway is the staircase. No remains of the
upper galleries exist, but the presence of the stair implies that
they did exist. Opening from the central area are the entrances
to three chambers in the thickness of the wall. They are nearly
of a size, 8 feet long, 4 feet wide, and a little over 6 feet high.
One still retains its roof, rudely vaulted with overlapping
masonry. In this case also the group of features characteristic
of the structure and its arrangements is such as can be found
only in the typical structure of the Broch.
These three examples are all that are known on the mainland
of Scotland south of the Caledonian valley. A few years
ago they were mere grass-covered hillocks, indistinguishable
from many others that are yet to be seen in various quarters
of the same wide district of country. It is impossible to say
how many of these unexamined mounds, which exist abundantly
in the valleys of the Forth and Teith for instance, may
be of similar character. But it is possible to say that where
three have been found without being specially looked for, the
probability is that more will be found when they are looked
for. The present position of our knowledge is that there are
three examples south of the Caledonian valley, but if I were
to conclude that these three are all that exist in that wide
region I should be drawing from my ignorance of the actual
facts a conclusion which could only be drawn from complete
knowledge obtained by exhaustive investigation.
The case is far otherwise with reference to the district of
country that lies to the north of the Caledonian valley and the
isles around the northern and western coasts. In such remote
and frequently rugged and barren localities the remorseless
activity of the agricultural improver has made but little progress
in the removal of the ancient landmarks, and Brochs,
and sepulchral cairns, stone circles and standing monoliths
are still comparatively abundant, though every season diminishes
their number. Some years ago I attempted an enumeration
.bn 214.png
.pn +1
of the remains in the northern counties of Scotland that
were either certainly known to be Brochs or were inferred to
possess that character, judging from external appearances.
The list has been published[72] for seven years, and the corrections
made upon it during that time have not appreciably
affected its total results. These are roughly stated as follows:—in
Shetland, there are 75 Brochs; in Orkney, 70; in Caithness,
79; in Sutherland, 60; in Ross-shire, 38; and in
Inverness-shire, 47; giving a gross total for the five northern
counties of Scotland of 370. Admitting that there must be
some instances included in the enumeration which subsequent
examination may prove to be remains of a different character,
it is equally probable that others will be found which have
not been included in the list, and the errors in these opposite
directions may be expected nearly to balance each other. But
if we suppose that it will be necessary to deduct so large a
proportion as 20 per cent, we should still have a gross total
of 300 Brochs in the five northern counties. The full significance
of such a result is scarcely realised at once. It means
that we have here the remains of a period of architectural
activity which has no parallel in the early history of our
country.
.fm rend=t
.fn 72
Archæologia Scotica, vol. v. pp. 178-197.
.fn-
.fm rend=t
Whatever may be the effect of future discoveries in
increasing the number of examples in the district south of the
Caledonian valley, it is clear that the principal area of the
type lies within the region to the north of that valley, comprehending
the five northern counties of Scotland, and including
the northern and western Isles. Within that area they
are known to exist abundantly, beyond it sparsely. Out of
Scotland the type is totally unknown. It is a type possessing
features so distinct and peculiar, so numerous and well marked,
so pronounced in their absolute individuality, that if it exists
anywhere it is capable of being instantly recognised. But no
.bn 215.png
.pn +1
single instance occurs in Ireland, or Wales, or Cornwall. No
trace of it is found in England, France, or Scandinavia. It
is absolutely confined to Scotland alone.[73] Having thus established
.bn 216.png
.pn +1
the essential features of the typical form of the Broch
structure and determined the area to which it is exclusively
confined, I now proceed to notice a few other examples possessing
features which may not have been present or prominent
in those previously described.
.fm rend=t
.fn 73
The Nuraghi of Sardinia are round towers built of uncemented stones.
They are exceedingly numerous in the island, and it has been occasionally
asserted that they bear a remarkable resemblance to the Scottish Brochs. It
is true that they are like the Brochs externally, because they are round towers,
(see Fig. #176:f_176#), but they possess none of the characteristic features of the
typical Broch structure. They contain vaulted and windowless chambers
placed vertically above each other in the centre of the tower. The access to
these chambers is by a winding stair, which traverses the thickness of the wall
completely round the central chambers. Sometimes they have a more complex
structure, consisting of a central tower rising from a square basement, with
chambers also in the basement, as shown in the accompanying section (Fig.
179). It is thus apparent that the typical Nuraghe differs completely in idea
from the typical Broch. Although the external form may be in some cases
similar, the essential features of the Broch are not found in any one instance
in the Sardinian Nuraghi. No Broch has vaulted chambers disposed vertically
over each other in the centre of the tower, and no Nuraghe has its centre
open, and its chambers, stairs, and galleries arranged in the ring of walling
surrounding the central court and windows looking into it as the Brochs have.
.il id=f_176 fn=fig176_215.jpg w=350px ew=70%
.ca Fig. 176.—Nuraghe of Goni, in Sardinia.
.il id=f_177 fn=fig177_215.jpg w=450px ew=80%
.ca
Fig. 177.—Section of Nuraghe, showing form of chambers and spiral stair.
(From Tyndale’s Sardinia.)
.ca-
.fn-
.fm rend=t
.il id=f_178 fn=fig178_216.jpg w=500px ew=90%
.ca
Fig. 178.—Broch known as Cole’s Castle, in Sutherlandshire.
(From a sketch by Dr. Arthur Mitchell.)
.ca-
We have already seen that many of these towers were
built in positions that were naturally strong. One of the
most remarkable of these is the Broch of Cole’s Castle in
Strathbrora, Sutherlandshire (Fig. #178:f_178#), which has been
.bn 217.png
.pn +1
already referred to. It is situated on the top of an isolated
eminence, precipitous on one side, and defended on the side
which is less precipitous by a double fortification of dry-stone
walling. Others whose situations made them capable of being
so defended were protected by ditches and embankments.
The Broch of Snaburgh, in the island of Unst, in Shetland,
which stands on a promontory projecting into the loch, is
protected on the land side by a wet ditch and a rampart of
large stones. The Broch of Burraness, in the same island, is
strengthened on the land side by two deep ditches and high
embankments. The Broch of Cullswick was protected by a
ditch 13 feet wide, and a rampart of earth and stones completely
encircling the base of the tower. The Broch of
Burraland, which stood on a promontory in the loch, had a
double rampart and a double wet ditch on the land side, both
well defined. The Broch of Yarhouse, in Caithness, stood on
a low flat promontory projecting into the loch, and was cut
off from the land by a deep ditch from 25 to 30 feet wide,
and had its doorway further protected by a long covered
way. The Broch of Clickamin, at Lerwick (Fig. #179:f_179#),
although situated on an island in the loch, was fortified by a
wall completely surrounding the island. Within this outer
wall of defence there is an outwork or guard-house, in form a
segment of a circle, 43 feet on its convex face, connected
with the outer wall by a passage. The outwork is 19 feet
wide at the passage through it, slightly narrower at the
ends. The passage is 8 feet high, and about 5 feet in
from the outer face of the work it narrows to 2 feet
11 inches, with checks for a door. Behind these are holes
in the opposite walls for a bar and a slit in the roof of
the passage. Besides these two exterior defences the doorway
of the tower itself had checks and a sill for a door
about 10 feet within the outer opening of the entrance passage
through the wall of the Broch. This passage is 4 feet
.bn 218.png
.bn 219.png
.pn +2
10 inches high, and the opening between the door-checks is
2 feet 11 inches wide at the bottom and 2 feet 6 inches at
the top, with bar-holes on either side.
.il id=f_179 fn=fig179_218.jpg w=292px cw=120% ew=50%
.ca Fig. 179.—General plan of Broch of Clickamin, near Lerwick, Shetland, showing\
the walled island and causeway leading to it. (From a plan by Sir H.\
Dryden.)
.il id=f_180 fn=fig180_219.jpg w=500px ew=90%
.ca Fig. 180.—Diagrammatic Section of East Broch of Burray.\
(From Archæologia Scotica, vol. v.)
The East Broch of Burray, in Orkney, explored by Mr.
Farrer, presented the appearance of a green mound 20 feet
high, surrounded by an embankment. The mound when
excavated was found to cover the lower portion of a circular
tower of uncemented masonry (Fig. #180:f_180#). The wall of the
tower was 15 feet thick, enclosing a central area 36 feet in
diameter. The entrance passage as usual went straight
through the wall, and had a guard-chamber opening from it
on either side. The entrance to one of these is shown in the
section and the bar-hole behind it. There were two other
chambers constructed in the thickness of the wall opening
from the central area, and the entrance to the stair was
placed as usual to the left of the doorway, but on a higher
level. In all its features it closely resembles all that have
been described, but in one feature it differs from them.
Close to the doorway, but outside the wall, there is a well
with a passage and steps leading down into it. There are
other examples which exhibit the same feature.
.il id=f_181 fn=fig181_220.jpg w=500px ew=90%
.ca Fig. 181.—Diagrammatic Section of the Broch of Borrowston, showing the well\
in the area. (From Archæologia Scotica, vol. v.)
.il id=f_182 fn=fig182_220.jpg w=500px ew=90%
.ca Fig. 182.—Broch at Manse of Harray. (From a Plan by Mr. George Petrie,\
inch to 1 foot.)
The Broch of Borrowston, in Shapinsay (Fig. #181:f_181#), also in
Orkney, consisted of a wall 13 feet thick, enclosing a central
area 33 feet in diameter. Within the central area of the
Broch there was a well 10 feet deep, the lower part dug out
of the solid rock, and the upper part faced with dry-built
.bn 220.png
.bn 221.png
.pn +2
masonry. The Broch of Okstrow, at Birsay in Orkney,
which consisted of a wall 12 feet thick, enclosing an area 45
feet in diameter, had a well within the area and a drain from
it leading out to the outside of the structure. The Broch
near the Manse at Harray (Fig. #182:f_182#), excavated by Rev. Dr
Traill, consisted of a wall 12 feet thick, enclosing an area
about 33 feet in diameter. It was surrounded by outbuildings,
which were not properly explored. There were no guard-chambers
on either side of the passage (B), which shows the
checks for the door, at 6 feet within the outer face of the
wall. To the left of the main entrance is the usual chamber
(H) at the foot of the stair (G), of which 19 steps remain;
and two other oval chambers (E and F), placed at nearly
equal distances in the circumference of the wall, complete the
resemblance to the general type. Near the middle of the
area a subterranean passage terminating in five steps led to a
well (D) 9 feet deep excavated in the rock. The subjoined
sectional diagram (Fig. #183:f_183#) shows the construction of the
well, which still retained water when the excavation of the
Broch was made. The Brochs of Skinnet, Harpsdale, and
Kettleburn in Caithness, had each a well within the central
.bn 222.png
.pn +1
area. The well of the last-mentioned Broch is still utilised
as the existing water supply for the cottars, who live in
houses close by constructed of the stones removed from the
site of the ancient structure.
.il id=f_183 fn=fig183_221.jpg w=500px ew=90%
.ca
Fig. 183.—Section of the Well in the Broch at Manse of Harray.
(From a plan by Mr. George Petrie.)
.ca-
The central areas of several Brochs have been provided
with drains to convey the surface water outside the building.
This same Broch of Kettleburn had a drain which passed out
under the foundation of the wall of the tower. It was what
is now called a self-cleansing drain, the flat stones forming
the water channel being set together in the form of the letter
V. Sir Henry Dryden remarks the presence of drains in the
Broch of Clickamin. I found a square drain leading from
the court of a Broch which I excavated at Brounaben, in the
parish of Wick.
The facts that many of these structures were thus provided
with drainage, and that they had also secured a water-supply
within the enclosed area of the building, are not only
significant indications of intelligence and forethought applied
to the arrangement of constructional details, but when taken
in connection with all the other arrangements of the structure
external and internal, they complete a series of characteristics
which point definitely to one object as the chief intention of
the Broch-structure, viz. security obtained by the simplest of
all means—a construction of uncemented stones which could
neither be easily forced nor readily reduced.[74]
.fm rend=t
.fn 74
That this object was practically attained by these simple means we have
evidence in one case from the direct testimony of record. It is related in the
Orkneyinga Saga, that Erlend, who (about A.D. 1155) carried off the widow of
Maddad, Earl of Athol, took her north to Shetland, and took up his residence
in Moseyarborg—the Broch of Mousa, described at the commencement of this
Lecture. It is said that her son Harald, Earl of Orkney, pursued Erlend,
and besieged him in the Borg, “but it was difficult to take it by assault,” and
the siege failed because “Erlend had made great preparations.” This is
the only record of the actual use of a Broch as a place of defence, and it bears
out the inference drawn from an examination of the nature and arrangements
of the structure, that it was difficult to take by assault, and equally difficult
to reduce by siege, if the defenders were provided with supplies. It is also
stated in the Saga of Egil Skalagrimson, that about two centuries and a
half before this time (or somewhere about A.D. 900), Bjorn Brynjulfson,
fleeing from Norway with Thora, Roald’s daughter, because her father
would not consent to their marriage, was shipwrecked on the island of
Mousa, landed his cargo and lived in the Borg during the winter, celebrating
his marriage in it, and afterwards sailed for Iceland.—The Orkneyinga
Saga (Edinburgh, 1873), p. cxi. and chap. 92.
.fn-
.fm rend=t
Reviewing the typical characteristics of the special form
.bn 223.png
.pn +1
of structure which has come to be known in recent years by
the local northern name Broch, we see that it is a hollow
circular tower of dry-built masonry, rarely more than 70 or
less than 40 feet in its total diameter, and occasionally at
least 50 feet high. Its circular wall, which may be from
9 to 20 feet thick, is carried up solid for about 10 feet, except
where it is pierced by the entrance, or partially hollowed by
the construction within its thickness of oblong chambers with
rudely-vaulted roofs. Above this height the wall is carried
up with a vacancy of about 3 feet wide between its exterior
and interior portions. At every 5 or 6 feet of its height this
vacancy is crossed by horizontal ranges of slabs inserted as
ties between the outer and inner shells of the wall, so that
their upper surfaces form a floor to the space above and their
under surfaces become a roof to the space below. These spaces
thus form horizontal galleries about 6 feet high and 3 feet
wide, separated from each other vertically by the slabs of
their floors and roofs. They run completely round the tower
except that they are crossed successively by the stair which
gives access to them. They are lighted by ranges of peculiarly-constructed
windows placed vertically over each other,
and all looking into the central area enclosed by the wall of
the tower. This area or court varies from 20 to 45 feet in
diameter. At various points of its interior circumference
are placed the openings which give access to the chambers
on the ground floor within the wall, and to the stair which
.bn 224.png
.pn +1
ascends to the galleries. The only aperture on the outside of
the tower is the doorway formed by the external opening of
the tunnel-like passage through the wall which gives access
to the central court. It is always on the ground level, square-headed,
usually with slightly inclined sides,[75] 5 to 6 feet high,
and rarely more than 3 feet wide, passing straight through
the thickness of the wall, and thus varying from 9 to 18 feet
.bn 225.png
.pn +1
in length. Some 4 feet or thereby within the outer end of the
passage there is a rebate of the masonry faced with strong
slabs inserted edgewise in the wall, and forming checks for a
door, behind which are the bar-holes, and behind them the
opening of a guard-chamber built in the thickness of the
wall.
.fm rend=t
.fn 75
Having mislaid my measurements of the doorways of Caithness Brochs,
I am unable to give examples from that county. But I am favoured, by
the Rev. Dr. J. M. Joass of Golspie, with the following measurements of the
doorways of Sutherlandshire Brochs:—
.ta l:3 l:3 l:15 r:5 r:3 r:3 r:3 r:5 r:3 r:3 r:3 bl=n
| | |Height of Doorway.| |||Breadth of Doorway.|||
| | | | | | | Above.||Below.|
| | | | Ft. |In. | | Ft. | In. | Ft. | In.
Broch of Carnliath—| || | ||| |||
|Door in Outworks || | 5 | 9 | | 2 | 10 | 3 | 9
|Door in Broch Wall— || | | | | | | |
| | Outer Opening | | 6 | 6 | | 2 | 5 | 2 | 9
|In middle of Passage| | | 6 | 0 | | 2 | 7 | 3 | 0
| | Inner Opening | | 6 | 6 | | 3 | 0 | 3 | 5
Broch of Kintrolla—| || | ||| |||
|Door in Broch Wall—|| | ||| |||
| | Outer Opening | | 7 | 0 | | 3 | 0 | 3 | 6
|In middle of Passage|| | 5 | 5 | | 2 | 3 | 2 | 8
| | Inner Opening | | 4 | 11 | | 1 | 9 | 2 | 9
Broch of Backies—| || | ||| |||
|Door in Broch Wall—| || | ||| ||
| |(2 feet of rubbish in passage,|| | ||| ||
| | height above that 4 feet.)|| | ||| ||
| | Outer Opening || | | | 2 | 11 | 3 | 3
|In middle of Passage || | | | | 2 | 1 | 2 | 6
| | Inner Opening || | | | 2 | 9 | 3 | 8
.ta-
I learn from Mr. W. G. T. Watt that the doorway of the Broch of Burwick,
near Stromness, in Orkney, which is 5 feet 2 inches in height, measures
3 feet 1 inch in width at the top, and 3 feet 5 inches at the bottom. From
these examples and the measurements of the doorways of Shetland brochs by
Sir Henry Dryden, it may be held as demonstrated that the characteristic
feature of inclined instead of perpendicular door-jambs, which was constant
in the constructions of the early Christian time, was also characteristic of
the Brochs.
.fn-
.fm rend=t
On further consideration of this remarkable group of
excessively peculiar features, it becomes evident that they all
point more or less obviously to the presence of a double
intention in the minds of the constructors of the Brochs.
The design of the whole structure and the arrangements of
all its separate parts exhibit a careful and laborious adaptation
of means and material to the two main objects of shelter and
defence. The clever constructive idea of turning the house
outside in as it were, placing its rooms within its walls, and
turning all their windows towards the interior of the edifice,
implies boldness of conception and fertility of resource. The
height of the wall, which effectually secured the inmates
against projectiles, also removed its essentially weak upper
part beyond reach of assault, while the pressure of its mass
knit the masonry of the lower part firmly together, and its
thickness made it difficult to force an entrance by digging
through it—if such a wall could be approached for this
purpose when the whole of its upper materials were deadly
missiles ready to the hands of the defenders. The door,
securely fastened by its great bar, is too strong to be carried
by a rush. Placed four feet or more within the passage, it
can only be reached by one man at a time, and the narrowness
of the passage prevents the use of long levers. In all probability
the door itself is a slab of stone, and impervious to fire.
But even if it is forced, and entrance gained to the interior
court, the enemy finds himself as it were in the bottom of a
well 30 to 40 feet in diameter with walls 50 feet high, pierced
on all sides by vertical ranges of windows, or loopholes, commanding
.bn 226.png
.pn +1
every foot of the space below, and rising to the
number of twenty or more, immediately over the door which
gives access to the galleries. In short, the concentration of
effort towards the two main objects of space for shelter and
complete security was never more strikingly exhibited, and
no more admirable adaptation of materials so simple and
common as undressed and uncemented stone for this double
purpose has ever been discovered or suggested. Perhaps
there is no characteristic of the typical structure more remarkable
than the extreme constancy of its essential features.
The uniformity of plan and construction is so unvarying
among all the known examples that there exists no means of
tracing the development of the form through a series of primitive
or immature stages. In this respect there is a striking
analogy between the Brochs and the Round Towers of Ireland.
The Irish Towers also appear fully developed, and exhibit a
general uniformity of plan and construction which is quite as
remarkable in its manifestations among them as it is among
the Brochs.[76] Their origin is assignable to peculiar circumstances
in the history of the ecclesiastical communities, and
chiefly to their constant liability to sudden danger of plunder
and murder by roving bands of marauding Norsemen. This
specialty of purpose accounts for, and harmonises with, their
.bn 227.png
.pn +1
specialty of form; and their remarkable uniformity of plan
is the natural result of the special fitness of the typical form
for its special intention—the provision of a secure refuge
from dangers which, though of frequent occurrence, were of
transient duration.
.fm rend=t
.fn 76
It is to be observed that the type of Round Tower peculiar to Scotland,
and known by the name Broch, differs totally, and in all its essential features,
from the tall, slender, round Towers of Ecclesiastical construction in
Scotland and Ireland. The Brochs are dry-built, the Ecclesiastical Round
Towers are lime-built. No hewn stone is used in the construction of a Broch;
the doors and windows of the Ecclesiastical Round Towers are often of hewn
stone, and sometimes ornamented with sculptures. The Brochs have their
chambers, stairs, and galleries in the thickness of the wall enclosing the
central area; the lime-built Round Towers possess none of these features. The
Brochs have their doorways always on the ground and their windows opening
to the interior area; the Ecclesiastical Round Towers have their windows opening
in the exterior wall, and their doors placed at a considerable height above
the ground. There is thus no point of similarity between the two types of
structure except their external roundness.
.fn-
.fm rend=t
In Scotland the area which is chiefly occupied by the
Brochs was peculiarly exposed to similar occurrences. Over
the whole of the northern and western districts there ebbed
and flowed continuously for centuries a species of irregular
intermittent warfare, consisting chiefly of plundering forays
by bands of foreign marauders. And as the special association
of the Round Towers of Ireland with the ecclesiastical
sites of the country supplies the clue to their special purpose,
the Brochs of Scotland have also their special association from
which their special purpose may also be fairly deduced.
Although they are often placed in situations of natural strength,
yet, as a rule, they mark the area of the best land in the districts
in which they are situated. This is specially true of
their local distribution in Caithness, while in Sutherland we
see them thickly planted in the fertile straths, and following
the courses of the rivers to distances of twenty-five or thirty
miles inland. They are therefore the defensive strongholds
of a population located upon the arable lands, and not in the
mountain fastnesses of the country; and their peculiar nature
as exceptionally secure places of refuge for non-combatants
and cattle, and for storage of produce, explains the fitness of
their association with the arable soil of the area in which
they are most abundantly present. Against such oft-recurring
but transient dangers to the cultivators and to the produce of
their soil there could be no more effective system of defence
provided than a multitude of safes, which should be burglar-proof,
and big enough to contain the families, goods, and cattle
of their proprietors.[77]
.fm rend=t
.fn 77
In some Archæological Notes contributed to the Academy of March 25,
1882, on the Terra d’Otranto in the South of Italy, M. Lenormant mentions
a peculiar usage still kept up by the inhabitants of the provinces of Bari and
Lecce of constructing in their fields structures of uncemented stones called
truddhu, which exactly reproduce on a smaller scale the type, arrangements,
and mode of building characteristic of the Nuraghi of Sardinia, the Sesi of the
island of Pantellaria, and the Talayots of the Balearic Islands. Like the
Nuraghe, the Truddhu is a massive conical tower of uncemented stones with
a central circular chamber rudely vaulted by the overlapping of the successive
courses of its masonry. A low door gives access to the chamber. Sometimes
a second chamber is constructed over the first, and approached by a narrow
flight of steps winding along the side of the tower. These steps are present
even when there is no second chamber, and forming a spiral round the outside
of the tower, they give access to the paved platform on the top of the structure.
The Truddhu serves as a shelter in bad weather and as a dwelling-place
by night in the agricultural season, as the peasant proprietors often live in
the towns and travel to and fro in bands for fear of brigands. Sometimes
this structure is changed into a permanent home, and the village of Alberto-Bello
consists wholly of houses of this form. Thousands of these constructions
stud the plains. Some are being built, others are in all stages of dilapidation
and decay. Although it is almost impossible to distinguish those that are
ancient from those that were made but yesterday, M. Lenormant is of opinion
that the origin of the custom must be referred to prehistoric times. A similar
custom of constructing stone-built towers of refuge also prevails in the Caucasus,
and Mr. Freshfield speaks of having as many as sixty of these structures
in view at one time.
.fn-
.fm rend=t
.bn 228.png
.pn +1
If it be thus suggested by the relations of the Brochs to
the arable lands of the districts in which they are situated,
that they belonged to the possessors and cultivators of the
soil, the affinities of the typical structure itself go far to show
that in its character and origin it is distinctively Celtic. None
of its essential features have been observed in any construction
outside of the Celtic area. And within that area no building
with a stair and an arrangement of galleries similar to that of
a Broch has been met with out of Scotland. But the circular
wall, with chambers in its thickness, which may be regarded
as the germ from which the Broch structure has grown, is a
characteristic feature of Celtic construction. We have met
with it in the walls of the cashels surrounding the ecclesiastical
.bn 229.png
.pn +1
settlements of Christian times. It is common in Irish
Cloghauns and Scottish
beehive houses, and is
so persistently Celtic
that it appears also in
Wales and Cornwall.
The ground plan of the
most perfect of a group of
beehive huts at Bodinar,
in Cornwall (Fig. #184:f_184#),
exhibits an arrangement
of oval chambers in the
thickness of its wall
precisely similar to the
arrangement which prevails in the Brochs. The long narrow
gallery (the essential feature of the earth-houses of Scotland,
Ireland, and Cornwall) is also a form of construction which
is specially characteristic of the Celtic area. The typical
Broch structure thus presents a combination of features and
forms of construction[78] which are found existing separately in
other constructions of Celtic character and origin, although
the typical combination which distinguishes the Broch structure
from all others is confined to Scotland alone.
.fm rend=t
.fn 78
The ideal Broch is composed of a series of galleries like those of the earth-houses,
superimposed upon a basement with a ground plan like that of the
structure at Bodinar, and connected by a stair. Although the stone forts of
Ireland occasionally exhibit chambers within the thickness of their walls and
have double stairs placed against the interior face of the wall to give access to
the wall-head, they never have galleries superimposed on each other, and stairs
in the thickness of the wall.
.fn-
.fm rend=t
.il id=f_184 fn=fig184_229.jpg w=300px ew=60% align=r
.ca Fig. 184.—Ground plan of Structure at\
Bodinar, Cornwall.
.tb
In the previous course of Lectures it was shown that as
a nation we are the possessors of the remains of a school of
art exemplified in a series of monumental types which are so
truly unique that no other nation possesses a single example.
.bn 230.png
.pn +1
It has now been demonstrated that we are also the possessors
of the remains of a school of architecture which is as truly
unique and even more pronounced in its features of absolute
individuality. I do not claim for it any higher merit than
that it has designed a typical form of structure possessed of
almost perfect fitness for the purposes for which it was
intended. It has no special beauty of form, nor is there
evident in any of its parts the least attempt at ornamentation
or decorative construction. But, judged by its proper
standard—the measure of its fitness for its special purpose—its
peculiar characteristics fulfil the most exacting requirements
of architectural criticism. The fact that this peculiar
type of structure exists only in one area must necessarily
have some significance in relation to the history of architecture;
but the fact that their remains may still be counted
by hundreds must also have great significance in relation to
the unwritten history of Scotland, for it is obvious that
the presence within its area of this vast series of massive
structures, so closely alike in their general features, and so
admirably contrived in their special arrangements, implies
a wide-spread concentration of thought and energy towards a
common object which is found only in communities that
have attained to a comparatively high condition of general
culture and social organisation.
.bn 231.png
.pn +1
.sp 2
.h2
LECTURE V. | (31st October 1881.) | THE BROCHS AND THEIR CONTENTS.
.sp 2
.ti 0
In 1852 the late Mr. A. H. Rhind of Sibster, the founder of
the Rhind Lectureship, made a systematic investigation of an
ancient structure at Kettleburn, near Wick, in Caithness. It
was a work of great magnitude, employing a number of men
for upwards of three months.[79] It is easy for us, with more
extended knowledge of this class of buildings, to recognise the
features of the structure as those of a Broch, although it was
not so considered by Mr. Rhind.
.fm rend=t
.fn 79
An account of the excavation, with plans and drawings, was given by
Mr. Rhind in the Archæological Journal, vol. x. p. 212; and also in the
first volume of the Proceedings of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland,
vol. i. p. 265.
.fn-
.fm rend=t
The external appearance of the ruin was that of a mound
somewhat more than 120 feet in diameter, and 10 feet high.
It stood in a cultivated field; the plough had regularly passed
over it for a quarter of a century, and a cottage had been
built out of one of its sides. Though thus diminished and
dilapidated, there remained enough of its structure underneath
the surface to show clearly what were its general
features.
.il id=f_185 fn=fig185_232.jpg w=450px ew=90%
.ca
Fig. 185.—Ground plan of Broch of Kettleburn, near Wick, Caithness.
(From a Plan by Mr. A. H. Rhind.)
.ca-
When fully cleared from the ruin of its upper portion,
the lower part of the building showed a circular construction
(b b in the accompanying plan, Fig. #185:f_185#), consisting of a wall
.bn 232.png
.pn +1
15 feet thick, surrounding a central area of 30 feet diameter.
The doorway (e) passing straight through the wall, was
flanked by a guard-chamber (t) on either side. Remains of
two oblong chambers (r, i) constructed in the thickness of
the wall were also found some distance apart. The roofs of
all the chambers were gone, but the lintels remained on the
passages leading into them. There was a well with steps
leading down to it in the central area. It was 9 feet deep,
.bn 233.png
.pn +1
and being covered for the support of a partition wall (p p)
which passed over it, was full of good spring water when discovered.
The area enclosed within the circular wall of the
Broch was subdivided into irregularly-shaped spaces (m, s, o)
by walls built across it in various directions, and abutting
on the main wall. I shall have more to say of such irregular
constructions within and around these towers when we come
to deal with them in other cases, which show that they are
secondary constructions, built out of and upon the fallen
materials of the primary edifice. The area outside the tower
for a distance of 25 feet from its external wall was covered
by the ruins of similar irregular constructions (c d), and the
whole was surrounded at that distance from the central tower
by a wall (a) 3 feet thick, of whose height little more than
the foundations remained.
The objects found during the excavation of the buildings
are preserved in the Museum. They were not very numerous,
but they formed the first collection made by the systematic
excavation of a Broch, and thus were possessed of inestimable
value and interest. In point of fact, the gift of this collection
to the National Museum gave a new character to the
collection of Scottish antiquities, and a new direction to the
science of Scottish Archæology. The Museum had previously
been enriched by multitudes of donations of objects
illustrating the unwritten history of the country, but they
were mostly objects whose associations and relations were
matters of inference and speculation. This group of objects,
on the other hand, was one of which it could be said—(1)
that they were related to each other by their common
association with a single inhabited site; (2) that they all
had relations with a certain typical form of structure; (3)
that very various characteristics of form, material, art, and
industry were shown to be thus inter-associated; (4) that
the condition and culture of the occupants of the structure
.bn 234.png
.pn +1
are truly disclosed by the study of this group of relics, in so
far as the objects of which it is composed are capable of
affording such indications; and (5) that the special knowledge
thus acquired from the study of a group of relics
derived from one structure is also an important contribution
to our general knowledge of the class to which it belongs.
The group of objects recovered from the ruins of the
Broch consisted—(1) of manufactured articles used in connection
with the daily life of the inmates; and (2) of objects
not manufactured, which were plainly the refuse of their
food.
.pm floatimage_e f_186 fig186_234 'Fig. 186.—Lamp of Sandstone from Broch\
of Kettleburn.' 250 45 l
The manufactured articles included objects fabricated in
stone and bone, bronze and iron. The stone objects were
principally querns or stones of the old small hand-mills for
grinding grain; stone pounders or oblong naturally rounded
pebbles of various sizes, having their ends worn down by
use; flat circular discs of thin slaty stone, varying from 3 or
4 to 10 or 12 inches diameter, which might have served such
purposes as are still occasionally served by similar articles in
country dairies and kitchens; oval-shaped boulders of sandstone,
having roughly-formed oval or cup-shaped cavities in
their upper surfaces,
which may have held a
dab of tallow, with a
wick of tow or moss,
and thus served as
lamps (Fig. #186:f_186#); other
hollowed cup-shaped or
bowl-shaped stones,
more regularly formed
externally and internally,
some of which
were furnished with handles, and were therefore obviously
domestic dishes; seven stone whorls for the spindle; several
.bn 235.png
.pn +1
whetstones and various other articles of indeterminate
purpose.
.il id=f_187 fn=fig187_235.jpg w=500px ew=90%
.ca Fig. 187.—Long-handled Comb of Bone, from Broch of Kettleburn.
Among the articles fashioned in bone were pins and bodkins,
made out of the long bones of various animals; rounded
knobs like buttons, cut out of the outer table of the jaw-bone
of the whale, and retaining part of the loop of iron inserted
into them; and two long-handled combs (Fig. #187:f_187#) of the same
material, furnished with stout teeth, about an inch in length,
at the end of the handle. These peculiar implements are so
frequently found in Brochs that no considerable group of
Broch relics is without them. They are of great interest;
but their purpose has to be inferred from considerations of
their form, associations, and marks of use. It is sufficiently
obvious from their form, that as long-handled combs they
are quite distinct in character from the ordinary double-edged
combs for the hair, which are also common in
Brochs.
The objects in bronze found in the Broch of Kettleburn
were a small bronze pin and a pair of bronze tweezers of
large size (Figs. 188, 189), 4½ inches in length by 1¾ inch
in breadth, elegantly formed and ornamented in a style that
is suggestive of the peculiarly bold and effective ornamentation
of the metal-work of the early Celtic period, described
in a former Lecture. They are 4¾ inches in length and 1¾
.bn 236.png
.pn +1
inches in width. Their special purpose is unknown;[80] but
they are still strong and serviceable for any purpose for which
such implements may have been employed. They possess
a peculiar interest as being the only pair of tweezers known
to have been found in Scotland.
.fm rend=t
.fn 80
Bronze tweezers are not uncommon accompaniments of female interments
of the Bronze Age in Denmark, and it has been suggested that they
were used as sewing implements when the material to be sewed was skin and
the thread a thong. This supposition is strengthened by the fact that small
awls of bronze are occasionally found with them, and it is obvious that the
end of a thong hardened in the fire, and pushed partially through the holes
bored by an awl, could be readily seized by such a pair of tweezers and so
dragged tight. But the tweezers found in the Kettleburn Broch do not
belong to the Bronze Age. Their ornamentation is that of the Iron Age, and
they were found in association with objects of iron.
.fn-
.fm rend=t
.il id=f_188 fn=fig188-189_236.jpg w=400px ew=70%
.ca Figs. 188, 189.—Front and side views of Bronze Tweezers from Broch of Kettleburn\
(4½ inches in length).
The objects of iron were mostly in such a fragmentary
condition and so greatly oxidised that little more could be
said of them than that they were portions of implements of
iron.
.bn 237.png
.pn +1
The fragments of pottery were abundant. They were
coarse in texture and unglazed. They mostly represented
globular vessels with everted rims and bulging sides.
The unmanufactured objects consisted chiefly of bones
and shells, which were so abundant that they were evidently
the remains of a long accumulation of the refuse of the food
of a considerable number of individuals who had neither
fared scantily nor without variety. Their diet had included
beef and venison, pork and veal, mutton and lamb, fish and
shell-fish, with an occasional fowl. The animal remains were
determined by Mr. Quekett, who notes that the bones and
teeth of a small horse, larger, however, than the Shetland
pony, occurred in great numbers; there were also remains of
a horse of much greater size. The other animals were red-deer
and roe-buck, the ox, sheep of small size, goats, and
swine. Many remains of dogs were found, some indicating a
variety larger than a pointer, others being smaller. There
were also bones of the whale and seal, and some remains of a
bird of the size of the heron or swan. The fish-bones were
not determined. The shell-fish were principally the periwinkle,
the whelk, and the limpet. A few human bones
were found intermixed with the relics, but there is no record
of their precise associations, and other examples will show
that the mounds covering these ruined Brochs were frequently
selected as burying-places in subsequent ages. The occurrence
of the bones of the dog and the horse, the seal and the
whale among the food refuse of a community, does not necessarily
imply that the animals were eaten. But there is
reason to believe that tastes differed in this respect at
different times. The horse was eaten among the northern
nations of Europe till within the historic period. The whale
appears down to the sixteenth century among the provision
made for rich and royal tables in Scottish and English
records. The seal was salted with the ashes of burnt seaware,
.bn 238.png
.pn +1
and eaten in the Hebrides in the beginning of the last
century. While, therefore, it may be a fair inference from
the occurrence of many bones of these animals in the food
refuse of this Broch that its occupants used the flesh of such
beasts as a common article of diet, it is obviously an equally
fair admission that they are no more to be regarded as
savages on that account than the people of historic times
who were partial to the same kind of food. In point of fact,
so far as the evidence goes, there is no reason for attributing
to them an exceptionally low condition of culture or civilisation.
We have seen that the type of defensive dwelling with
which we find them associated is one which possesses remarkable
features of constructive merit and originality of design.
Their diet was not less varied in kind and quality of nutriment
than that of modern times. They possessed iron and
bronze, and their manufactured implements show that they
were neither destitute of technical skill nor deficient in
artistic taste.
.il id=f_190 fn=fig190_239.jpg w=300px cw=120% ew=60%
.ca Fig. 190.—Section of Chamber in Broch of Kintradwell, showing rude vaulting\
of roof. (From a Drawing by Rev. Dr. Joass.)
The Broch of Kintradwell, three miles north of Brora,
excavated by Rev. Dr. J. M. Joass,[81] was situated on a natural
terrace close to the edge of the declivity which marks the
old sea-margin of the east coast of Sutherlandshire. Previous
to its excavation it was a rounded grass-covered knoll.
Within this mound, formed of the debris of the structure,
the basement of the broch was found entire to the height
of about 14 feet. The circular wall, 18 feet in thickness,
enclosed a central space 31 feet in diameter. The doorway
was 7 feet high, with inclined instead of perpendicular sides,
so that the width was 3½ feet at the bottom and 3 feet
at the top. The entrance passage went straight through the
wall, and was provided with checks for two doors, the first at
.bn 239.png
.pn +1
6 feet within the outer face of the wall, and the second 8 feet
farther in. These checks were formed by wall-fast slabs
whose edges projected, the wall being also slightly set back
at their inner faces, and a corresponding slab on edge projected
a few inches above the floor across the passage-way to
check the bottom of the door. Between the two doors a
guard-chamber opens on the right of the passage. The sill of
its doorway is 2 feet above the floor, the opening 4 feet high
by 2 feet wide, and the passage into the chamber 4½ feet in
length. The guard-room itself is circular in form on the
ground-plan, 7 feet in diameter, and 11 feet high, and roofed
in the usual way by overlapping stones (Fig. #190:f_190#). The
whole length of the passage leading through the wall into
the central area is 18 feet, and the lintels covering it are
8 inches apart. This feature is frequently seen, and as there
is often a vacant space which may have formed an apartment
over the lintels of the passage, the openings left between
them may have had a special purpose in connection with the
defence of the doorway. To the left of the main entrance
.bn 240.png
.pn +1
was an oval-shaped chamber 11 feet long and 10 feet high,
constructed in the thickness of the wall; and, still farther to
the left, were the remains of the staircase, also constructed in
the interior of the wall, with an oblong chamber at the stair-foot.
Thirteen steps of the stair remained, but the galleries
above were gone. In one side of the area was a well 7 feet
deep, with steps leading down to a point 3 feet from the
bottom. A stone cup (Fig. #191:f_191#), presumably the common
drinking-cup of the establishment, lay near the steps of the
well. In its constructive features and arrangements this
Broch is similar to all the others that have been described.
But it also presents some features which have not hitherto
been noticed, because they have either been wanting or only
obscurely presented in previous examples. The inner wall of
the court or central area was faced by a roughly-built wall
about a foot in thickness, rising to a height of about 8 feet,
and there terminating and forming a scarcement projecting
from the main wall. This inner shell or scarcement, although
bonded with the main wall at the door-corners, was not so
throughout. It was evidently an addition to the original
wall built against its inner face all round, at some time
subsequent to the construction of the main wall.[82] We
.bn 241.png
.pn +1
shall meet with this feature in other examples, and in circumstances
which will clearly demonstrate its secondary
character.
.fm rend=t
.fn 81
See a paper by Rev. Dr. J. M. Joass, in Archæologia Scotica, vol. v.
p. 95, entitled “The Brochs of Cinn Trolla, Cairn Liath, and Craig Carril, in
Sutherland,” etc., with plans and drawings.
.fn-
.fn 82
"As to the scarcement or facing wall, about 1 foot thick and 8 feet high,
of such frequent occurrence in the Brochs, it has been suggested that it may
have formed the resting-ledge for a conical wooden roof covering the (lower
part of the) central area. Others have supposed that it formed the support
of a narrow roof, sloping downwards like that of a shed or series of lean-to
booths surrounding the wall. It may be noted that it seems rarely of such
massive structure as the wall proper with which it appears to be bonded only
at the door-corners. This, with the fact that it was found covering what was
almost certainly an original doorway to a wall-chamber at Clickamin, suggests
the possibility of the scarcement being sometimes, if not generally, a
secondary structure."—Rev. J. M. Joass, LL.D., in Archæologia Scotica, vol.
v. p. 112.
.fn-
.fm rend=t
.il id=f_191 fn=fig191_240.jpg w=300px cw=120% ew=60%
.ca Fig. 191.—Stone cup from the Broch of Kintradwell (5 inches diameter).
Again, on the outside of the tower, to a distance of 60
feet from its base, the ground was covered with the foundations
of irregularly-built constructions, with passages and
doorways communicating with an access leading up to the
main entrance to the tower. These outbuildings were much
less massive, much more irregular, and much less carefully
constructed than the main building. They were chiefly
clustered about the entrance to the tower, and a little to the
north-west of the principal group of them was a shallow open
cavity lined with flat stones set on edge, and containing the
fragments of a human skeleton and an iron dagger-blade. In
one of the outbuildings also there were found a human skeleton
and an iron spear-head. Portions of eight other human
skeletons were found in and about the ruins, mostly at a
depth of from 2 to 2½ feet under the turf which covered the
mound, but not in such circumstances as would necessarily
imply that they belonged to the period of the occupation of
the Broch.[83]
.fm rend=t
.fn 83
It is rather suggested by the frequency with which such remains have
been met with in other cases, that burials were occasionally made in these
mounds long after they had become grass-grown hillocks.
.fn-
.fm rend=t
.il id=f_192 fn=fig192_242.jpg w=300px cw=120% ew=60%
.ca Fig. 192.—Oval pebble of quartzite marked by use as a point-sharpener, from\
the Broch of Kintradwell (3¼ inches in length).
The relics found in this Broch included a variety of
manufactured objects in stone and bone, bronze and iron. The
.bn 242.png
.pn +1
stone objects formed a very considerable and striking group.
Among them there were upwards of fifty querns or hand-mill
stones, and an immense quantity of oblong naturally-shaped
stones from 3 or 4 to 15 or 18 inches in length, water-worn
originally, but also wasted at the ends by use as hammer-stones
or pounders. A number of the largest of these were
found set in the ground in rows both inside and outside of
the tower. There were also a large number of stone mortars,
irregularly-rounded blocks, with wide-mouthed rounded cavities,
worn smooth by use. Most of the other stone articles
were small. They consisted of the drinking-cup already
mentioned (Fig. #121:f_121#) as a bowl-shaped vessel, neatly made,
with a handle at one side; a thin smoothly-polished disc of
quartzose sandstone, about 2½ inches diameter, similar to
others of mica schist, and other materials that have been
found in Brochs and Crannogs, but of undetermined use;
a small black whetstone or burnisher, smoothed and polished
by use; a small flattish ovoid pebble of quartzite (Fig. #192:f_192#),
having indentations produced apparently by point-sharpening
on its opposite sides; a quantity of fragments of rings or
bracelets of lignite probably obtained from the Brora beds,
and a considerable number of spindle-whorls of various forms
.bn 243.png
.pn +1
and sizes. The bone implements were mostly of the nature
of handles made of deer-horn, and spatulæ, which Dr. Joass
has suggested may probably have been potter’s tools. No
implements or ornaments of bronze were found, but the presence
of the metal was determined by the finding of three
fragments of well-made crucibles with adhering portions of
the melted metal. The iron objects were a spear-head, a
dagger-blade, a knife-blade, a socketed chisel, and several
fragments of implements of indeterminate character. The
only other object of metal discovered was a small and thick
ring of lead a little more than an inch in diameter. The
fragments of pottery found were for the most part portions of
coarsely-made vessels, all unglazed and unornamented. The
refuse of the food of the inmates was present in considerable
quantity. The land animals represented among these
remains were the reindeer, the red-deer, the roe, the ox,
the sheep, the goat, the pig, the fox, the wild-cat, and either
the wolf or a very large dog. The marine animals were the
whale, the grampus, the porpoise, the dog-fish, and the cod and
haddock, while the remains of such edible shell-fish as the
oyster, the mussel, the cockle, the periwinkle, and the limpet
were very abundant.
.il id=f_193 fn=fig193_244.jpg w=500px ew=90%
.ca Fig. 193.—Hammer-marked Plate of Brass found in the Broch of Carn-liath\
(11½ by 7½ inches).
The Broch of Carn-liath, in Dunrobin Park, also excavated
by Rev. Dr. Joass, consisted of a wall 18 feet thick, enclosing
a central area of 30 feet in diameter. The doorway was 7
feet high and 3 feet wide. As usual, it goes straight through
the wall; and at a distance of 8 feet within the outer face
of the wall there are checks for a door, and a guard-chamber
opens on the right side of the passage immediately within
them. This Broch differs from that last described in having
no chambers in the thickness of the wall, and it also presents
the unusual feature of having two underground chambers
faced with slabs, underneath the level of the central area.
The only opening from the court into the thickness of the
.bn 244.png
.pn +1
wall is the entrance to the stair, of which 25 steps remain,
but the galleries are gone. Around the outside of the tower
are the foundations of irregularly-formed constructions, of
which it is now difficult to determine the character with certainty.
The objects found in the excavation of this Broch
consisted of about a dozen querns, three large stone mortars,
a considerable quantity of hammer-stones or pestles, a large
number of rings of shale or lignite—many in process of manufacture,
two stone cups, scooped out of steatite, and a large ladle-like
dish of the same material, a stone sinker rounded, oblong,
conical at top and flat at bottom, and the top perforated by a
hole for a cord, and another sinker with a longitudinal groove
and circular depressions on either side. Of bone objects, there
were two long-handled combs, and a piece of whalebone like
a club, 14 inches long. Among the objects in metal, the most
interesting were two plates of brass, each a little more than
⅙ inch in thickness, the one (Fig. #193:f_193#) oblong, rectangular, 11
.bn 245.png
.pn +1
inches in length, and 7½ inches in breadth; the other nearly
semicircular, and about 7½ inches in radius. Both were found
near the floor of the interior area of the Broch. They are
hammer-marked with blows of the pin end of the hammer in
lines across the surface. Dr. Joass remarks of them that this
perhaps was one of the forms in which the metal was
imported into the northern districts of Scotland for home
manufacture. That they are brass and not bronze is certified
by the analysis made of the one now in the Museum by Dr.
Stevenson Macadam. The composition was found to be 82
parts of copper to 16 of zinc, with one part of tin, and a trace
of lead. This fact is important, because while the alloy of
copper and tin, which constitutes bronze, has been in use from
an indefinitely remote prehistoric period, the alloy of copper
and zinc, which constitutes brass, is not found earlier than
the period of the Roman Empire. A silver fibula of peculiar
form was also found in this Broch.[84] The form is not Celtic,
but belongs to a type which is widely distributed over Central
and Southern Europe, and is commonly associated with objects
of a late Roman character. The only article in iron found in
this Broch was a dirk-like blade greatly corroded. The
pottery was abundant, but coarse and fragmentary, and destitute
of ornamentation.
.fm rend=t
.fn 84
It belongs to the class of fibulæ which are often described as bow shaped
and cruciform, and is represented in Archæologia Scotica, vol. v. plate 16.
.fn-
.fm rend=t
.il id=f_194 fn=fig194_246.jpg w=350px cw=120% ew=67%
.ca Fig. 194.—Ground plan of the Broch of Yarhouse, Caithness, with its Secondary\
Constructions, on a peninsula in the Loch of Yarhouse, cut off from the land\
by a ditch.
.il id=f_195 fn=fig195_247.jpg w=350px cw=120% ew=67%
.ca Fig. 195.—Circular Brooch of Brass, found with a burial in the mound covering\
the ruins of the Broch (2½ inches diameter).
In 1866 and 1867 I excavated the Broch of Yarhouse, situated
in the south end of the loch of the same name, about six
miles south of Wick, in Caithness. The ground plan of the
structure is shown in Fig. 194. Its appearance before excavation
was that of a conical grass-covered mound, 200 paces in
circumference, and 18 to 20 feet high. It stood on a low
flat triangular projection of the shore of the loch, and was cut
off from the land by a ditch now silted up, and varying from
25 to 30 feet wide. In the upper part of the mound we
.bn 246.png
.pn +1
found portions of two human skeletons, at a depth of from 2½
to 3 feet under the turf; and at different places on the sides
of the mound, lower down, the remains of three other skeletons
.bn 247.png
.pn +1
were met with. Near one of those first found was a flat
circular brooch of brass (Fig. #195:f_195#), of about 2½ inches diameter.
It was rudely inscribed with letters which appear to be a
blundering attempt at the formula ISVS NAZAR [ENVS], a
common and popular talismanic inscription on the brooches
of the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries. These skeletons
were not enclosed in cists, but simply embedded in the earth
and stones of the mound. They were not deep enough to
have any determinable relation with the structure of the
Broch below. They were all incomplete and the bones in
disorder, though this might perhaps be accounted for by the
movement of the loose material of the slope of the mound in
the course of ages. The inference appeared to be that they
were casual interments made in the mound long after it had
become a grassy knoll. This was also the conclusion to
which Dr. Joass came with respect to the burials in the
mound at Kintradwell. It is easy to see how such a practice
might have arisen in remoter districts, where burial-grounds
.bn 248.png
.pn +1
connected with ecclesiastical sites were distant and roads
were few. In point of fact, there is evidence which seems to
connect the custom with the later Paganism of these northern
parts. Mr. Petrie found a small cemetery of stone cists, containing
interments after cremation, overlying the ruined
Broch of Okstrow, in Orkney. In this case, the mound
which covered the ruins must have been chosen as a place of
heathen sepulture because it was a mound. A grave containing
two oval bowl-shaped brooches, and therefore belonging
to the heathen Viking time, was found in the upper part
of a mound covering the ruins of a Broch at Castletown, in
Caithness. I found a single burial in a stone-lined grave laid
close to the doorway of the Broch of Brounaben, not far from
Yarhouse; and burials were found in the mounds covering the
ruins of the Brochs of Thrumster and Dunbeath, in Caithness.
It is therefore probable that in all such cases the
interments that are found immediately below the surface of
these mounds belong to a time when the Broch had been so
long in ruins that it appeared to those so using it as a
natural grassy knoll.
.il id=f_196 fn=fig196_249.jpg w=472px ew=75%
.ca Fig. 196.—Interior aperture of Doorway in Broch of Yarhouse.\
(From a Photograph.)
.il id=f_197 fn=fig197_250.jpg w=390px ew=75%
.ca Fig. 197.—Entrance to the stair and window-like openings over it, in the Broch\
of Yarhouse. (From a Photograph.)
When excavated, the Broch of Yarhouse consisted of a circular
wall, 12 to 13 feet thick, enclosing a central area, 30
feet in diameter. The height of the wall remaining was
about 15 feet. The doorway which passes straight through
the wall is about 6 feet high and 2½ wide, slightly narrower
at top than at bottom, and well built with long flat
slabs, some of which were 8 feet in length. The opening of
the doorway into the interior area and recess above it are
shown in Fig. 196. There were no guard-chambers or bar-holes,
and the checks for the door were quite on the inner
side of the wall. But this Broch stood on what was practically
an island, cut off from the land by a ditch 25 to 30 feet wide,
and the access to the doorway was carefully protected by the
outworks to be subsequently described. Opening from the
.bn 249.png
.pn +1
interior area to the left of the doorway was the entrance to
the stair (Fig. #197:f_197#), which also gave access to an oblong
chamber at the stairfoot. The stair itself was 3 feet wide,
and 16 steps up there was a landing, with a light hole or
window looking into the interior of the Broch. Above the
entrance to the stair there were also three windows, placed
vertically over each other—all that remained of a vertical
range of windows, such as we have seen in the case of Mousa,
Dun Carloway, and the Glenelg Brochs. On the side of the
area opposite to the doorway was an oblong chamber in the
thickness of the wall, roofed in the usual manner by overlapping
stones. In this Broch, as at Kintradwell, there was
.bn 250.png
.pn +1
an interior wall, of inferior masonry, built against the main
wall, and partially bonded into it at the door openings. This
inner wall was 2½ feet thick, and rose to a height of 8 feet,
where the wall-head formed a level scarcement all round the
interior. Partition walls (shown at B in ground plan, Fig. #194:f_194#)
ran half way across the area from both sides of the doorway,
and that on the right of the entrance bent at a right angle
towards the Broch wall. These partitions were partly built,
.bn 251.png
.pn +1
and partly formed of long slabs set on end. They rose to about
8 feet—the same height as the scarcement. The partitions
and the inner wall forming the scarcement were founded on
an accumulation of rubbish largely mixed with ashes and food
refuse, which covered the original floor of the Broch to the
depth of 12 to 14 inches. They were therefore clearly secondary
constructions, made to adapt the Broch to the purposes of a
secondary occupation. Outside the Broch wall are two long
irregularly-shaped enclosures, and several smaller cells. The
outer enclosure (D in plan, Fig. #194:f_194#) is 100 feet in length, and
varies in width from 6 to 20 feet. The length of the inner
enclosure (C) is 70 feet, and its width about 12 feet. They have
each a little cell, provided with door checks opening off them.
In some places their walls remained entire to the height of 10
feet, without showing any sign of overlapping for a roof.
Both these large oblong enclosures had irregular rows of long
slabs set on end in their floors, as if to divide them into cattle
stalls. A long covered way (A) leading to the entrance of the
Broch traversed the N.E. end of these enclosures. It varied
from about 3 feet wide at the door of the Broch to about 5
feet wide at the outer end, and had checks for doors at four
different places in its length. The secondary character of all
these exterior constructions was obvious from the fact that
underneath their foundations there was a considerable depth
of stones overlying the original soil, and mingled with ashes
and food refuse. It was also evident that various occupations
of the interior of the Broch had taken place from time to
time, when the original floor had become covered with rubbish
to a considerable depth. Partition walls were met with at
three different levels, dividing the internal area on three
different plans; the last being a partial partition, utilising
only one side of the area, at a time when the original floor
had become covered with 8 feet of stones and rubbish. The
relics obtained in the course of the excavation were few in
.bn 252.png
.pn +1
number compared with the size and apparent importance of
the structure. No querns were found, but about a dozen
grain rubbers and stones hollowed like mortars, large numbers
of stone pestles, pounders, or hammer-stones, abraded at the
ends by use; several whetstones (Figs. 198, 199), a large
number of thin circular discs of slaty sandstone, from 2½
inches up to 14 or 15 inches in diameter, many stone balls
2½ to 3 inches diameter, a small rounded pebble of quartz,
with a hole through it, a number of spindle-whorls of
stone, and one of burnt clay. The objects in metal were
a ring of bronze, half an inch in diameter, an armlet of
bronze (Fig. #200:f_200#), made of a wire -inch in diameter, square
for half its length, and twisted so that the corners form a
spiral pattern, the other half being the plain round wire. A
few fragments of iron knives, and some indeterminate objects
of small size, greatly corroded, were all the remains of iron
implements that were found. The pottery was very abundant,
but the fragments were in general small. Some were coarse
and thick, others thin and fine; all unglazed, and entirely
without ornament, except that some pieces showed a slightly
everted lip. The animal remains included those of the reindeer
(Figs. 201, 202) and red-deer, the horse, the ox, the sheep,
.bn 253.png
.pn +1
the pig, the dog, and some undetermined birds and fish.
Although the site is a long way from the sea, there was a
considerable accumulation of the common shore shells, chiefly
periwinkles and limpets. The occurrence of the remains of
the reindeer among the refuse of the food of the occupants of
the Brochs of the North of Scotland is a fact of much interest in
various ways. It establishes the correctness of the statement
made incidentally in the Orkneyinga Saga,[85] when, in recording
.bn 254.png
.pn +1
the movements of Harald and Rognvald, Earls of Orkney,
in the year 1158, the writer says that “every summer the
Earls were wont to go over to Caithness, and up into the
forests to hunt the red deer or the reindeer.” It also shows
that in Scotland at least the association of reindeer remains
with those of prehistoric man does not of itself or necessarily
indicate extreme antiquity.
.fm rend=t
.fn 85
The Orkneyinga Saga (Edinburgh, 1873), p. 182. See also Dr. J. A.
Smith’s Notice of “Remains of the Reindeer in Scotland,” in the Proceedings
of the Soc. Antiq. Scot., vol. viii. p. 186.
.fn-
.fm rend=t
.il id=f_198 fn=fig198-199_252.jpg w=350px ew=70% cw=110%
.ca Figs. 198, 199.—Whetstones from Broch of Yarhouse\
(3 inches in length).
.il id=f_200 fn=fig200_253.jpg w=350px ew=67% cw=110%
.ca Fig. 200.—Bronze Armlet from the Broch of Yarhouse (2½ inches diameter).
.il id=f_201 fn=fig201-202_253.jpg w=400px ew-75%
.ca Figs. 201,202.—Portions of Horns of Reindeer found in the Broch of Yarhouse,\
Caithness.
The Broch of Old Stirkoke, which I watched during its
removal by the farmer for drains and top-dressing, was a grass-covered
mound 120 paces in circumference, 12 feet high, and
nearly 40 feet diameter across its level summit. The wall of
the Broch was 13 feet thick and the enclosed area 30 feet
diameter. A square drain ran under the floor. The objects
casually recovered from the rubbish were a bone bodkin 8
inches long, a polished bone needle 3 inches in length, a thin
polished disc of mica schist 2½ inches diameter similar to
other objects of the same character (of which the intention is
not obvious) found in Brochs and Crannogs, a stone lamp, a
few spindle-whorls, two whetstones, hammer-stones, thin
circular discs of slaty stone, a fragment of bronze and a
portion of the hilt end of an iron sword with a very broad
double-edged blade.
.pm floatimage_e f_203 fig203_255 'Fig. 203.—Vessel of Red Sandstone\
(6 inches in length).' 200 40 r
The Broch of Bowermadden, also removed by the farmer,
had a well in the area with steps leading down to it. It was
impossible to obtain with any degree of precision the general
dimensions of the structure, but so far as I could ascertain
it differed in no feature of importance from the others which
have been described. The objects found in it were a number
of stone balls similar to those found in the Broch of
Yarhouse, a stone mortar, a small oval vessel of red sandstone
(Fig. #203:f_203#), a number of spindle-whorls, and several stone
vessels of large size which I did not see. The farmer said
that the largest one was 3 feet deep, and that as they
were always in his way he smashed them up and saved only
.bn 255.png
.pn +1
a few of the smaller ones to be utilised as hen troughs, etc.
A bead of vitreous paste enamelled with a yellow spiral ornament
(Fig. #204:f_204#), a very
pretty small comb of bone
(Fig. #205:f_205#), with an open semi-circular
handle, and a bronze
pin having an open circular
head with ribbed ornamentation
on the upper part of
the circle (Fig. #206:f_206#), were
also found. A few fragments
of iron implements
occurred, but they were greatly corroded and indeterminable.
.dv class='column-container'
.dv class='column mid'
.il id=f_204 fn=fig204_255.jpg w=100% ew=100%
.ca Fig. 204.—Bead of Vitreous Paste\
(actual size).
.il id=f_205 fn=fig205_255.jpg w=100% ew=100%
.ca Fig. 205.—Small Comb of Bone\
(actual size).]
.dv-
.dv class='column'
.il id=f_206 fn=fig206_255.jpg w=100% ew=100%
.ca Fig. 206.—Bronze Pin. Front and side views (actual size).
.dv-
.dv-
.bn 256.png
.pn +1
The Broch of Dunbeath, situated in the angle formed by
the confluence of the Burn of Houstry with the Water of
Dunbeath, which was excavated by Mr. Thomson Sinclair, jun.,
of Dunbeath, had larger and loftier chambers in the thickness
of its wall than any of the others. One of these measured
12 feet 6 inches by 6 feet 6 inches, and 13 feet high. Among
the relics found in this Broch were an iron spear-head 5
inches in length, a whetstone, and some bone implements.
A quantity of charred grain, bere, and oats was found on
the floor.
These examples will suffice to convey a general idea of
the nature and contents of the Brochs of Sutherland and
Caithness, and to show how closely they resemble one another
alike in the style of their construction, the nature of their
arrangements, and the general character of their contained
relics. I now proceed to notice briefly a few of those which
have been excavated in Shetland and Orkney. They all
exhibit the same typical structure, with variations in their
details which need not be minutely specified. It is necessary,
however, to examine the groups of relics which have been
obtained from them in order to complete the general view of
the evidence from which we arrive at conclusions as to the
nature and quality of the culture and civilisation of their
occupants.
.il id=f_207 fn=fig207_257.jpg w=462px ew=90%
.ca Fig. 207.—Ground plan of the Broch of Levenwick, Shetland.\
(From a plan by Mr. Gilbert Goudie.)
.pm floatimage_e f_208 fig208_258 'Fig. 208.—Bronze Knob\
found in Broch of\
Harray (3½ inches in\
length).' 100 25 l
The Broch of Levenwick in the parish of Dunrossness,
Shetland, excavated by Mr. Gilbert Goudie in 1869 and 1871
(Fig. #207:f_207#), had an internal diameter of 29½ to 30 feet, the
wall varying in thickness from 12 to 16 feet, while the greatest
height of wall remaining was 15 feet. It presented the
unusual feature of a “scarcement” or secondary wall, about
6 feet high and 6 feet wide, built against the face of the interior
wall. From this secondary construction there were five
buttress-like projections from 2½ to 4½ feet in length, placed at
regular distances from each other, and extending into the enclosed
.bn 257.png
.pn +1
area. At one side of the area opposite the shortest of
the projecting walls was a fireplace (d), consisting of three
flags placed on edge. The entrance passage (b e f) led straight
through the wall of the Broch and through the secondary
wall in its interior, widening to the outer part of the secondary
wall. There were two of the lintels of the passage
remaining, but the outer part of the original entrance way
was much dilapidated. On this account perhaps the checks
for the door were not visible and there is no appearance of
guard-chambers. Contrary to the usual experience also, the
stair ascends from an opening to the right of the main
entrance in the middle of the east side of the building (at h on
the plan), and ascending to a height of 8 or 10 feet, enters a
level gallery which apparently went half way round the
.bn 258.png
.pn +1
building to the west side (at m on the plan), where there is
another flight of 15 steps remaining. At the point where
this second flight of steps starts from the gallery, there is a
window opening to the interior area. This arrangement of
the stair differs from that of Mousa. At the Broch of Yarhouse
in Caithness what remained of the
stair was similarly divided into two
flights, though the distance between them
was less than at Levenwick. The objects
found in this Broch were few, consisting
of quern-stones, pounders, and roughly-hollowed
stones. It is chiefly interesting
on account of the variation exhibited in
its structural details.
In one of the Brochs in the parish
of Harray, in Orkney, excavated by Mr.
Farrer, a number of stone lamps, circular
discs, and perforated stones were found,
and along with them the bronze object
here figured (Fig. #208:f_208#).[86]
.fm rend=t
.fn 86
Six of these bronze objects were found at Lisnacragher Bay, Parish of
Braid, County Antrim, in 1868, along with a sword-sheath of bronze decorated
in that peculiar style of Celtic Art of which examples have been given in
Lecture III. They seem to have been mountings of the ends of spear-shafts,
and two of them still retained part of the wood of the shaft.—Proc. Soc. Antiq.
Lond., 1868, Second Series, vol. iv. p. 256.
.fn-
.fm rend=t
.pm floatimage_e f_209 fig209_259 'Fig. 209.—Cup made from Vertebra of\
Whale from Broch of Burray (4½\
inches high).' 200 35 r
The East Broch of Burray, also explored by Mr. Farrer,
yielded a number of stone vessels of various sizes, a lamp of
stone, a thin circular disc of mica schist, polished, like those
found in the Brochs of Old Stirkoke and Kintradwell, small
bead-like objects made of bone, a bone cup made of one of
the vertebral joints of a small whale (Fig. #209:f_209#), a number of
bone pins from 1½ to 3½ inches long, four long-handled combs of
bone, two broken portions of double-edged combs of the same
.bn 259.png
.pn +1
material, a bronze pin with a flat circular head (Fig. #210:f_210#),
and an iron chisel and knife-blade. Besides the ordinary
unglazed pottery of native
manufacture there was
found in this Broch a fragment
of the red lustrous
ware commonly called
Samian. This ware, which
is found abundantly on
the sites of Roman settlements,
as at Inveresk for
instance, is always one
of the most characteristic
indications of Roman influence,
and its presence
necessarily betokens some
degree of contact with the
effects of Roman civilisation.
In this Broch also a quantity of charred bere or barley
lay on the floor, and the most remarkable feature of the collection
.bn 260.png
.pn +1
of food refuse from its rubbish was the presence among the
bones of the ordinary domestic animals, of great numbers of
the horns of the red-deer, many of which belonged to animals
of considerable size. There are now no red-deer in Orkney, but
there is no Broch which does not contain their remains
abundantly.
.dv class='epubonly'
.il id=ef_210 fn=fig210_259.jpg w=500px ew=90%
.ca Fig. 210.—Bone Button with iron shank, Fragment of Comb and Pins of Bone\
and Bronze from Broch of Burray (actual size).
.dv-
.pm floatimage_e f_211 fig211_261 'Fig. 211.—Polished Bone Pin from Broch of Burwick. (Actual\
size.)' 100 25 r
At Burwick, near Stromness, in Orkney, a Broch situated
on a rugged promontory rising to a considerable height above
the sea has been recently explored by Mr. W. G. T. Watt.
The external appearance of the ruin previous to its excavation
was that of a circular mound about 15 to 20 feet in
height occupying the whole width of the promontory and
sloping to the crag on both sides. On the landward side,
about 50 feet from the exterior margin of the base of the
mound, there is a deep and wide ditch across the neck of the
promontory isolating the part on which the tower stands from
the mainland. The ditch is 160 feet long and about 40 feet
wide, and is faced on the inner side by a well-built wall 9
feet high, 6 feet thick at the bottom, and sloping to from 3 to 4
feet at the top. The Broch itself consists of the usual circular
wall, averaging from 12 to 13 feet in thickness. No part of
the wall now exceeds 16 feet in height. The entrance to the
interior area of the Broch is 5 feet 2 inches high, 3 feet 5
inches wide at the bottom and 3 feet 1 inch at the top. The
passage through the wall is paved in the bottom and
diminishes slightly in width and height until at the distance
of 9 feet 9 inches inwards, where there are checks for a door,
the opening of the doorway is only 4 feet 6 inches high and 2
feet 11 inches wide. Inside this doorway the passage widens
by 12 inches on either side, and on the right side there is a
guard-chamber entering by a doorway 3 feet 5 inches high
and 2 feet wide, lighted by an opening above the lintel of
about 1 foot square. The chamber seems to have been about
12 feet long and has been roofed in the usual manner by
.bn 261.png
.pn +1
overlapping stones. The interior area was occupied by
secondary constructions founded at a height of 3 feet above
the original floor-level upon a bed of stones and rubbish
which had accumulated to that depth upon the original floor
previous to the time of this secondary occupation. The area
within the Broch wall, which had been originally 24 feet in
diameter, was diminished to 16 feet in diameter by a roughly-constructed
circular wall or “scarcement” built against the
inner wall of the Broch, rising to the height of about 6 feet.
Unlike many of these “scarcements,” it presents great inequality
in thickness, varying from about 7 feet on one side
of the area to about 2½ on the other. The area is further
intersected in various directions by several partition walls of
the same inferior character of masonry. The space outside
the Broch wall, intervening between it and
the ditch, is also occupied by secondary
constructions, and an underground passage
has been traced for about 50 feet towards
the ditch.
.il id=f_212 fn=fig212_262.jpg w=450px ew=80%
.ca Fig. 212.—Long-Handled Bone Comb from the Broch of Burwick\
(4½ inches in length).
.pm floatimage_e f_213 fig213_262 'Fig. 213.—Round-backed, single-edged Comb\
from Broch of Burwick.' 300 60 l
The articles found during the excavation
consisted of a number of stone pounders or
hammer-stones, wasted at the ends by use,
round flat stone discs of various sizes
roughly chipped to shape, broken mortars
or vessels of various sizes roughly hollowed
in naturally-shaped boulders of sandstone
(one being apparently a stone mould for an
iron crusie), a considerable number of bone
implements of various kinds, among which
are several bone pins, one of which (Fig.
211) is flat at the point, has an ornamented
head, and has been furnished with a loop for suspension at
the side; a polished bone handle in which an instrument,
apparently of iron, has been inserted; two spindle-whorls,
.bn 262.png
.pn +1
one of bone and the other of stone; portions of deer-horns
cut into slips and pierced by peg-holes; two long-handled
combs made of deer-horn, one of which is here figured (Fig.
212); one double-edged comb of bone, and one single-edged
comb with round back (Fig. #213:f_213#), both formed in several pieces,
neatly joined and held
together by transverse
slips of bone fastened
with rivets. The only
iron object found was a
portion of a cylindrical
rod. The pottery was
coarse, thick, unglazed,
and unornamented, except
one piece of dark-coloured
ware resembling the black ware made in Roman
kilns in several parts of England. The animal remains
were chiefly those of the ox, the sheep or goat, the horse,
the swine, and the red-deer.
.pm floatimage_e f_214 fig214_263 'Fig. 214.—Cap of Sandstone from Broch\
of Okstrow (3½ inches in diameter).' 225 40 r
The Broch of Okstrow, in Birsay, excavated by Mr. Leask
of Boardhouse, yielded a number of the commoner implements
of stone, such as hammer-stones and rough circular
.bn 263.png
.pn +1
discs, a well-made cup of sandstone, 3½ inches in diameter
(Fig. #214:f_214#), its cavity still
bearing the marks of the
pointed tool by which it
was fashioned; a thin flat
disc of compact slaty
stone, 3¼ inches diameter,
smoothly polished on both
sides, and ground flat on
the edges like those from
the Brochs of Burray, Old
Stirkoke, and Kintradwell;
three lamps of sandstone, one of which seems an unskilful
imitation of the form of a Roman lamp (Fig. #215:f_215#); while the
others (Fig. ) are similar to the lamp from Kettleburn.
Among the other objects found were two of the long-handled
combs of bone, a flat piece of bone resembling a weaver’s
rubbing implement for smoothing or calendering the web after
it is woven, and several spindle-whorls of stone and bone; a
bone ring, 2 inches diameter, perforated with small holes, and
a tableman made of an ox tooth. The objects in metal were
a bronze pin, 4¾ inches in length (Fig. #217:f_217#), ornamented with
engraved lines, and having a small ring, ¾ inch in diameter,
inserted in a loop at the head of the pin; a small penannular
.bn 264.png
.pn +1
brooch of bronze of Celtic form (Fig. #218:f_218#), with flattened and
slightly expanded ends terminating in the semblance of
animals’ heads; and a mounting of bronze, 3 inches in length
(Fig. #219:f_219#), chased on the upper surface, and having perforated
prolongations, as if for fastening
it to some other object. Besides
the usual fragments of
plain unglazed pottery of native
manufacture, there were in
this Broch again several pieces
of the red lustrous ware commonly
called Samian. These
pieces indicate two vessels—one
a bowl of about 6 inches
diameter; the other a shallow
straight-sided vessel of considerable
size. Both had been
broken and mended by the insertion of soft metal clamps in
holes drilled close to the sides of the fracture.
.dv class='htmlonly'
.il id=f_219 fn=fig219_264.jpg w=350px ew=70%
.ca Fig. 219.—Mounting of Bronze from Broch of Okstrow (3 inches in length).
.dv-
.dv class='epubonly'
.il id=ef_215 fn=fig215-216_263.jpg w=100px ew=30%
.ca Figs. 215, 216.—Lamps from the Broch of Okstrow.
.il id=ef_217 fn=fig217_264.jpg w=450px ew=80%
.ca Fig. 217.—Bronze Pin from Broch of Okstrow (4¾ inches in length).
.dv class='column-container'
.dv class='column40'
.il id=ef_218 fn=fig218_264.jpg w=100% ew=100%
.ca Fig. 218.—Penannular Brooch of Bronze from Broch of Okstrow (1½ inch in diameter).
.dv-
.dv class='column60'
.il id=ef_219 fn=fig219_264.jpg w=100% ew=100%
.ca Fig. 219.—Mounting of Bronze from Broch of Okstrow (3 inches in length).
.dv-
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.dv-
.dv class='htmlonly'
.il id=f_220 fn=fig220_265.jpg w=500px ew=90%
.ca Fig. 220.—Ground Plan of the Broch of Lingrow, Orkney, with its Secondary\
Constructions. (From a Plan by Mr. George Petrie and Sir H. Dryden.)
.dv-
.dv class='epubonly'
.il id=ef_221 fn=fig221_266.jpg w=200px ew=40% align=l
.ca Fig. 221.—Pebble of Quartzite marked by\
use as a point-sharpener, from Broch of Lingrow (2½ inches in length).
.dv- // close epubonly
The Broch of Lingrow at the head of the Bay of Scapa,
near Kirkwall, explored by the late Mr. George Petrie, had
.bn 265.png
.pn +1
little of its height remaining, but was specially remarkable
for the number and extent of the outbuildings clustered round
its base. These were not all explored, but so far as they were
laid bare they are shown on the plan (Fig. #220:f_220#). The articles
found were—a large number of querns, a stone lamp, a number
of quartz pebbles indented on their flat sides by use as
point-sharpeners (Fig. #221:f_221#), like those from the Broch of
Kintradwell, a large number of implements in red-deer horn,
one of which is shown (Fig. #222:f_222#), bone pins and needles, and
.bn 266.png
.pn +1
long-handled combs, spindle-whorls of stone, some fragments
of bronze, a clay mould (Fig. #223:f_223#)
for casting bronze pins with open
circular heads bearing the same
ornamentation, and precisely of the
same form as the pin from Bowermadden
(Fig. #203:f_203#), in Caithness;
playing dice of bone, and a very
large quantity of pottery ornamented
in various patterns, but all unglazed,
and of the coarse black paste characteristic
of native manufacture.
In different parts of the outbuildings
there were found four silver Roman coins—denarii of the
Empire. Mr. Petrie did not live to draw up a detailed account
of the excavation, and his notes do not indicate the reigns to
which the coins severally belonged.[87] But the occurrence in
.bn 267.png
.pn +1
this Broch of imperial coins, and in others of the red lustrous
ware of late Roman or Gallo-Roman origin are indications
of the occupation of the Brochs
subsequently to the Roman
conquest of the southern part
of Britain.
.dv class='epubonly'
.il id=ef_222 fn=fig222_266.jpg w=500px ew=90%
.ca Fig. 222.—Implement of Deer-horn from Broch of Lingrow (4¼ inches in length).
.dv-
.fm rend=t
.fn 87
I am indebted to Mr. James W. Cursiter, Kirkwall, for the extracts
from the Orcadian newspaper in which the finding of these coins was recorded.
A denarius of the reign of Antoninus (Pius ?), is noted in the issue of Nov.
26, 1870. On Dec. 10, one of Antoninus, and one of Vespasian, having a
sow on the reverse. On Jan. 21, 1871, one of Hadrian, with Clementina on
the reverse, and a female figure holding a paterá in the extended right hand,
and a spear in the left. A jotting by Mr. Petrie on the rough plan of the
Broch also mentions “two coins of Crispina and bone dice found here.”
.fn-
.fm rend=t
.il id=f_223 fn=fig223_267.jpg w=250px ew=45% align=r
.ca Fig. 223.—Clay Mould for casting Bronze Pins, from Broch of Lingrow (actual size).
The Broch that has yielded
the largest and most interesting
collection of objects is that
of Burrian in the island of
North Ronaldsay, excavated by
Dr. William Traill of Woodwick,
the proprietor of the
island. The structure was
essentially similar to those
that have been previously
described. The wall of the
tower was 15 feet thick at the
base, enclosing an area of 30
feet in diameter. The greatest
height of the wall remaining
was 10 feet. The doorway
was on the south-east side
facing the sea. It was 3 feet
3 inches wide at the outer
face of the wall, and had checks for a door consisting of
two slabs projecting on either side of the passage so as to
narrow the aperture to 2 feet 10 inches. Within the door-checks
the passage widened to 4 feet 3 inches. There was
but one chamber in the thickness of the wall on the north-east
side of the tower. It measured 9 feet 9 inches by 5 feet
9 inches on the floor, and was about 5 feet high, the roof
having fallen in. The entrance from the interior court to
the chamber was 3 feet 3 inches high, and 2 feet 2 inches
.bn 268.png
.pn +1
wide. The objects found in the course of the excavations
consisted of a large number of hammer-stones or oblong
water-worn pebbles wasted at the ends by use, a number of
querns and grain-rubbers, sinkstones, pieces of black vesicular
lava, roughly pear-shaped, with holes bored through their
smaller ends, and circular discs of thin slaty stone of various
sizes. Among the objects made of bone, which were exceptionally
numerous, were an implement of bone 5½ inches in
length (Fig. #224:f_224#), made from the radius or wing-bone of a
bird by cutting it obliquely across at one end, and grinding
the section smooth; ninety pins of bone varying in size from
4¾ inches to somewhat less than 1¼ inch in length, many
of which have ornamental heads of the character shown in
Fig. 225, while others of larger size are of the forms shown
in Fig. 226, a large number are crutch-headed like Fig. 227,
while one neatly-made pin with a rounded body (Fig. #228:f_228#) is
cleverly ornamented by its head being carved in the similitude
.bn 269.png
.pn +1
of two horses’ heads looking opposite ways, and another
coarsely-made pin without a head (Fig. ) is marked with
transverse scorings. Besides the pins there are three needles
of bone with elongated eyes, one broken, the others (Figs.
230, 231) 2¼ and 1¾ inches in length respectively. There
are also a number of pegs of bone, roughly finished, varying
in length from 3 inches to 1½ inch, and from nearly ¼ inch
.bn 270.png
.pn +1
to about ⅛ inch diameter. These have evidently been used
in pegging slips of bone or wood, and several slips of bone,
about 3½ inches in length, convex on one side and flat on the
other, occur among the relics, two of them having the pegs
still in the holes. There are also a large number of shaped
pieces of bone and deer-horn which might have served as the
handles of small implements—hafts of knives, and suchlike.
Among the smaller objects of bone there are several button-like
articles, one apparently the half of a square-shaped stud
or button of ivory with a small hole for the shank discoloured
by oxide of iron, and two others made from short sections of
the shank-bone of a sheep. One of these has the iron shank
still in the hole. Akin to these in the manner of their formation
are several playing dice, manufactured from sheep
shank-bones. They are simple sections of the shank-bone
1⅝ inch in length, with one or more of the sides rubbed smooth
and marked with the customary numbers in the shape of dots
and circles. The one here
figured (Fig. #232:f_232#) is ground
smooth on one side, on
which there are six points;
on the convexity of the
bone there are five points;
on the naturally flattened
side of the bone (which is
broken) there are no markings
to be seen at the ends, but the centre portion shows one
marking. The second example has only one side of the bone
remaining, which shows four points. The surface of the bone
has scaled off the third example, and obliterated the numbers.[88]
Among the miscellaneous articles of bone to which no definite
use can be assigned, although they are obviously tools or implements
.bn 271.png
.pn +1
intended for special purposes, there is one (Fig. #233:f_233#),
strongly made of a roughly cut bone, having a rounded point
with two grooves cut in it so as to have prominent parallel
ridges between and on either side of them. Among the
objects of personal use are sixteen combs, most of them more
or less broken, but several still in a fair state of preservation.
One is round-backed and single-edged (Fig. #234:f_234#), measuring
3 inches by 2 inches, the back pierced with three triplets of
small holes, and ornamented with a profusion of dots and
circle markings. It is formed of five thin slips of bone laid
together lengthwise, and held in their places by two slips
laid transversely across them on opposite sides, and fastened
by four iron rivets. The teeth of the comb have been very
regularly cut by a fine saw, and the saw-marks on the under
edges of the transverse slips show that the cutting of the teeth
was performed after the pieces of the comb were fastened
together. The rest of the combs are all double-edged. One
measuring 2¾ inches by 2 inches (Fig. #235:f_235#), is formed of four
slips of bone inserted between two transverse slips, and held
.bn 272.png
.pn +1
together by three rivets of iron. The transverse slips are
ornamented by a single line incised along each border, and by
four sets of two concentric circles with central dots ranged
at equal distances along the centre of the slips. The teeth
are widely but regularly cut, narrowing towards the points,
and those towards the sides of the comb shorter than those
in the middle. Another comb of the same character (Fig.
236) measures 5½ inches in length, by 2 inches in breadth.
This is the largest comb obtained from a Broch. It is formed
of six slips of bone enclosed between two transverse slips
fastened by five rivets of iron. Above and below each rivet
is an ornamented dot and circle marking. A similar marking
is placed in the centre of each of the broad terminal teeth at
either end of the comb. The transverse slips are much marked
by the saw. The teeth are well cut and regular in length
and thickness; they show strongly the marks of wear by use,
chiefly towards their bases, where minute transverse lines are
worn deeply into the corners of the teeth, almost completely
encircling them. Besides these combs for the hair, there were
found no fewer than eighteen of the long-handled combs, which
are of such frequent occurrence among the relics recovered
from Brochs. That shown in Fig. 233 appears to be of deerhorn,
but they are mostly made from portions of the outer
table of the jaw-bone of the whale. They vary in length from
.bn 273.png
.pn +1
3 inches to 5½ inches. They also vary considerably in the
size and form of the teeth, some, like Fig. 238, having teeth
that are short and pointed, and rounded in section, while the
teeth of others, like those in Fig. 239, are longer, less pointed,
and more rectangular in section. It has been already stated
that sixteen combs of the ordinary single and double-edged
.bn 274.png
.pn +1
forms which are characteristic of the comb used for the hair
were found in this Broch. It is therefore probable that these
eighteen long-handled combs were intended for some other
purpose. They are not only unfitted by their clumsiness for
this special and personal use, but the strength of the teeth,
their coarseness, and the manner in which they are marked
by the use to which they have been put are suggestive of
implements for some manufacturing process rather than
objects of the toilet. Another circumstance of their association
is of some importance in the inquiry as to the nature of
their special purpose. There is only one other implement
which occurs with equal frequency in collections made from
Brochs. In this same Broch, which yielded sixteen combs
for the hair and eighteen of the long-handled implements,
there were upwards of thirty spindle-whorls for spinning
with the distaff and spindle. As this implies the existence
of a very considerable manufacture of thread, and as the
presence of the industry of weaving is also suggested by the
occurrence of a number of smoothing or calendering implements
of bone (Fig. #240:f_240#), which had seen much service, it is
probable that these eighteen long-handled implements may
have had some connection with the process of making cloth
.bn 275.png
.pn +1
from the thread spun by the spindle-whorls. The evidence
as to the special use of the implement is derived (1) from
the specialty of its form—it is long-handled; and (2) from
the marks of wear upon its teeth, which are more distinct
towards the apices of the teeth than towards their bases.
These marks are such as would result from combing fibres in
the preparation of lint or even of wool for spinning; but for
this use the implement is not well suited by its form, and
the marks on the teeth are often such deeply-cut transverse
lines, as would rather imply the contact and friction of
threads. And it is the fact that a comb of this special form,
long-handled, and having a few stout teeth on the end of the
handle, was used in the operation of weaving when the warp
was fixed upright, as it always was in the older form of loom.
The purpose for which the comb was used was the driving of
the weft home as each successive thread was passed through
the upright sheds of the warp by the shuttle. Such weaving-combs
were used by the Egyptians,[89] the Greeks, and the
Romans,[90] and they continued in use throughout Europe even
.bn 276.png
.pn +1
in late mediæval times. In some varieties of carpet-weaving,
in which alone the upright mode of working is now retained,
the weft is driven home by a similar instrument made of
iron. The Hindoo weaver of the present day retains the
form of the implement used by his remote ancestors, although
the materials of which it is made are now wood and iron.
One such implement (Fig. ) is in the National Museum.
Although its teeth are of iron, a close examination suffices to
show the marks of use, and in the iron comb as well as in
those of bone, it is towards the apices and not towards the
bases of the teeth that the transverse striations appear.[91]
.dv class='epubonly'
.il id=ef_224 fn=fig224_268.jpg w=500px ew=80%
.ca Fig. 224.—Bone Implement from Broch of Burrian (5½ inches in length).
.il id=ef_225 fn=fig225_268.jpg w=500px ew=80%
.ca Fig. 225.—Bone Pins, with ornamental heads, from Broch of Burrian (actual size).
.il id=ef_226 fn=fig226_269.jpg w=500px ew=80%
.ca Fig. 226.—Bone Pins from Broch of Burrian (actual size).
.il id=ef_227 fn=fig227_269.jpg w=500px ew=80%
.ca Fig. 227.—Crutch-headed Bone Pin from Broch of Burrian (actual size).
.il id=ef_228 fn=fig228-229_269.jpg w=500px ew=80%
.ca Figs. 228, 229.—Bone Pin with ornamental head, and pin with transverse markings,\
from Broch of Burrian (actual size).
.il id=ef_230 fn=fig230-231_269.jpg w=500px ew=80%
.ca Figs. 230, 231.—Bone Needles from Broch of Burrian (actual size).
.il id=ef_232 fn=fig232_270.jpg w=250px ew=50%
.ca Fig. 232.—One of a set of Dice made from a sheep shank-bone found in the Broch of Burrian (actual size).
.il id=ef_233 fn=fig233_271.jpg w=500px ew=90%
.ca .ca Fig. 233.—Tool of Bone found in the Broch of Burrian (actual size).
.il id=ef_234 fn=fig234_271.jpg w=500px ew=90%
.ca Fig. 234.—Round-backed Comb of Bone from Broch of Burrian (half actual size).
.il id=ef_235 fn=fig235_271.jpg w=500px ew=80%
.ca Fig. 235.—Double-edged Comb of Bone from Broch of Burrian (half actual size).
.il id=ef_236 fn=fig236_272.jpg w=500px ew=80%
.ca Fig. 236.—Double-edged Comb of Bone from Broch of Burrian (5½ inches in length).
.il id=ef_237 fn=fig237_273.jpg w=500px ew=80%
.ca Fig. 237.—Long-handled Comb from the Broch of Burrian, Orkney (4¾ inches in length).
.il id=ef_238 fn=fig238_273.jpg w=500px ew=80%
.ca Fig. 238.—Long-handled Comb from the Broch of Burrian (4¼ inches in length).
.il id=ef_239 fn=fig239_273.jpg w=500px ew=80%
.ca Fig. 239.—Long-handled Comb from the Broch of Burrian (4 inches in length).
.il id=ef_240 fn=fig240_274.jpg w=500px ew=80%
.ca Fig. 240.—One of a number of Smoothing Implements of Bone from the Broch\
of Burrian (6½ inches in length).
.il id=ef_241 fn=fig241_276.jpg w=500px ew=80%
.ca Fig. 241.—Weaving-comb of Wood and Iron used in India (13 inches in length).
.dv-
.fm rend=t
.fn 88
Dice of this form have not been otherwise found in Scotland. They are
occasionally found in Viking graves in Norway.
.fn-
.fn 89
An Egyptian weaving-comb of wood from the tombs at Thebes is in the
Museum. Its teeth are differently formed, but the principle of its use is
evidently the same. Rich figures a long-handled weaving-comb from a tomb
in Thebes, which is now in the British Museum.
.fn-
.fn 90
Ovid (Met. vi. 55) gives a minute description of the process of weaving
as follows—
.pm start_poem
“Tela jugo vincta est; stamen secernit arundo
Inseritur medium radiis subtemen acutis
Quod digiti expediunt, atque inter stamina ductum
Percusso feriunt insecti pectine dentes.”
.pm end_poem
Also (Fasti, iii. 820) he says that Pallas was the inventress of weaving, and
adds—
.pm start_poem
“Illa etiam stantes radio percurrere telas
Erudit; et rarum pectine denset opus.”
.pm end_poem
Juvenal (Sat. ix. 30) makes Nævolus complain that he gets cloth from a
Gaulish weaver greasy and badly woven—“Et male percussas textoris pectine
Galli;” while Virgil (Æn. vii. 14) represents Circe as—
.pm start_poem
“Arguto tenues percurrens pectine telas;”
.pm end_poem
and again in the Georgicon says—
.pm start_poem
“Interea longum cantu solata laborem
Arguto conjunx percurrit pectine telas.”
.pm end_poem
These descriptions specify the precise operations necessary for closing or
driving home the weft, if the instrument employed were a comb held in the
weaver’s hand. Alexander Neckham, in his work De Naturis Rerum (written
in the twelfth century, and recently printed in the series of Chronicles by the
Master of the Rolls), has a chapter (cap. clxxi., De Textore) on weaving, in
which, after describing the insertion of the weft by means of the shuttle, he
says—
.pm start_poem
“Inde textrix telam stantem percurret pectine,”
.pm end_poem
thus using the same words to describe the same operation.
.fn-
.fn 91
Dr. Malcolm Monro Mackenzie, Civil Surgeon, Dharwar, Bombay, states
that in the jails in Bombay, where the work of the convicts is chiefly weaving,
the implement used for beating in the weft is a hand-comb generally of
wood, with iron teeth like that represented above in Fig. . The late Mr.
Whytock, carpet manufacturer, when applied to for information as to the
nature of the implement used in carpet-weaving, stated that “In the manufacture
of the Persian or Axminster carpet, made in one piece and worked in
an upright loom, the instrument used for beating down the weft or pile was
about 4 inches broad, with iron teeth resembling those of a horse-comb,
fastened into a short handle.” He was kind enough to supply a sketch from
memory of the instrument as formerly used in the factory at Lasswade. The
sketch showed an implement in shape somewhat like the short flat hand-brush
used by painters in whitewashing, or a good deal like the Indian loom
comb (figured above), only a little broader in proportion to its length. The
nature and use of these long-handled combs formed the subject of two papers
in the Proceedings of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland, vol. ix. pp. 118,
548.
.fn-
.fm rend=t
.bn 277.png
.pn +1
.il id=f_242 fn=fig242_277.jpg w=500px ew=90%
.ca Fig. 242.—Stone with Incised Figures of Crossed Triangles, from Broch of\
Burrian (6 inches in length).
.dv class='epubonly'
.il id=ef_243 fn=fig243_278.jpg w=500px ew=90%
.ca Fig. 243.—Metatarsal Bone of Ox (front and back views), with incised symbols,\
from Broch of Burrian (actual size).
.dv-
The collection of relics from this Broch contains a greater
number of objects than has been found in any other, and it
is also remarkable as presenting some varieties of objects
which have not been found in any other. These are—(1) an
oblong pebble of sandstone (Fig. #242:f_242#), with an incised figure
on each of its flatter sides resembling the talismanic device of
the Middle Ages known as Solomon’s seal; (2) the metatarsal
bone of a small ox, bearing on one side the peculiar symbol
of the sculptured monuments resembling a crescent, crossed
.bn 278.png
.pn +1
by a V-shaped rod or sceptre (as shown in Fig. #243:f_243#);
(3) a small iron bell; and (4) a slab of sandstone with a
cross of Celtic form, a fish, and an Ogham inscription. The
bell and the monumental slab have been already described,
and need not be further alluded to.[92] The stone with the
geometric figure of Solomon’s seal lay within a cist-like construction
half filled with red ashes, which was in a paved
floor that overlay the original floor, and was separated from
it by a layer of from 1 to 2 feet of ashes and rubbish. The
cross-bearing slab was found at a point near the side of the
Broch, where the wall was so low that though the slab lay
not much above the floor of the tower it was also not far
below the surface of the mound. It cannot therefore be said
of any of these objects that they were certainly associated
with the earlier occupation of the Broch, and as they differ
in character from all the objects usually found in such structures,
their exceptional occurrence here can have no bearing
.bn 279.png
.pn +1
on the discussion of the general questions of the character
and relations of the group of relics usually found in Brochs.
.fm rend=t
.fn 92
Scotland in Early Christian Times; The Rhind Lectures for 1879, p.
175; and Second Series for 1880, p. 211.
.fn-
.fm rend=t
That character and these relations are now distinctly
established. The general character of the relics obtained by
the systematic excavation of these northern Brochs is not
that of a primitive group, but of a group which is the product
of an advanced stage of culture, civilisation, and social
organisation. The inference deducible from the character of
the relics is the same as that which has been deduced from
the type of the structure, and when the whole of the facts
are thus marshalled and their significance is calmly considered,
it becomes plain that there is even less ground for
ascribing a low condition of culture, of civilisation, or of
social organisation to the people who constructed and occupied
these massive towers, than there is for ascribing such a condition
to the builders of the beehive huts and dry-built
churches of Christian times. Reviewing the various aspects
of the life of the occupants of Brochs, as these have been
successively disclosed, we see them planting their defensive
habitations thickly over the area of the best arable land,
fringing the coasts, and studding the straths with a form of
structure perfectly unique in character and conception, and
for purposes of defence and passive resistance as admirably
devised as anything yet invented. We see that this system
of gigantic and laboriously constructed strongholds has been
devised and universally adopted with the plain intention of
providing for the security of the tillers and the produce of
the soil. We find their occupants cultivating grain, keeping
flocks and herds, and hunting the forests and fishing the sea
for their sustenance. We find them practising arts and industries
implying intelligence and technical skill, and apparently
also involving commercial relations with distant sources
of the raw materials. The probability is that they manufactured
all the weapons and implements they used, and we
find them using swords, spears, knives, axes, and chisels of
.bn 280.png
.pn +1
iron, and pincers, rings, bracelets, pins, and other articles of
bronze or brass. We know that they made their own ornaments
in these metals, because the clay moulds, the crucibles,
and the cakes of rough metal have been found in different
Brochs. Gold has not been found in any well-authenticated
instance, but silver and lead are not wanting. They utilised
the bones and horns of animals in the fabrication of such
things as pins, needles, and bodkins, buttons, combs, spindle-whorls,
and various other implements, ornaments, and furnishings
of everyday life and industry. They also used stone
when it suited their purpose. They made beads and bracelets
of jet or lignite, and they had other beads of variously-coloured
vitreous pastes, enamelled on the surface with spiral
lines and other devices. They also made beads and discs of
highly-polished stone, such as serpentine, marble, and mica
schist, with imbedded garnets. From the commoner varieties
of stone they made millstones or querns, mortars, pestles,
pounders and hammer-stones, whetstones and point-sharpeners,
bowls, cups with and without handles, lamps, and culinary
vessels of various kinds, net-weights, sinkers, and spindle-whorls.
They made pottery, plain and ornamented of various,
kinds, chiefly round-bottomed globular vessels with bulging
sides and everted rims. The women practised the arts of
spinning and weaving, and probably also made the pottery
and ground the grain, while the men made the weapons and
tools of metal, and the ornaments and implements of bone
and stone, did the hunting and fishing, and the warfare when
needful, and erected the great structures which made the
industrious quietude of domestic life possible to them.
That the people thus occupying these peculiar strongholds
were the people of the soil, and not strangers effecting a
lodgement in a hostile territory, is obviously suggested both
by the character and relations of the typical structure, and
by the character and relations of the relics of their domestic
life. It has been demonstrated in the previous Lecture that
.bn 281.png
.pn +1
while the typical structure, taken in the totality of its
characteristics, stands absolutely alone and quite apart from
all other types of construction, ancient or modern, its essential
features are those which are characteristic of early Celtic
constructions. It is circular, it is dry-built, its doorways
have inclined instead of perpendicular sides, the roofs of its
chambers are formed of beehive vaulting of overlapping
stones, and its galleries are comparable to a series of earth-houses
placed one over the other. It has now been shown
that the relics of the life of the occupants of the Brochs constitute
a group of objects differing widely from those which
characterise the Scandinavian occupancy of the north and
west of Scotland. No group of objects in its general facies,
entirely comparable to the group which is characteristic of
the Brochs, exists on the continent of Europe or anywhere
out of Scotland. But when the typical forms of the Broch
group of relics are compared with those of other groups
existing in Scotland, it becomes at once apparent that they
are forms which are characteristic of the Celtic area and of
post-Roman times. This unique series of objects from a
unique type of structure illustrates a peculiar phase of the
early Celtic or Iron Age culture and civilisation of our
country which until recently was absolutely unknown. And
as we find the investigation on which we have embarked
continuously disclosing series after series of similarly unique
types, it becomes increasingly apparent that its final result
can be nothing less than the establishment of the fact that
Scotland has an archæology—in other words, that the unwritten
story of her early systems of culture and civilisation
is dispersed among the disjecta membra of her scattered
remains, and is only to be disclosed by the systematic collection
and study of all existing materials illustrative of her
native industry and native art, with their associated indications
of social organisation and potential culture.
.bn 282.png
.pn +1
.sp 4
.h2
LECTURE VI. | (November 2, 1881.) | LAKE-DWELLINGS, HILL-FORTS, AND EARTH-HOUSES.
.sp 2
.ti 0
A Broch like that of Clickamin (see the Frontispiece), situated
upon an island in a loch, accessible by a causeway from
the island to the shore is practically a lake-dwelling. But
there are many defensive structures occupying similar positions
which are not Brochs, although they are often constructed
of stone. Most of them are now in such a ruinous
condition that it is impossible to say what may have been
the precise nature of their form and architectural construction.
.il id=f_244 fn=fig244_283.jpg w=300px ew=67%
.ca Fig. 244.—Defensive structure on an island in the Loch of Hogsetter, Whalsay,\
Shetland. (From a Sketch Plan by Dr. Arthur Mitchell.)
In the Loch of Hogsetter, in the island of Whalsay, in
Shetland, there is a small island containing a defensive
structure of dry-built masonry (Fig. #244:f_244#) which is plainly not
a Broch.[93] The structure occupies the greater part of the
available surface of the island, and its form has evidently
been determined by the form of the island. It consists of a
dry-built wall of stones with a minimum thickness of 3 to
4 feet, enclosing an oblong oval of about 70 feet by 75 feet.
A causeway, 33 yards in length, has been constructed to give
access to the island from the shore, and on the side next the
causeway the enclosing wall is amplified so as to admit of
the construction of a doorway, flanked on each side by a
.bn 283.png
.pn +1
chamber, as seen in the detached work protecting the
entrance to the island of Clickamin. This part of the construction
is solidly built, and the chambers, which are placed
to right and left of the entrance passage, occupy the interior
.bn 284.png
.pn +1
of a somewhat rectangular expansion of the wall, measuring
about 20 feet by 12 feet, and now only about 8 feet high.
When Low visited Whalsay in 1774, this part of the construction
was 15 feet high, and the chambers and their
entrances were quite entire. They were beehive roofed, the
entrances going straight through the back wall from the
enclosed area. The main entrance, which was 2½ feet wide
and 4½ feet high, was covered by the masonry which joined
the two sides of the construction over its lintels, and at about
two-thirds of its length inwards there were checks for a door
and the usual bar-holes on either side. Dr. Mitchell states
that above the two lower chambers there appear to have
been other two forming a second tier, but as Low did not
observe them, and no trace of a stair or other access to the
upper level now remains, it seems possible that they may
have been chambers of construction, or merely vacancies left
to lighten the weight on the roofs of the chambers below.
Apart from the peculiarity of its chambers, which are unlike
the guard-chambers of the Brochs in having their entrances
opening to the enclosed space and not directly opening
into the passage, this structure has more affinities with the
stone cashels than with the Brochs. Like them it adapts its
form to the space in which it is situated, and like them it
consists of a simple rampart with cells in the thickness of
the wall. The wall is low, and of no great strength, and like
the wall of a cashel is merely meant to add to the defensibility
of a naturally defensive position. The special
peculiarities of this defensive construction are, that it is a
dry-built structure which is not a Broch but a cashel, and
that it is situated on an island in a loch and rendered
accessible by a causeway. The island is of natural formation,
and has been thus utilised, because of its suitability
for defensive purposes.
.fm rend=t
.fn 93
Described in Low’s Tour in Orkney and Shetland, 1774 (Kirkwall, 1879),
p. 177; and by Dr. Arthur Mitchell in the Proceedings of the Society of
Antiquaries of Scotland, vol. xv. p. 304.
.fn-
.fm rend=t
Such instances of the adaptation of natural islands in
.bn 285.png
.pn +1
lochs as places of strength by constructing defensive
buildings of stone upon them are not uncommon, although
it rarely happens that the form and characteristics of the
buildings themselves are so clearly traceable. But there is
another variety of defensive construction which is more
frequently found in similar positions. It possesses the
additional peculiarity of being either wholly or partially
constructed of wood.
The Lake-Dwellings in Scotland, which are either wholly
or partially constructed of wood, and which on that account
are known as Crannogs, are very numerous, but so few of
them have yet been systematically explored that it is
impossible to determine with any degree of certainty the
special characteristics of their typical form and structural
arrangements. Indeed, it is questionable whether this knowledge
may be in any measure attainable by investigation of
their existing remains. Constructed of perishable material,
which, as long as it survived the ravages of time, was capable
of being adapted to many and various purposes of
general utility, the parts of the Crannogs that stood above
the water were almost certain to be gradually destroyed.
But whatever may have been the special form of the superstructure
of the Lake-Dwelling when it was built of timber
instead of stone, the typical Crannog, taken as a whole,
differs from the stone-built strengths that are placed in lakes
not only in the substitution of timber in place of stone as
the material of its construction, but also in being constructed
usually on an island that is itself an artificial construction.
The Crannog is therefore a Lake-Dwelling, actually built up
from the lake-bottom. Of the structure which stood above
the water, and gave shelter and habitable houseroom to the
inmates, there is usually no trace whatever. Occasionally
the remains of a pavement of timber or of flagstones, or the
site of a hearth with its accumulations of ashes and food
.bn 286.png
.pn +1
refuse marks the level of the floor, and sometimes a succession
of such indications at different levels may betoken
successive occupations. But the story of the Crannog as
told by the casual relics imbedded in and around its submerged
foundations is clearly intelligible, although it reveals
nothing of the precise form and arrangements of the habitable
part of the structure.
In the Loch of Dowalton, situated in the centre of the
peninsula, bounded on the west by the Bay of Luce, and on
the east by the Bay of Wigton, in Wigtonshire, a group
of Crannogs was investigated by Earl Percy (then Lord
Lovaine) in 1863, and subsequently examined by Sir
William Maxwell of Monreith, and the late Dr. John
Stuart, then Secretary of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland.
One of these, situated on the south side of the loch
and near the west end, presented the appearance of a mass
of stones and soil surrounded by numerous rows of piles
formed of young oak-trees. On the north-east side of the
island a number of beams of oak mortised together like
hurdles were visible, and below them layers of round logs laid
horizontally. A few vertical piles were observed, which, in
some cases, had cross-beams mortised into them. Below the
layers of logs were masses of brushwood and fern. The only
sign of occupation noticed was the site of a hearth, with an
accumulation of ashes, burnt wood, and bones of animals.
In the adjacent refuse-heap a small fragment of bronze was
discovered, and close by the island a bronze basin was
found. Near the eastern margin of the loch was a group of
three Crannogs. The largest of these was about 23 yards in
diameter. It was surrounded by many rows of piles, some
of which had their ends cut square across with a hatchet.
The surface of the Crannog was covered with stones resting
on a mass of brushwood, fern, and heather, intermingled with
stones and earth. The whole mass was penetrated and kept
.bn 287.png
.pn +1
together by piles driven through it into the bottom of the loch.
On the south side were the remains of a massive construction
of planks of roughly-squared oak, 5 feet long, 2 feet wide, and
2 inches thick, laid side by side in layers crossing each other
transversely, and pinned together. The general framework
of this platform-like structure was of massive beams mortised
together, the mortises measuring about 10 inches by 8 inches.
On the north-east side, and underneath part of the timber
construction, a canoe was found, 21 feet in length and 3 feet
10 inches wide at the stern. The canoe was of oak, hollowed
out of a single tree, and the stern was closed by a board
sliding in a groove cut in both sides, and secured by a
thicker piece 3 inches in height pegged down over it. A
washboard projecting slightly over the edge and pegged into
the upper margin of the canoe, ran all round the sides.
There were two thole-pins inserted in square holes on each
side, and one of the thwarts remained in position. A portion
of a shoe formed of stamped leather (Fig. #245:f_245#) was discovered
among the mass of material thrown out in excavating the
canoe. One hearth was discovered. It was simply a paved
space, showing marks of fire and an accumulation of ashes
and food refuse. The bones were those of the common
domestic animals, the ox, the pig, and sheep. Among the
.bn 288.png
.pn +1
relies found on the Crannog were a bronze penannular brooch
with knobbed ends, the knobs somewhat quadrangular in
form, two iron hammers, and four whetstones.
.dv class='epubonly'
.il id=ef_245 fn=fig245_287.jpg w=500px ew=90%
.ca Fig. 245.—Portion of a Shoe of stamped leather (length, 7 inches).
.dv-
.il id=f_246 fn=fig246_288.jpg w=500px ew=90%
.ca Fig. 246. Saucepan of Roman form found in Dowalton Loch\
(height, 5½ inches).
Another Crannog, nearly circular, and 13 yards in
diameter, lay a little to the southward. Its construction was
in every respect similar to that last described, and it was
surrounded by an immense number of piles, extending in
rows for 20 yards outside the circumference of a solid construction
of brushwood and logs, covered by earth and stones.
One canoe was found on its margin, 24 feet long and 4 feet
2 inches wide in the middle; and another was found between
it and the shore of the loch, 18½ feet long and 2 feet 7 inches
wide. Among the refuse of the occupancy of the Crannog,
consisting chiefly of bones of domestic animals, were found
a broken bead of glass, and portions of two armlets of glass,
one ornamented with a yellow streak and the other with
streaks of blue and white.
Between this Crannog and the shore a bronze saucepan
(Fig. #246:f_246#), of the form usually associated with remains of the
.bn 289.png
.pn +1
Roman period,[94] was found in the mud of the loch. It is an
elegant and well-finished vessel of bronze, tinned inside, and
measuring 8 inches in diameter across the mouth and 5½
inches deep. The flattened handle springing from the upper
edge is 7 inches in length. The bottom of the vessel is
furnished exteriorly with five projecting concentric rings.
In front, opposite to the handle, is an ornamental ring, swung
by a loop projecting from beneath the upper margin of the
rim, and encircling a well-modelled figure of a human face
in relief. On the handle is the stamp of the maker, CIPI
POLIBI F.[95]
.fm rend=t
.fn 94
This special form of saucepan with curved sides and flat bottom, concentrically
moulded on the outside, is found in most collections of antiquities
obtained from sites of Roman occupation. In the Museo Borbonico, at
Naples, there are about 200 examples, mostly of this type.
.fn-
.fn 95
His full designation apparently was Publius Cipius Polibus. His saucepans
are widely distributed. Two found in a nest of five dug up at Castle
Howard, in Yorkshire, bore his stamp, the one having P·CIPI·POLIB, and
the other P·CIPI·POLVIBI. In the Museum at Zurich there is a handle of
a saucepan with the stamp CIPI·POLIBI, and one found in Lower Saxony
has P·CIPI·POLIBI.
.fn-
.fm rend=t
About 60 yards from this last Crannog was a smaller one,
presenting no essential points of difference, and nearer the
south-east shore of the loch was a group of six, still smaller
and less distinct in outline, but all apparently similar in
construction.
.il id=f_247 fn=fig247_289.jpg w=200px ew=40% align=r
.ca Fig. 247.—Bead of glass with lining of bronze (length, 1 inch).
The other objects found in association with these Crannogs
or in the loch-bottom in their
immediate neighbourhood, were a
number of beads of variegated
glass or vitreous paste, one of
which (Fig. #247:f_247#) has a lining of
bronze in the perforation; one
amber bead; a small bronze
ring; a clay crucible; several whetstones; five querns;
.bn 290.png
.pn +1
a bronze dish (Fig. #248:f_248#), about 12 inches in diameter and 3
inches deep, hammered out of the solid, and having a flat rim
1 inch in breadth, turned over, and slightly bent downwards;
another dish similarly made, but without the flattened rim,
12 inches diameter and 4 inches deep; and a third (Fig. #249:f_249#)
of thinner metal, flat-bottomed with sloping sides, 10 inches
diameter and 4 inches deep, the bottom and sides patched in
several places by pieces fastened on with flat-headed double-toed
rivets exactly like the modern paper-fasteners; a large
bronze ring attached to the upper part of a caldron of thin
bronze; a portion of a tube of cast bronze of unknown use;
a wooden paddle; and a number of fragments of articles of
iron complete the list.
.il id=f_248 fn=fig248_290.jpg w=500px ew=90%
.ca Fig. 248.—Bronze Basin found in the Loch of Dowalton (height, 3 inches).
.il id=f_249 fn=fig249_290.jpg w=500px ew=90%
.ca Fig. 249.—Basin of thin bronze found in the Loch of Dowalton\
(height, 4 inches).
In the Black Loch, in the parish of Inch, Wigtonshire, an
.bn 291.png
.pn +1
island explored in 1872 by Mr. C. E. Dalrymple was found
to have been a Crannog formed upon a shoal in the lake.
In the centre of the island there was a circular mound,
45 feet in diameter, and rising to about 5 feet above the
level of the loch and 3½ feet above the general surface of the
island. At a depth of about 5 feet in the centre of the mound
there was a flooring of trunks of trees, chiefly oak and alder,
crossing each other at right angles. This log flooring covered
a circular space of about 50 feet in diameter. At different
levels above it and over the whole of its area there were
found many fireplaces or hearths, formed of two long narrow
slabs set on edge and parallel to each other with a paved
space between, and filled and surrounded by ashes and bones
of animals broken and split. In one of these accumulations
of ashes and food refuse there were found a fragment of
bronze and a portion of an iron knife; and in another a
broken armlet of glass. A broken double-edged bone comb,
ornamented with dots and circles, and a portion of a stone
disc with a bevelled edge, were also found. The island
seemed to have been surrounded with piles, and a small
canoe, dug out of a single tree, was discovered in the loch,
near the narrow channel which separates the island from the
shore.
The general character of the group of relics obtained from
these structures is that of the Iron Age, with indications of a
period subsequent to the Roman conquest. The same character
and the same indications are presented by the group of
relics obtained from the Crannogs of Ayrshire, which have
been so carefully investigated by Dr. Munro.[96] The Lochlee
.bn 292.png
.pn +1
Crannog, near Tarbolton, yielded a very large collection of
objects in the various materials of stone, bone, wood, bronze
or brass, iron, glass, and jet or cannel coal. But with the
single exception of a polished stone celt, the types of the
Stone and Bronze Ages are entirely absent from the group.
The same thing is true of the collections obtained from the
Crannog at Lochspouts near Maybole, and the Buston
Crannog near Kilmaurs. But in these Crannog collections
there are certain groups of objects which are closely akin to
those found in Brochs. These are the hammer-stones, oblong
water-worn pebbles wasted at the ends by use, spindle-whorls
and querns, the round polished discs of stone, the
peculiarly-shaped bone pins, needles, and borers, the double-edged
bone combs, the deer-horn implements, the bronze
brooches, rings, and pins, and the spiral finger-rings. There
are also certain objects in these collections which present
features of form and ornamentation clearly of the early Celtic
types, such as a bridle-bit from Lochlee (of the same form as
that shown in Fig. #101:f_101#), a block of ash-wood from the same
Crannog with Celtic patterns cut in both sides, and a bronze
mounting from Lochspouts, which is characteristically Celtic
in style. On the other hand, there are certain objects which,
like the harp-shaped fibulæ and the lustrous red ware
(commonly called Samian), are indicative of post-Roman
times. The bulk of the relics from the Crannogs being thus
of Iron Age types with indications of post-Roman time, and
with a striking general affinity to the group of relics obtained
from the Brochs, the place of these lake-Dwellings in the
general series may be considered as sufficiently established.[97]
.fm rend=t
.fn 96
Since these Lectures were delivered an exhaustive treatise on The Lake-Dwellings
of Scotland, by Dr. Robert Munro, of Kilmarnock, has been
In this copiously illustrated work Dr. Munro has described the Crannogs in
Ayrshire recently excavated under his personal superintendence, and systematised
the whole subject in a manner that leaves nothing to be desired.
.fn-
.fn 97
That the use of such strongholds in the lochs of Scotland and Ireland
continued in historic times is abundantly attested. In the Register of the
Privy Council of Scotland, under the date of 14th April 1608, one of the
articles proposed to Angus M’Coneill, of Dunnyvaig, and Hector M’Clayne,
of Dowart, for reducing them and their clans to obedience is:—“That the
haill houssis of defence, strongholdis, and cranokis in the Yllis perteining to
thame and their forsaidis sail be delyverit to His Majestie.” Three-legged
pots of brass, and ewers of the forms in use from the thirteenth to the
sixteenth century and later, have been found in several of the Scottish
Crannog sites. The Irish Annals contain frequent notices of the taking of
Crannogs. For instance:—"A.D. 1436. The Crannog of Loch Laoghaire
was taken by the sons of Brian O’Neill. On their arrival they set about
constructing vessels to land on the Crannog in which the sons of Brian Oge
then were; on which the latter came to the resolution of giving up the
Crannog to O’Neill and made peace with him."—Annals of the Four Masters.
.fn-
.fm rend=t
.bn 293.png
.pn +1
There is no class of ancient remains within our country
of which we have less precise knowledge than the Hill-Forts.
The reason of this is not their rarity, because they
form perhaps the most numerous and widely-distributed
class of ancient structures now existing. But the ordinary
methods of obtaining precise knowledge of their form,
structure, and contents have not been applied to them, and
the ordinary agencies of destruction, incident to a high
condition of social and agricultural progress, have long been
busy amongst them.
They differ essentially from all other constructions,
because they are adaptations of naturally elevated sites for
defensive purposes. The natural site is the defensive position,
and the fort itself derives its form and in many cases
also its character of construction from the form and nature of
the eminence or promontory on which it is built. It would,
therefore, be contrary to the nature of the circumstances to
expect that they should exhibit any such uniformity of plan
or structure as is so conspicuous in the case of the Brochs.
Yet it is clear, from the little we do know of them, that
there are certain groups possessing certain features of construction
in common which differ from other groups possessing
other features of construction in common; and it is
evident that if a sufficient body of available materials existed
on record regarding the different members of these groups
.bn 294.png
.pn +1
their typical characteristics might be readily deduced. But
before this can be done with that precision and certainty
which are requisite for scientific work, it is necessary (1)
that a series of plans and sections to scale of a sufficient
number of examples from each of the various groups should
be obtained; (2) that a series of observations as to the
methods of construction employed in different circumstances
and situations should be made; and (3) that a series of
examinations of the enclosed areas and surrounding ground
should be undertaken, with the view of ascertaining the
character of the relics that are associated with the structures.
In the meantime it is only possible to indicate some of their
general characteristics as exhibited by a few of the better
known examples.
They naturally divide themselves into two great classes
by their construction—(1) those that are earth-works; and
(2) those that are constructed of stone.
In most cases the earth-works are so low and slight that
they could not have been of much service unless crowned
with palisades. They are usually on sites that are more
susceptible of cultivation than the hill-tops which are the
common positions of the stone-works, and hence they have
suffered more generally from agricultural operations than the
forts of stone. They are usually irregularly circular or oval
in plan, consisting of a varying number of low embankments
drawn round the summit of a natural eminence. The only
one of which a scale-plan has been made is a very characteristic
example (Fig. #250:f_250#), on the Midhill Head, on the estate
of Borthwick Hall, Midlothian.[98] The space enclosed by
the embankments is 410 feet in length from east to west,
and 284 feet in breadth from north to south. The embankments
.bn 295.png
.pn +1
are four in number, occupying a space round the
enclosure, varying from 130 feet to about 80 feet in breadth.
They are nowhere more than from 4 to 5 feet in height.
There are two entrances to the enclosed space at the ends of
the oval, and a third on the south side. This example represents
in a general way the class of earthworks of most
frequent occurrence, consisting of a series of circumvallations
enclosing the highest part of an eminence of no great
elevation.
.fm rend=t
.fn 98
Proc. Soc. Antiq. Scot., vol. xiv. p. 254. The Society is indebted to the
liberality of the proprietor, D. J. Macfie, Esq., for the plan of this characteristic
earth-work, surveyed and described by Mr. W. Galloway, architect.
.fn-
.fm rend=t
.il id=f_250 fn=fig250_295.jpg w=500px ew=90%
.ca Fig. 250.—Ground plan of Earthwork on Midhill Head, Midlothian.
The Hill-Forts which are constructed of stone sometimes
consist of a single wall drawn round the brow of a hill, and
enclosing the more or less level area which forms its summit.
One of this description at Garrywhoine, in Caithness, is an
.bn 296.png
.pn +1
oval enclosure about 200 paces long by 65 in breadth. The
foundation of the wall is about 14 feet thick, and in some
places 3 or 4 feet of its height remains. In the thickness of
the wall on the east side the remains of two chambers are
visible. There were two entrances to the area of the fort,
one at the north end and the other at the south end of the
hill. The entrance at the north end has three of the great
corner-stones of the gateway still in position. They are
single stones or flat boulders about 5 feet high, set on end,
having their broad faces in line with the exterior and interior
faces of the wall, and the ends in the line of the entrance
which is 7 feet wide. Only one of the stones similarly
placed remains at the south entrance. The dilapidation of
this remarkable example of a stone cashel was due to the
construction of a mill-dam in the valley below, the stones
having been rolled down the hill to form the embankment.
I notice it because it is the only Hill-Fort I have seen which
still retains the stone-pillars of its gateway, and because the
story of its demolition illustrates the fate of many of the
most perfect and interesting remains of our country’s
antiquity.
A more complex variety consists of two, three, or more
walls drawn concentrically round the upper part of a conical
hill, at short distances apart, as in the case of the example
known as the White Caterthun in the parish of Menmuir,
Forfarshire. The area enclosed is a long oval about 450 by
200 feet. The enclosing wall has been of enormous size.
Its remains have spread themselves over a width in some
places of nearly 100 feet, and they now form a somewhat
rounded embankment of from 4 to 6 feet high, encompassing
the summit of the hill. About 150 feet lower down on the
slope of the hill is another wall, equally ruined, and below
it are the remains of a third. Beyond this there is an
enclosure of an oblong form and of less massive construction,
.bn 297.png
.pn +1
abutting against one side of the outer wall of the fort.[99] A
fort of smaller size, but presenting somewhat similar features
of construction, crowns the spur of Ben Ledi which overlooks
the ford at Coilantogle, a little below the outlet of Loch
Vennachar. The hill is precipitous on one side, and the walls
do not encircle it completely, but the external faces of three
encircling walls are in some places visible for a considerable
distance round the less precipitous part of the hill. Abutting
on the outer wall, on the side which is most accessible, is an
oval enclosure less massively constructed, as at Caterthun.
.fm rend=t
.fn 99
Such constructions are frequently found in similar juxtaposition to the
walls of these forts, and rightly or wrongly they have been regarded as
cattle-folds.
.fn-
.fm rend=t
There is another variety of these Hill-Forts which has
attracted more attention on account of the singularity of the
phenomena which they present. These are the Vitrified
Forts, so called because in their walls there is always more or
less of the scorified or vitrified appearance which is the result
of the action of fire upon masses of loose stones. Although
there has been perhaps more written about these singular
structures than about any other class of antiquities, there is
really little known of their special phenomena, and less of
their real character.[100] In point of fact the real knowledge
.bn 298.png
.pn +1
relating to the form, measurements, and composition of the
structures and the observation of the phenomena they
present has been entirely overlooked in fruitless discussions
as to the modes in which the vitrifaction of the walls has
been produced, and the reasons which may be conjecturally
assigned for it. The result is that to this day, so far as I am
aware, there is not a single scale-plan with sections, of a
single one of them. When such plans and sectional drawings
are available in sufficient numbers, we shall be able to
say that the materials exist for the commencement of a
systematic investigation of the nature and typical relations
of the structures.
.fm rend=t
.fn 100
For this reason we are unable to compare the vitrified forts of Scotland
with the scorified and vitrified ramparts which have been occasionally remarked
as occurring in other countries of Europe. I know no example in
England, but a considerable number have been noticed in France (Memoires
de la Soc. Antiq. de France, vol. xxxviii. p. 83), one of which, at Peran in
Brittany, has only the upper part of the walls vitrified, a circumstance which
has also been noticed with respect to several of the Scottish forts. From the
fact of a Roman roofing tile having been found firmly attached to the melted
stones of the vitrified part of the wall of this fort, it is inferred that the
period of the vitrifaction was subsequent to the Roman conquest. Scorified
ramparts in Bohemia have been described by Dr. Jul. E. Fodisch in the
Proc. Soc. Antiq. Scot., vol. viii. p. 155. It has been frequently stated that
they do not occur in Ireland, but Dr. Petrie has noted four in Londonderry
and one in Cavan (Stokes’s Life of Dr. Petrie, p. 223).
.fn-
.fm rend=t
The fort on Knockfarril, which overlooks the valley of
Strathpeffer, in Ross-shire, encloses an oval area of about
120 paces in length by about 40 in breadth. It was first
described by Mr. John Williams in 1777.[101] Sections were
then made through it from side to side, and Mr. Williams
states that on the north side he found the ruins of the wall
12 feet high, although he came to the conclusion that this
was a section of the width of the wall which had fallen flat
outwards. With regard to the phenomena of vitrifaction, he
states that the whole wall has been run together into one
solid mass, but in another place he states that at the outskirts
of the ruins and at the bottom of the hill there was a
great quantity of large stones which had not been touched
by fire, and from this he concluded that there had been
some kind of stone buildings going round on the outside of
the vitrified walls. It is to be observed that when he
speaks of the whole wall being run together into one solid
mass, he is not stating a fact, which he has observed, but a
conclusion which he has formed from a partial examination.
.bn 299.png
.pn +1
“I am of opinion,” he says, “and it appears by the ruins that
the whole of the surrounding wall on Knockfarril has been
run together by vitrifaction much better than the most of
the kind I have seen.” He states also that immediately on
the inside of the surrounding walls there were ruins of
buildings in which the vitrifaction was much less complete,
and these he imagined to have been a range of habitations
reared under the shelter of the outer wall.
.fm rend=t
.fn 101
Account of some remarkable Ancient Ruins recently discovered in the
Highlands. In a series of Letters by John Williams, mineral engineer.
Edinburgh, 1777.
.fn-
.fm rend=t
Craig Phadrig, near Inverness, when examined by
Williams, presented the peculiarity of two vitrified walls, the
remains of which could be traced quite round the inclosed
area, while the remains of a third were visible at the entrance
at the east end. The outer wall was founded on the rock,
about 6 or 8 paces distant from the inner wall. Its greatest
height did not then exceed 4 or 5 feet, but he found large
masses of it adhering to the rock where it was first run. The
area enclosed was from 80 to 90 paces long by about 30
broad.
The fort at Finhaven, near Aberlemno, in Forfarshire, is
an irregular oblong with rounded corners, about 150 paces in
length by about 36 in breadth. The walls are greatly
dilapidated, and but a small part of their height is now
visible. They appear to have been about 10 feet in thickness,
and in some places there is still 4 or 5 feet of the
height remaining. The vitrifaction is very unequal, and
many parts of the wall scarcely show the action of fire, while
in others the melted matter has run down among the interstices
of the stones.
Dun Mac Uisneachan, in Loch Etive, was described by Dr.
Maculloch in 1824, and more recently by Dr. R. Angus Smith,
who made extensive investigations of the area of the fort in
1873-4.[102] It occupies the top of an oblong hill which is either
.bn 300.png
.pn +1
very steep or actually precipitous on all sides. The area
enclosed is about 250 yards long by 50 yards broad. It is encompassed
on the verge of the hill by a wall which is still
in some places from 5 to 6 feet high. The points made out
by the investigation are thus stated by Dr. Angus Smith—(1)
the weaker parts of the dun or defensible position were
walled, the outer wall or part of wall being vitrified; (2) the
wall of the western part is double; the outer being vitrified,
the inner built in layers of flat stone, 9 feet being the
distance from surface to surface; (3) the walls were built
without mortar as in all these forts; (4) vitrified portions of
walling were found overlying portions built in the ordinary
manner and unvitrified. This I regard as the most interesting
and important point ascertained by Dr. Angus
Smith’s investigations regarding the construction of the so-called
Vitrified Forts. It shows distinctly that the wall of a
Vitrified Fort is not always, and in every part, a vitrified wall;
and it suggests that instead of taking this for granted, in
every case in which signs of vitrifaction are observed, the
inquiry ought to be directed to the determination of the
extent of such partial vitrifaction, wherever it is found to
have been partial. Another interesting result of his researches
was the discovery of the remains of dwellings
within the area of the fort. They were rectangular constructions,
having dry-built walls about 2 feet thick. A large
refuse-heap of bones of the common domestic animals was
found near them. Some querns, a portion of an iron sword,
an iron ring about 2 inches diameter, and a convex plate of
bronze 1¼ inch diameter, ornamented with concentric circles,
the hollows of which were filled with red and the centre
with yellow enamel, were found in the course of the excavations.
The character of this relic, with its red and yellow
enamels, is closely allied to that of the similarly enamelled
bronzes which have been already described, some of which
.bn 301.png
.pn +1
have been found in constructions of a very peculiar type
which have yet to be noticed.
.fm rend=t
.fn 102
Proc. Soc. Antiq. Scot., vol. ix. p. 396, vol. x. p. 70, vol. xi. p. 298,
and vol. xii. p. 13.
.fn-
.fm rend=t
The latest examination of Vitrified Forts is contained in a
paper by Dr. Edward Hamilton,[103] in which he gives detailed
descriptions of two such structures in Arisaig, one of which
is situated on a promontory in Loch na Nuagh. It is an irregular
oval occupying the whole summit of the promontory,
and measuring about 100 feet in length by about 50 feet in
breadth. The enclosing wall varies from 6 feet in thickness
and 7 feet in height to about 5 feet in thickness and 3 feet
in height. In this case also the wall was not vitrified down
to the foundation. Underneath the vitrified portion there was
a depth of 3 feet of walling formed of water-worn boulders
quite unvitrified. The internal part of the upper or vitrified
portion of the wall was also unvitrified. From these appearances
Dr. Hamilton concludes that the vitrifaction was the
result of fire applied to the upper part of the wall externally.
.fm rend=t
.fn 103
Arch[oe]ological Journal, vol. xxxvii. p. 227.
.fn-
.fm rend=t
From a consideration of these examples it is evident that
the Vitrified Forts do not differ in any essential point of their
character from the forts that are not vitrified—if vitrifaction
be not a feature in the method of their construction. The
results of former investigations have not produced evidence
sufficient to carry the conclusion that the vitrifaction was
accomplished at the time of their construction, or that it was
a method of construction. The determination of this question
lies at the end of an exhaustive investigation, and can only
be obtained from evidence furnished by the phenomena of
the structures themselves.
There is one fort in Scotland, at Burghead, in Morayshire,
which presents the peculiar feature of being partially
constructed of logs of oak alternating with layers of stones.
The peculiarity of its dry-built stone rampart is thus
described by Dr. Macdonald:—“To strengthen it, beams of
.bn 302.png
.pn +1
solid oak (still measuring from 6 to 12 feet in length) take
here and there the place of stones, and similar beams inserted
end-ways pass into the mass behind.”[104] We only know the
Vitrified Forts from their greatly dilapidated ruins, and it is a
legitimate object of investigation whether any of them may
yet present evidence of having been constructed with logs
and stones in the manner exemplified at Burghead. This
method of construction is characteristic of the Celtic or Gaulish
forts of France. The rampart of Murcens, on the river
Lot is constructed like that of Burghead, of unhewn and
uncemented stones. In its mass, at regular intervals, there
have been laid courses of oak logs disposed longitudinally
and transversely as “binders” and “headers.” The spaces
between the logs are filled with stones, and where they
cross each other the transverse logs are fastened to the
longitudinal rows by massive iron nails. There are two rows
of logs laid parallel to the face of the wall and a little apart
within its thickness, and these are crossed at every 3 or
4 feet by logs lying transversely and extending the whole
thickness of the wall, so that their opposite ends appear
in its exterior and interior faces. This is repeated at every
3 or 4 feet of the height of the wall. The same method of
construction, with a greater proportion of timber to the mass
of the wall, appears in the fort of Impernal, also on the
river Lot.[105] It is obvious that by the application of fire to
ramparts constructed on this principle, a partially scorified
and partially vitrified appearance would be given to
their ruins.[106] In the early annals the burning of fortified
.bn 303.png
.pn +1
places appears as the common method of reducing them,
and the legendary prophecy of the coming of Birnam Wood
to Dunsinnane possessed a peculiarly fateful meaning if its
walls were built not of stones alone but of stones and logs.
.fm rend=t
.fn 104
Proc. Soc. Antiq. Scot., vol. iv. p. 350. A section and elevation of the
rampart showing the oak-beams in position are given in Plate IX. of the
same volume.
.fn-
.fn 105
Memoire sur les ouvrages de fortification des Oppidum Gaulois de
Murcens, d’Uxellodunum et d’Impernal situes dans le department du Lot.
Congrès Archeologique de France, xli. session. Paris, 1875, p. 427.
.fn-
.fn 106
The late Mr. Ramsay, Director of the Geological Survey, records a circumstance
which has an obvious bearing on the question of the possibility of
such vitrifaction. Near Barnsley, in Yorkshire, the country affords no good
material for road-metal the sandstones made from the debris of granitic gneiss
pounding up rapidly under cart-wheels. "To obviate this defect the following
process is adopted:—The stone being quarried in small slabs and fragments
is built in a pile about 30 feet square and 12 or 14 feet high, somewhat
loosely; and while the building is in progress brushwood is mingled with the
stones, but not in any great quantity. Two thin layers of coal about 3
inches thick, at equal distances, are interstratified with the sandstones, and
a third layer is strewn over the top. At the bottom, facing the prevalent
wind, an opening about 2 feet high is left, something like the mouth of an
oven. Into this brushwood and a little coal is put and lighted. The fire
slowly spreads through the whole pile and continues burning for about six
weeks. After cooling, the stack is pulled down, and the stones are found to
be vitrified. I examined them carefully. Slabs originally flat had become
bent and contorted, and stones originally separate glazed together in the
process of vitrifaction."—Proc. Soc. Antiq. Scot., vol. viii. p. 150.
.fn-
.fm rend=t
.il id=f_251 fn=fig251_303.jpg w=500px ew=90%
.ca Fig. 251.—Section of Hill-Fort of Dunsinnane, showing underground chambers\
within its area. (Not to scale.)
The Hill-Fort of Dunsinnane (a section of which is shown
in Fig. #251:f_251#) is an oval circumvallation crowning the summit of
a conical hill, some 800 feet in height. The rampart is now
chiefly composed of earth intermixed with boulders, and is
in some places about 20 feet wide at the base, rising to a
height of from 6 to 8 feet. Fragments of vitrified matter,
cementing masses of small stones together, are found in the
rampart. The space enclosed is about 150 yards long by 70
yards wide and almost level. Towards its south-east side
.bn 304.png
.pn +1
were two underground chambers 20 feet in length, from 6 to
8 feet in width, and 5 to 6 feet high. The chambers communicated
with each other, near their extremities, by two
passages low and narrow, not much exceeding 2 feet in
width and 3 feet high. The floors of the chambers were
paved with rough slabs. The walls were built with undressed
stones, which at the height of 2 to 3 feet above the
floor began to converge until the roof was spanned by flagstones
laid across. The floors were covered with ashes and
refuse, consisting chiefly of the bones of horses and cattle,
and horns of deer. A quern was found by the side of one of
the passages, and in another were parts of three human
skeletons. Near the entrance to the circumvallation a bronze
spiral finger-ring, described as of exquisite workmanship and
formed like a serpent, was found.[107]
.fm rend=t
.fn 107
Proc. Soc. Antiq. Scot., vol. ii. p. 95, and vol. ix. p. 379.
.fn-
.fm rend=t
Dunsinnane is the only Scottish hill-fort associated with
underground chambers. But there is a class of underground
structures of peculiar form which is common in Scotland,
though unconnected with any variety of defensive structure.
They are mostly situated in arable land now under cultivation,
and have usually been discovered by the plough coming
in contact with the stones of the roof.
.il id=f_252 fn=fig252_305.jpg w=500px ew=90%
.ca Fig. 252.—Ground plan and sections of Earth-house at Broomhouse, parish of\
Edrom, Berwickshire.
One was so discovered at Broomhouse in the parish of
Edrom, Berwickshire. It had been known before and most
of the roofing stones removed, but on this occasion it came
under the observation of Mr. Milne-Home, who communicated
an account of it to the Society of Antiquaries.[108] It is to such
casual circumstances that we owe the materials of our
science. The structure presents the form (shown in the
ground plan, Fig. #252:f_252#) of a long narrow gallery, entering by a
low and narrow aperture nearly on a level with the surface,
widening and deepening from the entrance inwards, turning
.bn 305.png
.pn +1
first sharply to the left and then to the right, and terminating
in a closed and rounded end. The opening (A) faced nearly
to the south-east. The whole length of the gallery, measured
along the central line of the floor, was 30 feet, its width at
the entrance 2 feet, and at the widest part 6 feet. Only
three of the roofing stones (B,C,D) remained in position. The
vertical height of the walls at the widest part of the structure
was 5 feet, and under the roofing stone (B) next the entrance
only 3 feet. It seemed as if the floor had been paved with
natural water-worn stones, but this point was not clearly
ascertained. At the second bend (D) there are checks for a door,
consisting of two oblong stones set on end and still carrying
.bn 306.png
.pn +1
a massive lintel. The side walls, from the entrance inwards
to this inner door, are vertical. In the wider part of the
structure (E) beyond the inner door they are brought towards
each other by the stones overlapping inwardly, so that the
roof might be covered by single slabs laid across. Nothing
was found within it but fragments of bones of animals,
among which the roe-deer was the only one that could be
certainly determined.
.fm rend=t
.fn 108
Ibid., vol. viii. p. 20.
.fn-
.fm rend=t
.il id=f_253 fn=fig253_306.jpg w=400px ew=80%
.ca Fig. 253.—Ground plan of Earth-house at Migvie, Aberdeenshire.\
(From a plan by Mr. Jervise.)
At Migvie, in Aberdeenshire, an underground structure
(Fig. #253:f_253#) was discovered in 1862.[109] It was situated in the
summit of a gravel hillock, and was in form a long, low, and
narrow gallery, entering by an aperture nearly on the level
of the original surface, turning first sharply to the left and
then to the right, widening and deepening from the entrance
inwards and terminating in a squarish end slightly rounded
at the corners. The whole length of the gallery measured
along the curvature was 41 feet, the width at the entrance 2
feet, and at the widest part about 5 feet. Nine stones
covering the portion next the entrance remained in position,
the height of the gallery under them increasing from about
.bn 307.png
.pn +1
2½ feet at the aperture to 4½ feet at the place where the
covering ceased. The vertical height of the walls beyond
this seemed to have been at least 5 feet. The side-walls
were built with rough boulder stones laid pretty regularly.
When the interior was cleared out the only objects found
were a bronze ring, several rude stone-vessels like roughly-formed
cups, large quantities of ashes and charred wood, and
corroded fragments of iron implements.
.fm rend=t
.fn 109
Proc. Soc. Antiq. Scot., vol. v. p. 304.
.fn-
.fm rend=t
.il id=f_254 fn=fig254_307.jpg w=400px ew=80%
.ca Fig. 254.—Ground plan of Earth-house at Buchaam, in Strathdon.
The similarity of these two structures is no less striking
than the excessive peculiarity of their distinctive features.
These features are—(1) their position under ground; (2) the
contracted entrance; (3) the form of the chamber—a long,
low, narrow, and curved gallery gradually widening inwards;
and (4) the construction of the chamber—with convergent
side-walls supporting a heavily-lintelled roof.
Closely analogous to these in its main features is the
underground structure (Fig. #254:f_254#) at Buchaam, in Strathdon.[110]
It is along narrow gallery entering by a small aperture in the
narrow end nearly on a level with the original surface of the
ground, gradually widening and increasing in height inwards,
.bn 308.png
.pn +1
and terminating abruptly in a slightly-rounded end. It
differs in one respect from the two previously described, inasmuch
as though it is curved it has not the double curvature
which is the special feature of their form. It curves
sharply to the left, but the curvature is not repeated in the
opposite direction. It is 58 feet in length following the
curve along the middle line of the floor. Its width at the
entrance is 3 feet 6 inches, and it gradually widens until it
attains a maximum breadth of 9 feet 3 inches. The height
increases from about 5 feet near the entrance to about 7 feet at
the farther end. The roofing stones were mostly in position
and were of great size, some being 7 to 8 feet in length, 3
feet in width, 18 inches in thickness, and weighing more
than a ton. The walls rise perpendicularly for 2 or 3 feet
and then incline inwards with a curve, so that where the
width of the chamber at the floor is 9 feet 3 inches, it is contracted
to 7 feet 9 inches at 4 feet above the floor and at the
roof to 5 feet. The walls are well built, the lower courses of
large cubical stones, undressed, and at the distance of about
12 feet inwards from the entrance there are checks for a
door formed of two oblong stones set edgeways in the wall
and projecting a few inches from its interior surface. The
whole floor of the chamber was paved, and a drain, 10
inches square, well built with a good roof, sides, and bottom,
and having a peculiar box-like opening or sink in the inside
of the chamber, was found leading from its south-east corner.
The chamber when opened was nearly filled with earth and
rubbish, and at the bottom there was a layer of fine blue
clay 20 inches in depth, which had been carried through the
walls by percolation of water from the clay bank outside.
In or below this clay which covered the paved floor were
found the following relics of human occupation—an iron
ring, and an object in iron which looked like the shoe of a
wooden spade, some staves of a small wooden cog, a wooden
.bn 309.png
.pn +1
comb, some fragments of pottery of coarse workmanship, a
portion of a quern or handmill for grinding grain, fragments
of deer’s horns, and bones of the sheep and common domestic
fowls. At one corner of the inner end of the chamber the
ashes of a fire remained, and immediately above them there
was a well-built smoke-hole.
.fm rend=t
.fn 110
Described by Dr. Arthur Mitchell, Proc. Soc. Antiq. Scot., vol. iv. p. 436.
.fn-
.fm rend=t
.il id=f_255 fn=fig255_309.jpg w=400px ew=80%
.ca
Fig. 255.—Ground plan of Earth-house at Culsh, parish of Tarland.
(From a plan by Mr. Jervise.)
.ca-
A similar structure (Fig. #255:f_255#) at Culsh, in the parish of
Tarland in the same county, differs from this one only in being
curved to the right instead of to the left. It is 47 feet in
length and 2 feet wide at the entrance, the width increasing
gradually to about 6 feet at the farther end. The walls are
partially formed of large boulders set on end or on edge to
form the lower course, with rudely-built masonry over them.
They converge but slightly, and the roof is formed in the
usual manner by large heavy slabs laid across from wall to
wall. The floor is formed of the natural underlying rock,
and the height from floor to roof increases from 5 feet near
the entrance to an average of about 6 feet farther in. When
.bn 310.png
.pn +1
cleared out in 1853, the earth which filled the chamber was
found largely mixed with ashes on the floor, and the only
relics obtained from its excavation were fragments of coarse
unglazed pottery, a large bead, the bones of cattle, and two
querns.
.il id=f_256 fn=fig256_310.jpg w=500px ew=90%
.ca
Fig. 256.—Ground plan and sections of Earth-house at Kildrummy, Aberdeenshire.
(From a Plan by Mr. Lumsden of Clova.)]
.ca-
Another (Fig. #256:f_256#) excavated a few years ago at Clova,
near Kildrummy, also in Aberdeenshire,[111] differs from these
in being so slightly curved to the left as to be almost straight.
It measures 57 feet in length, 2½ feet wide at the entrance,
suddenly widening to about 8 feet at about 20 feet within
the entrance. At a short distance from the entrance there
were checks for two doors about 8 feet apart. The covering
stones had been removed from the first 15 feet of the narrow
part, but the roof remained entire over the whole of the
wider part of the structure, at an average height of about 6
feet from the floor. The earth with which the chamber was
filled was largely mixed with charcoal and bones of animals,
.bn 311.png
.pn +1
among which those of the horse and dog were recognised.
No manufactured relics were found, but two of the stones
in the walls, one being a large boulder, were covered with
the small hemispherical pits known as cup-markings.
.fm rend=t
.fn 111
Proc. Soc. Antiq. Scot., vol. xii. p. 356.
.fn-
.fm rend=t
.il id=f_257 fn=fig257_311.jpg w=500px ew=90%
.ca
Fig. 257.—Ground plan and section of Earth-house at Eriboll, Sutherlandshire.
(From a Plan by Dr. Arthur Mitchell.)
.ca-
An Earth-house at Eriboll, in Sutherlandshire[112] (Fig. #257:f_257#),
resembles that at Clova in presenting so little curvature as
to be almost straight. The curvature which it has is to the
left, and only extends for a few feet within the entrance. It
is said, however, to have been 10 or 12 feet longer than it
was when examined in 1865. It was then 33 feet in length.
It is peculiar for the smallness of its size, being nowhere
more than 4½ feet in height, and for the greater part of its
length only 2 feet wide, expanding to 3½ for about 3 feet
only from the inner end. In view of this feature of its
character, Dr Mitchell remarks that it is exceedingly difficult
to see what purpose such a structure could have served; but
he adds that it is worthy of note that in this district similar
underground constructions are not rare, and that they are
.bn 312.png
.pn +1
called by a Gaelic name which signifies Hiding-beds. The
use of such underground places of concealment is referred to
in the Saga of Gisli the Soursop, which relates to events
occurring between the years 930 and 980, and was written
in Iceland about the beginning of the twelfth century. It
states that when Gisli was outlawed and every man’s hand
was against him, he went to Thorgerda in Vadil “She was
often wont to harbour outlaws, and she had an underground
room. One end of it opened on the river-bank and the other
below her hall.” Again it states that “Gisli was always in
his earth-house when strangers came to the isle.”[113] The
form of Earth-house thus described as then in use for concealment
in Iceland is not the form of the Earth-houses found
in Scotland, which have rarely two openings, but the passage
is interesting because it shows that the traditional use
ascribed to the Scottish examples is a use which was
practised among a people who had close relations with the
district in which the tradition still remains attached to these
structures.
.fm rend=t
.fn 112
Described by Dr. Arthur Mitchell, Proc. Soc. Antiq. Scot., vol. vi. p. 249.
.fn-
.fn 113
The Saga of Gisli the Outlaw, Dasent’s Translation, p. 72.
.fn-
.fm rend=t
But whatever may have been the actual purpose or purposes
to which they were applied, the fact which is of
importance in our investigation is that these Earth-houses,
though ranging in area from Berwickshire to the north coast
of Sutherland, are all of one special character, long, low,
narrow galleries, always possessing a certain amount of
curvature, sometimes greatly, and at other times doubly
curved, always widening and increasing in height from the
low and narrow entrance inwards, usually built with convergent
walls and roofed with heavy lintels, which are always
lower than the surrounding level of the ground, so that the
whole structure is subterranean. Occasionally they present
variations in structure as in the case of one at Murroes, in
Forfarshire, which, instead of being built, has its walls constructed
.bn 313.png
.pn +1
entirely of flagstones set on edge. Similarly, the
.bn 314.png
.pn +1
example at Kinord, in Aberdeenshire (Fig. #258:f_258#), has its walls
constructed of single boulders set on edge or on end, and it
presents the further peculiarity of the chamber being divided
into two branches at the farther end. One at Pirnie, in the
parish of Wemyss, in Fife, and another at Elie, had steps
leading down to the entrance.
.il id=f_258 fn=fig258_313.jpg w=400px ew=80%
.ca Fig. 258.—Ground plan and sections of Earth-house at Kinord, Aberdeenshire.
Occasionally they occur in considerable groups, as at
Airlie, in Forfarshire, where there is a group of five. One of
these is of great size, its length being 67 feet, and its average
breadth, from the farther end to within about 12 feet of the
entrance, 7½ feet. The height at the entrance is only about
22 inches, and the floor slopes down for about 20 feet till a
height of about 6 feet is obtained. The walls are built of
rough undressed boulders laid in pretty regular courses, and
they converge from a width on the floor of a little over 7
feet to about 4 feet at the roof. The covering stones are of
great size, many of them 7 or 8 feet in length and 4 feet
wide. It contained the usual traces of cookery in the
accumulation of ashes and bones of animals upon the floor.
The only other relics found in it were a brass pin, a stone
mortar-like vessel, and fragments of querns. The other four
examples in the same neighbourhood are known to have
existed, but have neither been measured nor described.
A still more remarkable group was brought under the
notice of the Society in 1816 by Professor Stuart of Aberdeen.
They are spread over a space of a mile or two in
diameter on what was then a dry moor in the parishes of
Auchindoir and Kildrummy, in Aberdeenshire. These excavated
houses, he says, are most frequently discovered by the
plough striking against some of the large stones which form
the roof. The only opening to them appears to have been
between two large stones placed in a sloping direction at one
end, and about 18 inches asunder. Through this narrow
opening one must slide down to the depth of 5 or 6 feet,
.bn 315.png
.pn +1
when he comes to a vault generally about 6 feet high,
upwards of 30 feet long, and 8 or 9 feet wide. The floor is
smooth, as if of clay, and the sides are built of rude undressed
stones without cement. The walls bend inwards to form a
rude arch, and the roof is covered with large stones 5 or 6
feet long, some of them being over a ton in weight. The
whole structure is beneath the level of the ground and quite
invisible, but many of them were detected by the existence
close to them of a square space about 10 to 15 paces each
way dug a foot or two deep with the earth thrown outwards.
These he conjectures to have been the sites of the summer
huts of the people, who retreated to these underground places
in winter, and stored their provisions and concealed their
valuables in them all the year round. But he adds that no
article of furniture, and no utensils or instruments either of
stone or metal have been found in them so far as can be
learned, but only a quantity of wood-ashes and charcoal,
chiefly at the farther end, where there sometimes appears a
small aperture at the top as an outlet for the smoke. The
whole number discovered in this locality he estimates at
between forty and fifty. They are found, he says, in other
localities, but so great a number collected in one place has
probably never before occurred. The number is certainly
very large, and may probably be over estimated, but it would
not be difficult to find in other parts of Scotland, and
specially in Aberdeenshire, a series of groups of similar
structures which, though not so numerous or so closely aggregated,
are so distributed over wide districts as to show that
the custom of constructing these underground edifices was
general and prevalent. Wherever they occur they present
the same individuality of character and the same strongly
marked typical features. Their range in area extends from
Berwickshire to Shetland. They occur in greater or less
abundance in most of the counties bordering on the east
.bn 316.png
.pn +1
coast. A few doubtful examples only are recorded in those
bordering on the west coast. But it is only of late years
that the importance of securing a permanent and exhaustive
record of such casual discoveries has begun to be recognised,
and in this direction of defining the areas of the respective
types of structural antiquities, we are still groping in darkness
on the threshold of a great investigation.
.il id=f_259 fn=fig259_316.jpg w=500px ew=90%
.ca Fig. 259.—Ground plan of Earth-house at Cairn Conan, near Arbroath,\
Forfarshire.\ \ \ (From a Plan by Andrew Jervise.)]
I now proceed to notice a few examples which, by their
associations or their contents, disclose indications of the
period of the type.
In the spring of 1859 an underground structure of this
type (Fig. #259:f_259#) was discovered on the farm of West Grange
of Conan, near Arbroath, Forfarshire. It occupies an elevated
situation on the south-east slope of an eminence
commanding an extensive view. The structure differs from
all those that have been described, inasmuch as in addition
to the long, low, narrow, and curved gallery widening and
.bn 317.png
.pn +1
increasing in height from the entrance inwards, which is the
typical form, it presents the additional feature of a circular
chamber (A) attached to the long curved chamber near the
narrow end, and also communicating with the surface by a
passage (C C), thus giving to the composite structure a second
entrance. The main chamber or gallery is 65 feet in length
along the curvature of the central line of the floor. Its
entrance is 2½ feet wide, and apparently little more than 18
inches high. It widens but slightly, till at a distance of
20 feet from the entrance there is an offset formed by a
large stone set at right angles to the passage, beyond which
it widens more rapidly to about 8½ feet across at the farther
end. The walls are built of undressed stones, but in some
places they are partially cut out of the soft rock, which, for a
considerable portion of its length, also forms the floor of the
chamber. The circular chamber (A) is about 10 feet in
diameter and 7½ feet high. The floor is partly excavated in
the underlying rock. The walls are rudely built of undressed
boulders. They converge almost from the floor, and the
covering stone was a large boulder resting on the circular
apex of the vaulted roof which impeded the plough and thus
led to the discovery of the structure.
About 20 feet to the north of the underground chamber
there was a circular space from which the soil had been
removed. It was rudely laid with a pavement of undressed
flags forming a circular floor a few inches below the level of
the surrounding soil, and about 20 feet in diameter. Among
the flags of this paved space there were found a portion of a
plain bronze ring about 3 inches diameter, the upper stone of
a quern or hand-millstone, two whorls of lead, a number of
rudely-hollowed stone vessels of various sizes, and fragments
of implements in iron so greatly corroded as to be unrecognisable
except as fragments of implements with cutting edges.
The articles found in the underground chambers were
.bn 318.png
.pn +1
few in number. They consisted of some fragments of
pottery, coarse, but wheel-made, pale yellow in colour, and
differing in texture and manufacture from the usual handmade
pottery of native origin found in many of the other
structures of the same class. It closely resembles some
varieties of pottery that are constantly found in the vicinity
of Roman stations in Scotland. A bronze needle and a
portion of a quern were the only other objects found. But
that the place had been long occupied was sufficiently
apparent from the quantity of ashes mixed with calcined and
broken bones of the common domestic animals which it
contained.
In this case we have distinct evidence of an underground
chamber associated with an overground habitation of less
permanent structure, of which time and cultivation had
removed all traces except the circular paved floor and the
casual relics which it contained. There can be no doubt
that the people who occupied this overground habitation also
possessed the underground structure, and used it for purposes
connected with their daily life. There is little now left to
disclose what the manner of that life was, but that little is
highly significant. It discloses that they were a people cultivating
grain and rearing cattle and sheep. They had
utensils of stone it is true, and these of the very rudest form
and fabrication, but they also possessed wheel-made pottery
and weapons or implements of bronze, iron, and lead.
A singular interest attaches to this little settlement, inasmuch
as it not only shows us the association of the two
forms of underground and overground structure which united
to make one habitation, but also gives the associated grave-ground
of the family. A few yards distant from the
dwelling there was a group of six graves. They were full-length,
stone-lined graves, rudely constructed, with three or
four flattish slabs forming the sides, and one stone placed for
.bn 319.png
.pn +1
each end. They lay so near the surface that the covering
stones had mostly been removed by the plough, and the
remains in them were greatly decayed. The only manufactured
object found in them was a single ring or child’s
bracelet of cannel coal. This is the only instance on record
of the discovery of a cemetery associated with the double
dwelling of the people who constructed these subterranean
galleries.
Among the rubbish thrown out in the course of the
excavation there was found a beautiful spiral bronze bracelet
of the form of a double serpent, decorated in that peculiar
style of art which has been described in the third Lecture of
this course as the precursor or earlier development of the art
of the Celtic Christian time.[114] Here we find the earlier art
associated with this peculiar type of structure, and with a
manner of sepulture which is destitute of all indications of
Christianity. It is associated also with wheel-made pottery
of a type that is only found in situations suggestive of Roman
intercourse, and therefore indicates a period when Christianity
had not yet supplanted the Paganism of the country. It was
also in a precisely similar association with one of these underground
structures that the massive bronze armlets (Figs.
115, 116), described in the same Lecture, were discovered at
Castle Newe. They also are decorated in this peculiar style
of art and enriched with enamels. Their workmanship
evinces skill and taste of a very high order, and the occurrence
of these works of art in such associations may serve to
remind us how greatly we should have erred if we had estimated
the capacity and culture of the inhabitants of these
structures by their architectural character alone, or if we had
measured their condition and acquirements merely by the
fact that they burrowed under ground.
.fm rend=t
.fn 114
This bracelet is described and figured as Fig. 140, at p. 160 of this
volume in the Lecture on the Celtic Art of the Pagan Period.
.fn-
.fm rend=t
.bn 320.png
.pn +1
.il id=f_260 fn=fig260_320.jpg w=500px ew=90%
.ca
Fig. 260.—Ground plan of Earth-house at Tealing, Forfarshire.
(From a Plan by Andrew Jervise.)
.ca-
Another structure of the same type (Fig. #260:f_260#), but of
larger dimensions, was discovered in 1871 in a field at Tealing.
It was 80 feet in length measured along the curve, 3
feet wide at the entrance and widening gradually to 8½ feet
at the inner end, where it is a little more than 6 feet high.
It has checks for a door at a little distance within the
entrance, and a second pair about 16 feet from the farther
end. The usual evidences of occupation were found in the
presence of ashes, charcoal, and animal bones throughout the
excavation. The manufactured relics unfortunately have
neither been described nor figured, although they constitute
the largest and most varied collection of objects ever obtained
from such a structure. They are enumerated by Mr. Jervise
as follows:—A piece of the red lustrous ware commonly
called Samian, a bracelet, bronze rings, and coarse pottery,
no fewer than ten querns, a number of whorls and stone
cups, and an article made of iron slightly mixed with brass.
The occurrence of the red lustrous ware in these Earth-houses,
as well as in the Brochs and Crannogs, is an indication
.bn 321.png
.pn +1
of the period of the occupation of these structures which
is of great significance. The large size of the gallery, in the
present instance, and the occurrence in it of ten querns,
indicate that it was frequented by a considerable number of
people. It has another feature of interest in the presence, on
one of the rude boulders which form the walls, of a number
of cup-markings, one of which is surrounded by five concentric
circles. Another stone with forty-six cup-markings
on it lay on the margin of a circular paved space close to
the entrance of the structure. These cup-markings form one
of the enigmas of archæology. They are shallow pits,
roughly hemispherical in form, hollowed by pointed tools in
the surfaces of rocks, boulders, and standing stones. Sometimes
they are on vertical surfaces, sometimes on horizontal
surfaces, occasionally on the under surfaces of stones placed
as the covers of cists. Most frequently the cups are simple
rounded hollows, but very frequently they are surrounded by
a series of concentric circles of varying number, and often a
straight gutter proceeds from the central cup through the
circles. They are sometimes hewn in groups upon the solid
rock of a hillside, sometimes on earth-fast boulders, occasionally
on the stones of stone circles, and often on stones in
sepulchral cairns or in connection with cists. They are not
confined to Scotland, or even to Britain. They are found in
Scandinavia, in France, in Germany, and Switzerland. They
appear on the Continent in associations which refer them to
the Bronze Age at least, but they also occur in associations
which show that the custom survived to the late Iron Age,
and even in a modified form to Christian times. Their
occurrence here, in connection with this underground
structure, has therefore no special significance with respect to
the age of the structure, and there is nothing in the association
or the circumstances in which they occur in this
particular instance which contributes to our knowledge of
.bn 322.png
.pn +1
the purpose or significance of the markings themselves.
They may or may not have been sculptured on the stone
before it was taken to form part of this underground gallery,
and the only thing they tell us for certain is that here, at
some time or other, there was a custom of which traces are
found scattered over a wide area of Western Europe.
.il id=f_261 fn=fig261_322.jpg w=500px ew=90%
.ca Fig. 261.—Sketch ground plan of Earth-house at Newstead, and stone with\
Roman moulding found in it.
But other indications have been found in connection with
the structure and contents of these singular buildings, which
carry the period of their construction close up to the time of
the Roman occupation of the southern portion of Scotland.
An underground structure of this special type (Fig. #261:f_261#) was
discovered near the village of Newstead, in Roxburghshire,
in 1845.[115] It fortunately came under the observation of Dr.
John Alexander Smith, who has given a carefully prepared
notice of its peculiarities in the Proceedings of the Society.
It was of the usual form, a long, low, and narrow gallery
turning sharply to the right and widening and gradually
increasing in height from the entrance. It measured 54 feet
in length along the curve of the central line of the floor, and
.bn 323.png
.pn +1
widened gradually from 4 feet at the narrow end to 7 feet at
the farther end. The height was not ascertainable, as the
roofing stones were gone, and scarcely more than 3 feet of
the height of the side walls remained. But the walls presented
the peculiarity of being built with hewn stones, laid
in pretty regular courses, though not jointed with mortar or
any other cement. Among the fallen stones in the interior
of the structure there were many flat slabs bevelled on one
edge, and two measuring about 4 feet in length which presented
a rope-moulding (Fig. #261:f_261#) of distinctively Roman
character. No relics were obtained from the excavation of
the building, but the character of the squared and bevelled
stones and the presence of the Roman moulding indicate
that the construction of the underground structure was subsequent
to the period of the Roman occupation of that part of
the country. Another structure of similar character was
.bn 324.png
.pn +1
found in an adjoining field, but not built with squared
stones. In all probability the squared stones of the one
structure were due to the presence in its immediate neighbourhood
of some Roman construction, the stones of which
were utilised by the underground builders.
.fm rend=t
.fn 115
Described by Dr. John Alexander Smith in Proc. Soc. Antiq. Scot.,
vol. i. p. 213.
.fn-
.fm rend=t
.il id=f_262 fn=fig262_323.jpg w=500px ew=90%
.ca Fig. 262.—Ground plan of Earth-house at Crichton Mains, Midlothian.
.il id=f_263 fn=fig263_324.jpg w=500px ew=90%
.ca Fig. 263.—Sections of Earth-house at A, D, and E on ground plan.
.dv class='epubonly column-container'
.dv class='column40'
.il id=ef_264 fn=fig264_325.jpg w=100% ew=100%
.ca Fig. 264.—Ambry in Earth-house at Crichton Mains.
.dv-
.dv class='column60'
.il id=f_e265 fn=fig265_325.jpg w=100% ew=100%
.ca Fig. 265.—Stones in Earth-house at Crichton Mains.
.dv-
.dv-
Another structure of the same type (Fig. #262:f_262#) was found
in 1869 at Crichton Mains, in Midlothian.[116] It was of the
usual long, narrow, curved form, 51½ feet in length, and
gradually widening from 5 feet 10 inches just within the
entrance to 9 feet at the farther end. A number of the roof-stones
remained in position, and the floor throughout being
formed of the natural rock it was seen that the average
height was about 6 feet. The walls converge from the floor
for about half their height and rise somewhat perpendicularly
above that, thus giving to the cross-section the form of an
ogee vault. The door (A, in Figs. 262, 263), formed of two
upright stones crossed by a lintel, is 3 feet high by 33 inches
wide, and the top is about 5 feet under the present surface of
the ground. Fourteen feet inwards is a passage at right
angles to the gallery, the entrance to which is shown at F in
Fig. 262. It is 13 feet long, 3 feet wide, and 3 feet 6 inches
high, rising by low sloping steps in the rock to what seems
.bn 325.png
.pn +1
another entrance nearer the surface, also shown in Fig.
262 at E. At G is a small
ambry (Fig. #264:f_264#). No relics
were found in the excavation;
but here and there in the
interior faces of the walls
there were a number of
squared stones faced with the
diagonal broaching and stugging
which is so common in
late Roman work.[117] About
thirty of these are visible.
Two are shown in Fig. 265.
There were also other hewn stones, some of which had apparently
formed portions of water conduits (H, Fig. #265:f_265#), and
others adapted to different
purposes. The
lintel-stone of the door
of the side passage is
moulded and bevelled on
the edge in a similar way
to the bevelled stones
found in the structure
at Newstead. It seems
evident that this underground
building, like
that at Newstead, has been partially constructed with
stones taken from a ruined building of late Roman workmanship,
and that both are consequently later than the commencement
of the Roman occupation of the country. Similar
.bn 326.png
.pn +1
indications are given by the discovery of wheel-made pottery
of Roman type in the Earth-house at Cairn Conan, and of
fragments of the red lustrous ware commonly called Samian
in the Earth-houses at Tealing, Pitcur, and Fithie. The
presence in most of them of querns and implements of iron,
and the entire absence of such implements as are characteristic
of the ages of stone and bronze, are indications pointing
to the same conclusion. On the other hand there is a complete
absence of indications of Christianity, and the characteristics
of the ornamentation of the bronze armlets found in
association with them are those which belong only to the
earlier and partial development of Celtic art, which preceded
its subsequent and complete development under the new
impulses and opportunities afforded by Christianity. It
seems therefore that, so far as our present knowledge will
carry us towards a definite conclusion, the period of this
peculiar type of structure will lie between the time of the
general establishment of Christianity and the departure of
the Romans from Scotland.
.fm rend=t
.fn 116
Described by Lord Rosehill in Proc. Soc. Antiq. Scot., vol. viii. p. 105.
.fn-
.fn 117
This “diamond broaching” is very common in the reparations of the
Roman wall and its stations between the Solway and the Tyne, while the
stones used in Hadrian’s original erections are severely plain.—Dr. Bruce, in
Lapidarium Septentrionale, p. 39.
.fn-
.fm rend=t
The range of the type includes the whole eastern area of
Scotland, stretching from Berwickshire on the south to the
Shetland Isles. Its special form is so peculiar that it must
be held to constitute a distinction sufficiently characteristic
to separate the Scottish group from all other varieties of
underground structures, and sufficiently constant to warrant
us in assigning to it a specific value. There is an Irish
group and a Cornish group of underground structures, but
they do not generally present the special features of form
which characterise the Scottish group. The Irish examples
are usually associated with raths, thus resembling the specimen
in the rath of Dunsinnane, which is the only one known
of that special variety in Scotland. They are excavated
in the area enclosed by the interior rampart of the rath,
and consist of one or more chambers, sometimes circular
.bn 327.png
.pn +1
or oval in plan but often rectangular, and connected together
by low narrow passages. Sometimes the chambers are lined
with masonry, and roofed by overlapping courses forming a
rude dome-shaped vault; at other times they are simply
excavated in the hard earth, while the passages and doorways
are lined with stones. They thus differ considerably
in form from the Scottish variety, and they differ also in
being usually associated with raths or earthworks, while the
Scottish structures are usually contiguous to the sites of overground
habitations.
The general features of the Cornish group, on the other
hand, are more allied to those of the Scottish area, inasmuch
as they are often associated with clusters of overground
habitations. One at Chapel Euny, in the parish of Saucreed,
near Penzance, contiguous to the sites of four circular
huts, is an underground gallery presenting features of
remarkable similarity to that at Cairn Conan, in Forfarshire.
The gallery, which is slightly curved, is about 60 feet in
length, 6 feet wide, and from 6 to 7 feet high. A circular
chamber, 16 feet in diameter, constructed of large granite
blocks, each overlapping the one below it and thus forming a
domed roof which must have been 10 or 12 feet high, was
connected with the wider end of the gallery by a passage 10
feet long, opening off one side. Another small offset near
the narrower end of the gallery, also about 10 feet long,
slopes up to the surface, presenting an entrance doorway 2
feet 8 inches in height, with recesses on either side as if to
retain a slab to close the doorway. The floors of the gallery
and chamber were paved with flat stones, and provided with
drains underneath the pavement. The relics found in the
structure were whetstones; hammer-stones; spindle-whorls;
several varieties of domestic pottery, red and black, mostly
plain, but occasionally ornamented with markings made by a
pointed instrument; an iron spear-head; and a fragment of the
.bn 328.png
.pn +1
red lustrous ware commonly called Samian.[118] Another at
Halligey, near Trelowarren, consists of a slightly-curved
gallery 90 feet in length, from 3 to 5 feet in width, and about
6 feet high in the middle, becoming lower towards the
extremities. It has a small rectangular chamber off one
side at the farther end of the main gallery. The main
gallery opens off the middle of the side of a shorter and
wider gallery 28 feet in length, 5½ feet wide, and 6 feet high.
At one end of this shorter gallery a narrow passage rises to
the surface. The entrance passage is provided with checks
for two doors, and the whole structure is strongly and substantially
built and lintelled with large flags. On the
surface there are traces of two embankments with an intervening
ditch surrounding a large area within which there
may have been a cluster of overground structures.[119]
.fm rend=t
.fn 118
These details are taken from a paper by William Borlase, Esq., in the
Proceedings of the Society of Antiquaries of London, 1868 (Second Series,
vol. iv. p. 161), where a ground plan and sections, with woodcuts of the
structural appearance of the building are given. Mr. Borlase mentions
other structures of the same class at Pendeen, Bolleit, Chysoster, and
Bodinar.
.fn-
.fn 119
Paper by J. T. Blight, Esq., in Archæologia, vol. xl. p. 113, with ground
plan and woodcuts.
.fn-
.fm rend=t
Like the Scottish examples the Earth-houses of Cornwall
are long narrow galleries of dry-built masonry, but they are
not so strongly marked by the peculiar feature of single or
double curvature which distinguishes the Scottish group.
They are comparatively few in number, and any indications
of the period of their occupation that have been observed
point also to a time not far distant from the close of the
Roman occupation of the country. No other group of such
underground structures is known in any other part of Europe,
or indeed anywhere else in the world. These excavated
chambers, possessing the characteristics which have been
described, are peculiar to the Celtic area, and the specially
.bn 329.png
.pn +1
typical form with the strongly marked curvature is found
only in Scotland.
Of the culture and civilisation of the people who constructed
these strange subterranean cells, it may be impossible
in the present condition of our knowledge to form an
adequate estimate. But we can say this of them with
certainty, that whatever may have been the special motives
and circumstances that induced them to give this peculiar
expression to their architectural efforts, they exhibit in other
respects evidences of culture which, though it may be held
to be inferior in range and quality to the culture of the
Christian time, compares not unfavourably (so far as it goes)
with that which is exhibited in connection with the superior
architecture of the Brochs.
And while on all these lines of investigation we have
traced the manifestations of these early forms of culture and
civilisation up to points at which they seem to touch the
culture and civilisation of the Roman Empire, it is to be
observed that they do no more than touch it—they are not
merged in it. In all their distinctive features they are still
Celtic, and Celtic exclusively. There is nothing Roman in
the forms of the prevailing types; there is nothing Roman in
the art that decorates these forms; there is nothing Roman
in the typical character of the structures in which they are
found. The forms, the art, and the architecture are those of
Scotland’s Iron Age—the Pagan Period of her Celtic people.
.bn 330.png
.bn 331.png
.pn +2
.sp 4
.h2
INDEX.
.sp 2
.ix
Aboyne, Aberdeenshire, bronze armlets found near, #148#.
Aby, Sodermanland, Sweden, Runic monument at, #99#, #101#.
Airlie, Forfarshire, Earth-houses at, #292#.
Analysis of oval bowl-shaped brooches, #41#.
—— of bronze armlets, #148#, #161#.
Animal Remains found in Brochs, #215#, #221#, #222#, #231#, #237#, #238#.
Armlets of bronze, massive, penannular, decorated in relief and with enamels, #141-155:Page_141#.
—— spiral and serpent-formed, #156-161:Page_156#.
—— found in Earth-houses, #297#.
—— found in Broch of Yarhouse, #231#.
Arm-rings of silver, #86#, #87#, #88#, #109#.
Arms buried with Christian dead, #5#, #6#.
Architecture of the Brochs of Scotland, #174-208:Page_174#.
Art, Celtic, of the Pagan Period, #112#.
Auchenbadie, Banffshire, bronze armlets found at, #144#.
Auchindoir, Aberdeenshire, Earth-houses at, #292#.
Aucorn, Caithness, vessels of sandstone found at, #75#.
Axe-head, inlaid with silver, from Mammen How, #97#.
Axes found in Viking graves, #21#.
Ayrshire, the crannogs of, #269#.
.ix-
.sp 1
.ix
Backies, Sutherlandshire, Broch of, #202#.
Balearic Islands, the Talayots of, #206#.
Ball of bronze ornamented with spiral patterns, #161#, #162#.
Balls of stone ornamented with spiral and other patterns, #162–170:Page_162#.
Ballinaby, Islay, Viking graves at, #14#, #38#.
Balmaclellan, Kirkcudbright, bronze mirror and other articles found at, #126#.
Barra, grave mound in, #42#.
Bayeux Tapestry, maces figured in the, #170#.
Bead of Vitreous Paste found in Broch of Bowermadden, #233#.
Beads of variegated glass found in Viking graves, #27:f_27#.
Ben Ledi, Hill-Fort on a spur of, #275#.
Birdlip, near Gloucester, bronze mirror found in a grave at, #132#.
Birrenswark, Annandale, enamelled bridle-bit found at, #123#.
Bishops buried with their vestments, #5#.
Bodinar, Cornwall, hut structures at, #207#.
Borrowston, Shapinsay, Orkney, Broch of, #197#.
Bowermadden, Broch of, #232#.
Braavalla Heath, battle of, #60#.
Brass, hammer-marked plates of, found in Broch of Carn-liath, #222#.
Brochs, Architecture of the, #174–208:Page_174#.
—— geographical distribution of the, #192#.
Bronze, vessels of, from Dowalton Loch, #266#, #268#.
Brooch of Brass, circular, found at Yarhouse, #225#.
Brooches, oval, bowl-shaped, found in Viking graves, #24#, #38#, #39#, #40#, #44#, #45#,57.
—— analysis of, #41#.
—— geographical distribution of, #34#.
—— silver, penannular, with knobs like thistle-heads, #54#, #79#, #81#, #93#, #101#, #102#.
Broomhouse, Berwickshire, Earth-house at, #282#.
Brounaben, Caithness, Broch of, #200#.
Buchaam, Strathdon, Earth-house at, #285#.
Bunrannoch, Perthshire, bronze armlets found at, #149#, #153#.
Burghead, silver mounting of a drinking-horn found at, #46#.
.bn 332.png
.pn +1
Burghead, fort built with logs and stones at, #279#.
Burial, survival of Pagan customs in Christian, #3#.
—— clothed and with grave-goods, #4#, #5#, #6#, #7#.
—— of laymen in clerical habits, #6#.
Burials in the mounds covering the ruins of Brochs, #219#, #225#.
—— with urns of steatite in Orkney and Shetland, #66–76:Page_66#.
—— in Norway, #77#.
Burraness, island of Yell, Shetland, Broch at, #184#.
—— Unst, Shetland, Broch of, #195#.
Burray, Orkney, east Broch of, #197#,236.
Burrian, North Ronaldsay, Broch of, #245#.
Burwick, near Stromness, Broch of, #202#, #238#.
Bute, island of, gold fillets and rings found in, #107#.
.ix-
.sp 1
.ix
Cairn Conan, Forfarshire, Earth-house at, #294#.
Caithness, the Brochs of, #209#, #223#, #232#, #234#.
—— oval brooches found in, #43#, #45#.
Caldale, Kirkwall, arm-rings of silver found at, #109#.
Caledonian Valley, number of Brochs to the north of the, #192#.
Campbell, William, of Ballinaby, Viking graves discovered by, #14#.
Carn-liath, Sutherlandshire, Broch of, #202#, #221#.
Cassimir, Frederick, buried with his arms and horse, #6#.
Castle Cole, Sutherlandshire, Broch of, #185#, #194#.
Castle Newe, Aberdeenshire, enamelled bronze armlets at, #141#.
Caterthun, Forfarshire, Hill-Fort of, #274#.
Chapel Euny, Sancreed, Cornwall, Earth-house at, #305#.
Charcoal, ritualistic use of, in Christian burial, #8#, #9#.
Charlemagne, manner of the burial of, #4#.
Childeric, King, manner of the burial of, #4#.
Clay, vessels of, with incense and holy water, use of, in Christian burial, #9#,10, #11#, #12#.
Clergy buried in their vestments, #5#.
Clibberswick, Unst, pair of oval brooches and trefoil ornament found at, #47#.
Clickamin, Lerwick, Broch of, #195#, #196:f_179#.
Cloth of various kinds, fragments of, from Viking graves, #42#, #55#.
Cloth, castings of texture of, in bowl-shaped brooches, #41#.
—— Hood of Woollen, from moss in Orkney, #103#.
Clothing, burial of, with Christian dead, #4#, #5#, #6#.
Clova, Aberdeenshire, Earth-house at, #288#.
Cockburn Law, Berwickshire, Broch at, #186#.
Coins, Cufic and Anglo-Saxon, found with hoards of silver ornaments, #88#, #89#, #91#.
—— Roman, found in Broch of Lingrow, #244#.
Coldoch, Perthshire, Broch of, #190#.
Combs of bone, double-edged, found in Brochs, #237#, #240#, #249#, #250#.
—— round-backed, found in Brochs, #233#, #240#, #249#.
—— long-handled, found in Brochs, #213#, #222#, #240#, #241#, #251#.
Cornwall, Earth-houses of, #305#.
Corquoy, Rousay, Orkney, urn of steatite found at, #71#.
Craig Beg, Ballater, ornamented stone ball found at, #165#.
Craig Phadrig, near Inverness, Vitrified Fort of, #277#.
Crannog of Loch Laoghaire, the siege of the, #271#.
Crannogs of Dowalton Loch, #264#.
—— of Ayrshire, #269#.
Cranokis of the Isles, the, #271#.
Cremation a typical characteristic of Pagan burial, #2#.
—— punishable with death, #4#.
—— narrative by an eye-witness of the ceremonies attending a burial after, #61#.
Crichie, near Kintore, bronze ornaments found at, #123#.
Crichton Mains, Midlothian, Earth-house at, #301#.
Crosiers, burial of, with archbishops, #5#.
Crucibles found in Brochs, #221#.
Cuerdale, hoard of silver ornaments and coins at, #91#.
Culbin Sands, Elginshire, bronze spiral armlet found at, #156#.
Cullswick, Shetland, Broch at, #185#, #195#.
Culsh, Aberdeenshire, Earth-house at, #287#.
Cup-markings on rocks and stones, area of, #299#.
.ix-
.sp 1
.ix
Dice of bone found in Broch of Burrian, #248#.
.bn 333.png
.pn +1
Discs of polished stone found in Brochs and Crannogs, #220#, #232#, #236#, #241#, #270#.
Dowalton Loch, Crannogs in, #264#.
—— bronze mounting found in, #123#.
Drinking-horn, silver mounting of a, #46#.
Drumside, Belhelvie, Aberdeenshire, bronze armlets found at, #146#, #147#.
Dun Alisaig, Ross-shire, Broch of, #185#.
—— Carloway, Lewis, Broch of, #185#.
—— Dornadilla, Sutherlandshire, Broch of, #185#.
—— Mac Uisneachan, Loch Etive, Vitrified Fort of, #277#.
Dunsinnane, description of the Hill-Fort of, #281#.
.ix-
.sp 1
.ix
Earth-houses of Scotland, Ireland, and Cornwall, #282#, #304#.
—— of Scotland, period of, #304#.
Eigg, Viking graves in, #48#, #49#, #53#, #54#.
Elgin, ornamented stone ball found at, #162#.
Elie, in Fife, Earth-house at, #292#.
Enamel on shields, bridle-bits, horse-trappings, and armlets, #120#, #123#, #125#, #126#, #141#, #143#.
Eriboll, Sutherlandshire, Earth-house at, #289#.
Erik, King of Denmark, buried with his sword, #5#.
Esthonia, relapse of Christian converts to heathenism in, #4#.
Eucharist, spoon used in celebration of the, #134#.
.ix-
.sp 1
.ix
Fair Isle, urn of steatite found in, #73#.
Finhaven, near Aberlemno, Vitrified Fort of, #277#.
Fordoun, Kincardineshire, ornamented stone ball found at, #164#.
France, Celtic or Gaulish forts of, #280#.
Freelands, Glasterlaw, ornamented stone ball found at, #164#.
.ix-
.sp 1
.ix
Garrywhoine, Caithness, Hill-Fort of, #273#.
Gauls, shields and helmets of the, #119#.
Gisli the Soursop, Saga of, #290#.
Glas Hill, Towie, ornamented stone ball found at, #163#.
Glass, variegated beads of, found in Viking graves, #27:f_21#.
—— black, smoothing implements of, found in Viking graves, #30#, #36#.
Glenelg, Brochs in the valley of Glenbeg in, #181#, #182#.
Gökstad, near Sandefiord, ship-burial at, #64#.
Gold, hoards of ornaments of, #106#, #107#, #108#.
Goni, Sardinia, Nuraghe of, #193#.
Grain, charred, found in Brochs, #234#.
Grave-goods, Christian burials with, #4#, #5#, #6#, #7#.
Grange of Conan, near Arbroath, bronze spiral armlet found at, #160#.
.ix-
.sp 1
.ix
Hamilton, Dr. Edward, investigation of Vitrified Forts in Arisaig by, #279#.
Harald, Earl of Orkney, #200#.
Harness, bronze mountings of, #122#, #123#.
Haroldswick, Unst, Shetland, grave-mound at, #74#.
Harpsdale, Caithness, Broch of, #199#.
Harray, Orkney, Broch at Manse of, #198:f_182#, #199#, #236#.
Hell-shoes bound on the feet of the dead, #6#.
Helmets of bronze with horns, #116#.
Hildebrand, B. E., on the supposed Oriental origin of the silver hoards of the Viking time, #90#.
Hildetand, King Harald, burial of, #60#.
Hill-Forts of Scotland, #272#.
Hoards of silver ornaments and coins, #78#, #89#, #109#.
—— of gold ornaments, #106#, #107#, #108#.
Hogsetter, Whalsay, Shetland, defensive structure in the Loch of, #260#.
Hood of woollen fabric found in a moss in Orkney, #103#.
Horse, the flesh of the, as an article of food, #215#.
Hravnkel Freysgode, grave-mound of, #59#.
.ix-
.sp 1
.ix
Ibn-Fozlan, Ahmed, narrative of a burial after cremation by, #61#.
Illumination from fourteenth-century manuscript, representing a burial service, #12#.
Impernal, construction of the ramparts of, #280#.
Ingots of silver, #88#, #107#.
Iron, tools and weapons of, found in Viking graves, #14#, #15#, #45#, #52#, #56#, #58#.
—— articles of, found in Brochs, #213#, #214#, #219#, #221#, #223#, #232#, #234#, #237#, #250#, #257#.
—— articles of, found in Earth-houses, #285#, #295#, #298#.
.ix-
.sp 1
.ix
Kettleburn, Caithness, Broch of, #200#, #209#.
Key of iron from a grave of the Viking time in Westray, #58#.
Kildrummy, Aberdeenshire, Earth-houses at, #292#.
Kings and Clergy, manner of the burial of, in Middle Ages, #4#.
.bn 334.png
.pn +1
Kinord, Aberdeenshire, Earth-house at, #291#.
Kintradwell or Kintrolla, Sutherlandshire, Broch of, #202#, #216#.
Knockfarril, in Ross-shire, Vitrified Fort of, #276#.
.ix-
.sp 1
.ix
Lake-dwellings of Scotland, #263#.
Lamps of stone found in Brochs, #212#, #232#, #236#, #241#.
Lenormant, M., on the Truddhu of Southern Italy, #206#.
Levenwick, Shetland, Broch of, #234#.
Liechestown, Banffshire, swine’s head of bronze found at, #117#.
Lingrow, Orkney, Broch of, #242#.
Livonia, relapse of Christian converts to heathenism in, #4#.
Llanfair, bronze spoons found at, #135#, #136#.
Loch Duich, Inverness-shire, Broch at, #183#.
.ix-
.sp 1
.ix
Maces, mediæval, figured in the Bayeux Tapestry, #170#.
Maddad, Earl of Athol, #200#.
M’Crie, George, grave-mounds in Rousay explored by, #71#.
Metal-work of early Celtic School of Art, characteristics of the decoration of, #140#.
Middleby, Annandale, harness mountings of bronze found at, #123#.
Midhill Head, Midlothian, Earthwork on, #272#.
Migvie, Aberdeenshire, Earth-house at, #284#.
Mirrors of bronze, Celtic, #127#, #130#, #132#.
—— Roman, #133#.
Möklebust, Norway, grave-mound at, #62#.
Montrose, pierced vases of clay in a Christian grave at, #11#.
Mould of Clay for making Bronze Pins found in Broch of Lingrow, #245#.
Mountings of bronze found at Henshole on Cheviot, #122#.
Mousa, Shetland, the Broch of, #174#, #200#.
Munro, Robert, M.D., investigation of Crannogs in Ayrshire by, #269#.
Murcens, construction of the ramparts of, #280#.
Murroes, Forfarshire, Earth-house at, #290#.
.ix-
.sp 1
.ix
Neck-rings of silver, #84#, #85#.
Needles of Bone found in Brochs, #247#.
Newry, County Down, Ireland, bronze armlet found at, #154#, #155#.
Newstead, Roxburghshire, Earth-houses at, #300#.
Newton, Islay, oval brooch found at, #39#.
Nicolaysen, description of smoothing implements of glass by, #36#.
Northmen, Pagan forms of belief of the, #32#.
Nuraghi of Sardinia, the, #193#.
.ix-
.sp 1
.ix
Olaf, King of Denmark, buried with his sword, #5#.
Oland, island of, bronze plaques with representations of warriors found in, #20#, #116#.
Old Stirkoke, Broch of, #232#.
Okstrow, Birsay, Orkney, Broch of, #199#, #240#.
Orem’s Fancy, Stronsay, Orkney, urns of steatite found at, #67#, #68#.
Ornament of the bowl-shaped brooches of brass, characteristics of the, #25#.
—— of the penannular brooches of silver of the Viking time, #93–99:Page_93#.
Orkney, ornamented stone balls found in, #168#, #169#.
—— Brochs of, #197#, #236#, #238#, #240#, #242#, #245#.
Orkneyinga Saga, notice of hunting of Reindeer in, #231#.
Otranto, Italy, the Truddhu of, #206#.
.ix-
.sp 1
.ix
Paganism, typical character of burials of, #2#.
Pantellaria, the Sesi of, #206#.
Petrie, George, grave-mounds explored by, #58#, #67#.
Pierowall, Westray, Orkney, grave-mounds of the Viking time at, #55#, #58#.
Philostratus, notice of enamelling by, #125#.
Pins of Bone found in Brochs, #237#, #239#, #246#, #247#.
—— of Bronze found in Brochs, #233#, #237#, #242#.
Pirnie, parish of Wemyss, Fife, Earth-house at, #292#.
Pitalpin, near Dundee, bronze spiral armlet found at, #159#.
Pitkelloney, near Muthil, bronze armlets found at, #143#.
Plunton Castle, bronze armlet found near, #137#.
Pottery of the Brochs, the, #215#, #221#, #230#, #237#, #240#, #242#, #244#.
—— of the Earth-houses, the, #287#, #288#, #295#, #298#, #304#.
.ix-
.sp 1
.ix
Quendale, Shetland, arm-rings of silver found at, #109#.
Quern found at Balmaclellan, Kirkcudbright, #126#.
.bn 335.png
.pn +1
Querns found in Brochs, #212#, #220#, #222#, #243#, #246#.
—— found in crannogs, #270#.
.ix-
.sp 1
.ix
Rattar, Caithness, arm-rings of silver found at, #109#.
Rattray, Castle Hill of, pierced vase of clay found at, #12#.
Rendall, William, exploration of Viking graves at Pierowall, Westray, by, #55#.
Reindeer, remains of, found in Brochs, #221#, #231#.
Rhind, Alexander Henry, exploration of the Broch of Kettleburn by, #209#.
Rousay, Orkney, urns of steatite found in, #71#.
Rygh, Professor, comparison of oval brooches found in Norway and in Scotland by, #35#.
.ix-
.sp 1
.ix
Saga of Gisli the Soursop, the, #290#.
—— the Orkneyinga, #231#.
Sagas, testimony of the, to the forms of heathen burial, #59#.
Samian Ware found in Brochs, #237#, #242#.
—— found in crannogs, #270#.
Saucepan of bronze found at Stanhope, Peeblesshire, #152#.
—— found in Dowalton Loch, #266#.
Seafield Tower, Kinghorn, bronze armlet found at, #154#.
Seal, the flesh of the, as an article of food, #215#.
Sesi, the, of the Isle of Pantellaria, #206#.
Shapinsay, Orkney, urn of steatite found in, #72#.
Shaw Hill, Kirkurd, hoard of gold objects found at, #138#.
Shields found in Viking graves, #18#, #56#.
—— of bronze, decorated with enamels and figures of animals, #119#.
Ship-burials of the Viking time in Orkney, #59#.
—— in Norway, #62#, #63#.
Shoes, burial with, #6#, #7#.
Silver, ornaments of, found in Viking graves, #27:f_21#, #28#.
—— hoards of ornaments and coins of, #78#, #89#, #109#.
—— Fibula of, found in the Broch of Carn-liath, #223#.
Skaill, Orkney, hoard of silver ornaments found at, #78#.
—— ornamented stone balls found at, #168#.
Skalagrim, burial of, #59#.
Skinnet, Caithness, Broch of, #199#.
Skjern, North Jutland, Runic monument at, #99#, #100#.
Skye, arm-rings of silver found in, #109#.
—— ornamented stone ball found in, #167#.
Smith, Dr. R. Angus, investigation of Vitrified Fort on Loch Etive by, #277#.
Smith’s tools found in Viking graves in Scotland, #23#.
—— found in Viking graves in Scandinavia, #35#.
Snaburgh, Unst, Shetland, Broch of, #195#.
Solomon’s seal, geometric figure called, #255#, #256#.
Spoons of bronze, Celtic, #134#, #136#.
Stanhope, Peeblesshire, bronze armlet found at, #150#.
Stennis, Orkney, arm-rings of silver found at, #109#.
—— urn of steatite found at, #69#.
—— finger-rings of gold found at, #106#.
Stitchell bronze collar found at, #136#, #137#.
Stone cups found in Brochs, #218#, #233#.
Stuart, Professor, description of Earth-houses by, #292#.
Sutherlandshire, oval brooches found in, #43#.
—— the Brochs of, #216#.
Sweindrow, Rousay, Viking sword found at, #45#.
Swine’s head of bronze found in Banffshire, #117#.
Sword-hilt of Viking time found in Eigg, #49#.
—— found at Ultuna in Sweden, #52#.
Swords of iron found in Viking graves, #17#, #33#, #45#, #48#.
—— with sheaths of bronze, #121#.
Sword-sheath of bronze found near Mortonhall, #120#.
.ix-
.sp 1
.ix
Talayots, the, of the Balearic Islands, #206#.
Tealing, Forfarshire, Earth-house at, #298#.
Thor, conventional representations of, #97#, #99#, #100#, #101#.
Thor’s Hammer, amulets in form of, #91#, #99#.
Thorgrim, priest of Frey, burial of, #60#.
Tiree, oval brooches found in, #40#.
Torrs, Kirkcudbright, bronze object like the frontal of a horse, found at, #112#.
Torwood, Stirlingshire, Broch at, #188#.
Towers, Round, of Ireland, #204#.
Towie, Aberdeenshire, bronze ornaments found at, #122#.
Trelan Bahow, Cornwall, bronze mirror found in a grave at, #131#.
Truddhu, the, of the Terra d’Otranto, Italy, #206#.
.bn 336.png
.pn +1
Tune, Norway, ship-burial at, #63#.
Tweezers of bronze, #214#.
.ix-
.sp 1
.ix
Ultuna, Sweden, grave-mound of Iron Age at, #51#, #52#.
Unst, Shetland, urns of steatite found in, #74#.
Urns of steatite from grave-mounds in Orkney and Shetland, #67#, #68#, #69#, #70#, #71#, #72#, #73#, #74#, #76#.
Uyea, Shetland, urn of steatite found in, #73#.
.ix-
.sp 1
.ix
Valhalla of the Northmen, the, #32#.
Vases of clay, pierced and containing charcoal and incense, buried in Christian graves, #10#, #11#, #12#.
Vik, in Norway, sword found at, #33#.
Vitrifaction, modern practice of, for macadamising roads, #281#.
Vitrified Forts of Scotland and France, #275#, #280#.
.ix-
.sp 1
.ix
Walston, Lanarkshire, ornamented bronze ball found at, #161–162:Page_161#.
Weaving, implements of, found in Brochs, #252#.
—— combs used in, #253#, #254#.
Weston, near Bath, bronze spoons found at, #134#, #135#.
Westray, Orkney, Viking graves in, #55#, #58#.
—— large vessel of steatite found in, #76#.
Williams, John, description of Vitrified Forts by, #276#.
Whale, the flesh of the, as an article of food, #215#.
Woollen fabrics from mosses in Orkney and Denmark, #103–106:Page_103#.
.ix-
.sp 1
.ix
Yarhouse, Thrumster, Caithness, the Broch of, #195#, #223#.
.ix-
.ce
THE END.
.ce
Printed by R. & R. Clark, Edinburgh.
.bn 337.png
.pn a1
.sp 2
.nf c
ARCHÆOLOGICAL AND HISTORICAL WORKS
RECENTLY PUBLISHED.
.nf-
.hr 15%
.nf c
Now ready, in One handsome Vol., 8vo, pp. xx., 326, with 270 Illustrations,
price 21s.
.sp 1
ANCIENT SCOTTISH LAKE-DWELLINGS
OR CRANNOGS
WITH A
SUPPLEMENTARY CHAPTER ON REMAINS OF
LAKE-DWELLINGS IN ENGLAND
BY
ROBERT MUNRO, M.A., M.D.
F.S.A. Scot.
.nf-
.il fn=i_337.jpg w=100px ew=20%
.nf c
EXTRACTS FROM REVIEWS.
Times, October 4, 1882.
“It is a most valuable and methodical statement of all the facts connected
with his own excavations in Ayrshire, supplemented by a summary
of what is known of Crannogs and Lake-Dwellings elsewhere. The work is
profusely illustrated with charts, plans, and engravings of many of the
objects discovered during the excavations: it will doubtless become a
standard authority on the subject of which it treats.”
.nf-
.hr 5%
.ce
EDINBURGH: DAVID DOUGLAS.
.bn 338.png
.pn a2
.ce
Athenæum, November 11, 1882.
“... Our readers may be assured that they will find very much
to interest and instruct them in the perusal of the work.”
.ce
Saturday Review, October 7, 1882.
“... The issue of these reports in a handy volume was taken
in hand by Dr. Munro, and the result is seen in the carefully-prepared and
admirably got-up volume to which we have now to invite attention.”
.ce
The Nation, New York, October 26, 1882.
“The work here briefly noticed ranks in external appearance with the
best of its kind. It is beautifully printed, and the 264 woodcuts inserted
in the text are admirably executed; but equal praise cannot be bestowed on
the five plates accompanying the volume. The publication is a highly
valuable contribution to Archæology, and doubtless will find many readers
in this country.”
.ce
Academy, October 14, 1882.
“Dr. Munro speaks with authority, as he has personally witnessed excavations
at the more important Lake-Dwellings, and has, we should gather, left
but few unexamined. He is, moreover, a careful observer and one well read
in the literature of the subject.”
.ce
St. James’s Gazette, August 24, 1882.
"This very interesting volume is a first attempt to bring together in a
compendious form, à propos of certain recent discoveries in Wigtonshire and
Ayrshire, all that is at present known to Archæologists about primitive
British Lake-Dwellings. The result is naturally rather material for the
history than a history of these singular structures. Indeed, Dr. Munro is
less inclined to theorise about their origin—though on this point he has
some very well-defined views—than to array in order the evidence we possess
of their geographical distribution, the plan on which they were built, the
physical aspect of the country at the time of their construction, and the
degree of civilisation attained by its inhabitants. Such an enumeration is
itself a proof of the attractive nature of the questions which await the explorer
of these lacustrine strongholds."
.ce
Pall Mall Gazette, September 20, 1882.
“It belongs to the very best class of well-selected materials.”
.hr 5%
.bn 339.png
.pn a3
.ce
Sir John Lubbock, in Nature, December 14, 1882.
“Whilst thanking him for what he has already accomplished, we may
express a hope that he will continue his researches.”
.ce
Glasgow Herald, October 27, 1882.
"As we have pointed out, the explorations of the last two years have,
so to speak, resurrected an ancient people, and we may hope that further
explorations will enable us better to fix their position in prehistoric times,
and better to understand their modes and habits of life and their surroundings.
In the meantime we heartily welcome Dr. Munro’s admirable study,
and recommend it to the perusal of all interested in the important subject
of which it treats.... The volume is a most interesting one, and
will remain for many years to come the authority on the subject."
.ce
Scotsman, November 22, 1882.
“In this handsome and copiously illustrated volume, the results of the
investigations of the Scottish Lake-Dwellings (in which Dr. Munro has
himself taken the chief part) are systematised; and the story of this forgotten
phase of life in Scotland is presented with all the freshness of a new interpretation
of a large and interesting portion of the early history of the country....
And his work has now done for Britain what the well-known work
of Keller had previously done for the Lake-Dwellings of Central Europe.”
.ce
Aberdeen Free Press, October 23, 1882.
"A most valuable contribution to Scottish Archæology—a volume that
ought to find a place on the shelves of every district library in the country."
.ce
Inverness Courier, August 24, 1882.
“It will serve at once as a record of what has been achieved, as an
incentive to further research, and as a guide to the direction in which
that research should be made.”
.ce
North British Daily Mail, August 14, 1882.
“The plan of the work is admirable, and it has been wrought out in
masterly fashion, so much so indeed that it may be placed on the same
shelf with the historical volumes of Anderson, Skene, and Robertson, without
.bn 340.png
.pn a4
any danger of their falling out.... As a scholarly conspectus of
everything of real significance that has been published relating to Crannogs
since Dr. Joseph Robertson first directed attention to their prevalence in
Scotland, it will be welcomed as a serviceable index even by the most
learned archæologists; while to the general reader, desirous of becoming
acquainted with the hitherto widely-scattered results of inquiry on this
subject, it will be a boon, the value of which cannot be exaggerated.”
.ce
Dundee Advertiser, August 22, 1882.
“Dr. Munro had a voluminous but confused literature before him when
he began his explorations, and he has succeeded in bringing together in
this volume such a mass of original matter and of detailed discovery as
should enable the least imaginative student to frame a theory.... We
have much pleasure in recommending this book as one of the most exhaustive
works upon the subject yet published. The illustrations are profuse
and well executed.”
.ce
The Antiquary, Vol. vii. p. 67.
"Dr. Munro has come forward in a very acceptable volume, which is
now before us, and has undertaken to give a history of the excavations into
ancient Scottish Lake-Dwellings, together with some very valuable suggestions
as to the age and general characteristics of these prehistoric remains.
We cannot, of course, follow Dr. Munro into all the details he treats of, but
our readers will, we are sure, thank us for a summary of what Dr. Munro
so ably tells us, and for the rest we most warmly recommend all antiquaries
to make themselves possessors of this really remarkable book—remarkable in
many ways, in closeness of detail, in extent of learning, in breadth of philosophical
treatment, in the wealth of admirably executed and thoroughly
appropriate illustrations.[120]"
.fm rend=t
.fn 120
“We cannot pass over one other important accessory to the characteristics of this
book. The publisher has certainly spared nothing to make his part of the work equal
to the importance of the subject, and in paper, print, and tasteful appearance, there
is nothing to be desired. We cannot always say this much of the publications which
come before us; but it is a pleasure to do so in a case like this.”
.fn-
.fm rend=t
.ce
Westminster Review.
“The book is throughout a model of the careful record of facts, which
require the most intelligent and patient observation to make the record of
any value.”
.hr 5%
.bn 341.png
.pn a5
.sp 2
.nf c
RHIND LECTURES.
Now ready, in One Vol. 8vo,
276 pp., with 84 Woodcuts and three 4to Plates, price 12s.
SCOTLAND
IN
EARLY CHRISTIAN TIMES
THE RHIND LECTURES IN ARCHÆOLOGY—1879
By JOSEPH ANDERSON, LL.D.
KEEPER OF THE NATIONAL MUSEUM OF THE ANTIQUARIES OF SCOTLAND
.nf-
.il fn=i_341.jpg w=450px ew=80%
.ca IN THE BURYING-GROUND, EILEAN NA NAOIMH
.sp 2
.nf c
EDINBURGH: DAVID DOUGLAS
1881
.nf-
.bn 342.png
.pn a6
.ce
CONTENTS.
.ta r:5 l:40 w=66%
I. |Materials and Methods.
II.| Structural Remains.
III.| Structural Remains.
IV. |Existing Relics—Books.
V. |Existing Relics—Bells.
VI.| Existing Relics—Crosiers and Reliquaries.
.ta-
.ce
Illustrated with 5 plates on separate pages and 82 in the text.
.hr 5%
.ce
From the British Architect and Engineer.
“We know of no work within the reach of all students so completely realising
its professions, and we can confidently recommend to the architect, artist, and
antiquary, young and old, this volume on Celtic art in Scotland.”
.il fn=i_342.jpg w=500px ew=90% alt='sample image'
.bn 343.png
.pn a7
.sp 2
.nf c
RHIND LECTURES.
In One Vol. 8vo, price 12s.,
with 143 Illustrations in the text, and 3 Full-page Photographs in carbon.
.nf-
.sp 2
.nf c
SCOTLAND
IN
EARLY CHRISTIAN TIMES
(SECOND SERIES)
THE RHIND LECTURES IN ARCHÆOLOGY FOR 1880
By JOSEPH ANDERSON, LL.D.
KEEPER OF THE NATIONAL MUSEUM OF THE ANTIQUARIES OF SCOTLAND
.nf-
.il fn=i_343.jpg w=500px ew=90% alt='sample image'
.nf c
EDINBURGH: DAVID DOUGLAS
1881
.nf-
.bn 344.png
.pn a8
.ce
CONTENTS.
.ta r:5 l:40 w=67%
I. |Decorative Metal Work—Brooches.
II.| Decorative Stone Work—Monuments.
III.| The Art of the Monuments.
IV. |The Symbolism of the Monuments.
V. |Inscribed Monuments—in Celtic and Oghams.
VI.| Inscribed Monuments—in Runic and Roman Letters.
.ta-
.ce
Journal of the British Archæological Association.
Scotland in Early Christian Times.—“The Past in the Present has been
rapidly followed by the issue of the book, the title of which stands at the head of
this paragraph. It would be difficult, perhaps, to find two books on archæological
subjects, published in England during the past year, which can compete with these
in the excellence of their production, and the logical and argumental value of their
teaching.”
.il fn=i_344.jpg w=400px ew=70% cw=110%
.ca DANIEL IN THE DEN OF LIONS—JONAH (1) CAST INTO THE SEA; (2) DISGORGED BY\
THE WHALE; (3) REPOSING UNDER THE GOURD.
.bn 345.png
.pn a9
.sp 2
.nf c
RHIND LECTURES.
Now ready, in One Vol. 8vo, 372 pp., with 148 Woodcuts, price 15s.
THE
PAST IN THE PRESENT:
WHAT IS CIVILISATION?
BY ARTHUR MITCHELL, M.D., LL.D.
.nf-
.il fn=i_345.jpg w=400px ew=80%
.ca Page 169.]
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EDINBURGH: DAVID DOUGLAS
1880
.nf-
.bn 346.png
.pn a10
.sp 2
.ce
CONTENTS.
.ta r:5 l:40 w=66%
I. |The Spindle and Whorl.
II.|Craggans and Querns, etc.
III.| Beehive Houses, etc.
IV.| Cave Life.
V.| Stone, Bronze, and Iron Ages.
VI.| Superstitions.
.ta-
.il fn=i_346a.jpg w=450px ew=85%
.ca CART WITHOUT WHEELS.
.ce
The Nation, New York.
“The early portion of the work, devoted to an account of the primitive manners and customs
of the Scotch islanders, their implements, houses, and superstitions, is an attempt made, on
historical grounds, to prove the futility of the reasoning which attaches to archæological finds an
immense antiquity, and to demonstrate the existence already in the Stone Age of an intellectual
culture perhaps equal to that of the present day.”
.ce
Saturday Review.
“Few more interesting Archæological works have lately been published than the ten ‘Rhind
Lectures’ which make up Dr. Mitchell’s Volume, ‘The Past in the Present.’ We must thank him
heartily for the manner and the method of his book, for the curious and valuable facts which he
has collected from personal observation, and for the admirable woodcuts which adorn as well as
illustrate his volume.”
.il fn=i_346b.jpg w=400px ew=80%
.bn 347.png
.pn a11
.sp 2
.nf c
In One Vol. Royal 8vo, with Maps, Plans, and numerous Illustrations
in Wood-Engraving and Chromolithography.
RESEARCHES
AND
EXCAVATIONS AT CARNAC
(MORBIHAN)
THE BOSSENNO AND MONT ST. MICHEL
By JAMES MILN
.nf-
.il fn=i_347.jpg w=300px ew=60%
.nf c
EDINBURGH DAVID DOUGLAS
1877
.nf-
.bn 348.png
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In One Vol. Royal 8vo, with Maps, Plans, and numerous Illustrations\
in Wood-Engraving.
EXCAVATIONS AT CARNAC
(BRITTANY)
A RECORD OF ARCHÆOLOGICAL RESEARCHES IN
THE ALIGNMENTS OF KERMARIO
By JAMES MILN
.nf-
.il fn=i_349.jpg w=500px ew=90%
.nf c
EDINBURGH: DAVID DOUGLAS
1881
.nf-
.bn 350.png
.pn a14
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Mr. JAMES MILN’S ARCHÆOLOGICAL WORKS.
EXTRACTS FROM REVIEWS.
.nf-
"Mr. Miln has made some interesting discoveries, and his record of them is simply and modestly
written. He seems to have spared no pains either in making his excavations or in writing and illustrating
an account of them. The Bossenno at Carnac in Brittany was a heap of ruins of Roman buildings,
and though some attention had been already bestowed on the Roman remains of the neighbourhood,
it had not been previously explored. Mr. Miln had thus an opportunity worthy of
an ambitious archæologist, and he succeeded in using it well. He is careful to commit himself to
few theories, and shows coolness and judgment in the presence of the most attractive fields for
speculation. He has brightened his pages, however, by one or two interesting passages on modern
customs among the Breton peasantry which he can trace, as he seems to show, to remains of the
Pagan worship of their half-Romanised ancestors. The nocturnal procession and fête of St. Carnely
are very picturesquely described; and the whole book, considering its subject, is wonderfully
devoid of the dryness we might expect in it."—The Saturday Review.
"We have no space for remarks upon the glass, coins, fragments of iron sword-blades, bronze
statuette of an ox, spurious Samian ware, etc., or upon the excavations at Mont St. Michel of
foundations of a much later date than the preceding. We must refer our readers to the work itself,
from which they will derive much interesting and useful information."—Academy.
.il fn=i_350.jpg w=450px ew=80%
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.bn 351.png
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ICELANDIC SAGAS, Translated by Sir GEORGE DASENT.
.hr 5%
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Two Vols. Demy 8vo, with Maps and Plans, 28s.
THE NJALA SAGA
BURNT NJAL
FROM THE ICELANDIC OF THE NJAL’S SAGA
BY
SIR GEORGE WEBBE DASENT, D.C.L.
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THE GISLI SAGA
GISLI THE OUTLAW
FROM THE ICELANDIC
BY
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Dedicated by special permission to Her Majesty the Queen.
Will shortly be issued in One Vol. Quarto, Half Citron Morocco.
A DESCRIPTIVE CATALOGUE
OF THE
MEDALS OF SCOTLAND
from the Earliest Period to the Present Time
By R W. COCHRAN-PATRICK, M.P.
LL.D. GLAS., LL.B. CANTAB., B.A. EDIN., V.P.S.A. SCOT., F.S.A., MEMBER OF THE
NUMISMATIC SOCIETY OF LONDON, ETC. ETC.
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The object of this Work is to give, as far as possible, a complete series of
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known to exist of the Sovereigns of Scotland, and those of the Sovereigns of
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In Two Vols. 4to, Half Bound in Citron Morocco.
A few Copies may still be had at Five Guineas.
RECORDS
OF THE
COINAGE OF SCOTLAND
From the Earliest Period to the Union
COLLECTED BY
R. W. COCHRAN-PATRICK, M.P.
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ONLY TWO HUNDRED AND FIFTY COPIES PRINTED.
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Uniform with the foregoing, in One Vol. 4to, price 31s. 6d.
EARLY RECORDS
RELATING TO
MINING IN SCOTLAND
COLLECTED BY
R. W. COCHRAN-PATRICK, M.P.
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RECORDS OF THE COINAGE OF SCOTLAND.
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"The future Historians of Scotland will be very fortunate if many parts of their
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"When we say that these two volumes contain more than 770 records, of which
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EARLY RECORDS RELATING TO MINING IN SCOTLAND.
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ARCHÆOLOGICAL ESSAYS
BY THE LATE
SIR JAMES Y. SIMPSON, Bart.
EDITED BY THE LATE
JOHN STUART, LL.D.
AUTHOR OF THE “SCULPTURED STONES OF SCOTLAND.”
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Two Vols. 4to. 21s.
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1. Archæology. | 6. Leprosy and Leper Hospitals.
2. Inchcolm. | 7. Greek Medical Vases.
3. The Cat Stane.| 8. Was the Roman Army provided with Medical Officers?
4. Magical Charm-Stones.| 9. Roman Medicine Stamps, etc. etc.
5. Pyramid of Gizeh.|
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SPECIMEN PAGE.
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SCOTTISH CHARM-STONES. 211
.pm floatimage_e i_357 i_357 'Fig. 17. Clach-na-Bratach.' 200 40 r
"The (then) chief, journeying with his clan to join Brace’s army
before Bannockburn, observed, on his standard being lifted one morning,
a glittering something in a clod of earth hanging to the flagstaff.
It was this stone. He showed it to his followers, and told
them he felt sure its brilliant lights
were a good omen and foretold a
victory—and victory was won on
the hard-fought field of Bannockburn.
"From this time, whenever the
clan was ‘out,’ the Clach-na-Bratach
accompanied it, carried on the
person of the chief, and its varying
hues were consulted by him as to
the fate of battle. On the eve of
Sheriffmuir (13th November 1715), of sad memory, on Struan consulting
the stone as to the fate of the morrow, the large internal
flaw was first observed. The Stuarts were lost—and Clan Donnachaidh
has been declining in influence ever since.
“The virtues of the Clach-na-Bratach are not altogether of a
martial nature, for it cures all manner of diseases in cattle and
horses, and formerly in human beings also, if they drink the water
in which this charmed stone has been thrice dipped by the hands
of Struan.”
The Clach-na-Bratach is a transparent, globular mass of rock-crystal,
of the size of a small apple. (See accompanying woodcut, Fig.
17.) Its surface has been artificially polished. Several specimens of
round rock-crystal, of the same description and size, and similarly
.bn 358.png
.pn a22
.il fn=i_358.jpg w=500px ew=90%
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WORKS BY WILLIAM F. SKENE
HISTORIOGRAPHER-ROYAL FOR SCOTLAND.
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THE FOUR ANCIENT BOOKS OF WALES
CONTAINING THE CYMRIC POEMS ATTRIBUTED TO THE BARDS OF
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With Maps and Facsimiles, Two Vols. 8vo, 36s.
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In Three Vols. 45s., Illustrated with Maps.
I.—HISTORY AND ETHNOLOGY.\ \ \ II.—CHURCH AND CULTURE.
III.—LAND AND PEOPLE.
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As a work of historical research it ought in our opinion to take a very high rank."—Times.
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CHRONICLES OF THE PICTS
CHRONICLES OF THE SCOTS
AND OTHER EARLY MEMORIALS OF SCOTTISH HISTORY.
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‘A BUSHEL OF CORN’
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Two Vols. Demy 8vo, 19s. 6d.
SOCIAL LIFE IN FORMER DAYS
CHIEFLY IN THE PROVINCE OF MORAY
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LATE CAPTAIN 21ST FUSILIERS
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LINDORES ABBEY
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F.S.A. Scot.
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BY THE LATE
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BISHOP OF BRECHIN
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ECCLESIOLOGICAL NOTES
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THE
HISTORY OF LIDDESDALE
ESKDALE, EWESDALE, WAUCHOPEDALE
AND THE
DEBATEABLE LAND
Part I. from the Twelfth Century to 1530
BY
ROBERT BRUCE ARMSTRONG
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Scottish Borderers under English Assurance, Injuries inflicted
by the English and by Scottish Borderers under English Assurance
from September 1543 to June 1544, Interesting Letters and a
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an English Official, etc. etc.
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Footnotes
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Transcriber’s Note
The very few errors deemed most likely to be the printer’s have been
corrected, and are noted here.
The references are to the page and line in the original.
.ta l:8 l:46 l:12 w=90%
| Thus we are told that[ a] great store of goods | Inserted.
| is found in these British Islands along.[”] | Added.
.ta-
Corrections to footnotes are denoted by page, resequenced note number, and line.
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| Memoires de la [Societe/Société] Royale des Antiquaires du Nord:| Corrected.
| issued[.] | Added.
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