Scheduled Monument

Dun Scolpaig, dun (site of) and towerSM7640

Status: Designated

Documents

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

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

Summary

Date Added
23/03/1998
Supplementary Information Updated
28/02/2023
Type
Prehistoric domestic and defensive: dun, Secular: folly
Local Authority
Na h-Eileanan Siar
Planning Authority
Na h-Eileanan Siar
Parish
North Uist
NGR
NF 73103 75029
Coordinates
73103, 875029

Description

The monument consists of the site of a dun, represented today by a circular island in Loch Scolpaig, formed with material from the demolished structure around 1830 (and certainly before 1837), when Dr Alexander Macleod erected a folly in its place as a means of providing employment for local people. According to tradition, the dun had been occupied in medieval times by Donald Herroch, a descendant of one of the lords of the Isles.

The folly stands at the centre of the island. It is octagonal in plan, with two stages defined by string courses, topped by crenellations. The ground floor has a south-facing doorway and an opening in each of the other three alternate faces, while the upper stage has an opening in each face. The door and openings all have pointed heads. The building is now a roofless shell.

The area to be scheduled is circular, 33.5m in diameter, and includes the tower, the island and an area below water extending 3m out from the edge of the island, as shown in red on the accompanying map extract.

Statement of National Importance

The monument is of national importance because it represents the site of a later prehistoric/early medieval dun, which because of the circumstances of its destruction is likely to retain significant structural and cultural remains below ground (and below water), which is thus available for further investigation and study through archaeological excavation.

As such it has the potential to shed further light on the material culture and society of Scotland in the later prehistoric and medieval periods. The monument's importance is further enhanced by the erection on it of an early 19th-century folly, which although of only minor architectural interest in itself, contributes to an understanding of the social history of the period.

References

Bibliography

NRHE records the monument as NF77NW6

Beveridge, E (1911) North Uist: its archaeology and topography, with notes upon the early history of the Outer Hebrides, Edinburgh, 193.

NSA (1837) XIV, 170-71.

RCAHMS (1928) The Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments and Constructions of Scotland. Ninth report with inventory of monuments and constructions in the Outer Hebrides, Skye and the Small Isles, Edinburgh, 97, No. 322.

About Scheduled Monuments

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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Printed: 29/03/2024 00:30