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MHG64533 - Turf-built structure - Loch Poll

Summary

A small turf-built structure.

Type and Period (1)

Protected Status

Full Description

A rapid pre-afforestation survey by Headland Archaeology Ltd, was undertaken in 1997 at Cona Chreag on the Stoer Common Grazings, near Lochinver.

This is an extensive and structurally diverse settlement. It comprises elements of stone and stone-and-turf construction and structures and enclosures of various sizes. The presence of a substantial head-dyke (Site 4a), lazy-bed cultivation (Site 4i), areas of adjacent (and presumably contemporary) peat-cutting and possibly corn-drying (Site 4d) clearly imply that this is unlikely to represent the remains of a shieling settlement. The evidence of the clearance cairns (Sites 2, 4b, 4 c & 4f) and the adjacent areas of old pasture would point to the same conclusion. The place-name evidence, presumably preserved in the loch name, Loch Poll, would also suggest that the settlement is possibly of some antiquity. Derived from the Old Norse bolstadr (farm), and preserved in its Gaelic-Scandinavian hybrid form (boll /poll /pool / bo), the name remained a creative name-forming element for a considerable time and was used wherever permanent settlements were formed by the Norse: Nicolaisen (1976, 92), for example, has considered the bolstadr distribution as 'the map of Norse settlement in the Northern and Western Isles and adjacent mainland when such settlement was at its most extensive and Norse power at its height'. The settlement remains on the side of Loch Poll, potentially, have a very early origin indeed. The date of its abandonment is not known, although a clearance-period date might be assumed.

Site 4k: Turf structure. A small turf-built structure, 3.5 x 2.9 m inside a low bank, 0.3 m high and 0.7 - 0.9 m wide, is located to the south-east of Site 4j and is similarly located outwith the head-dyke. No trace of an entrance could be discerned. The structure is covered in bracken but is nonetheless well defined and clearly visible. <1>

NGR adjusted based on 2020 vertical aerial photographs. <2>

Sources/Archives (2)

Map

Location

Grid reference	Centred NC 1005 2961 (8m by 8m) (2 map features)
Map sheet	NC12NW
Geographical Area	SUTHERLAND
Civil Parish	ASSYNT

Finds (0)

Related Monuments/Buildings (1)

Related Investigations/Events (1)

External Links (1)