Michael Stratigos Talk

A couple of things following last night's talk by Michael......

I'm wondering if Crannogs would make an interesting NOSAS project once we emerge from lockdown. We know the area. We've already identified several lochs that have crannog-like islands in them. There are the crannog-like mounds in the Beauly Firth, not all of which were investigated by Alex Hale in the 90's. We'd need some underwater help though. In that context this is what Claire offered online last night: "Please do feel free to contact me if you would like some diving help on any projects and I will see if I can put you in touch with a local diving team. Claire Hallybone clairehallybone@hotmail.com".

This is the list of what Michael identified as Blundell's crannog research legacy/questions: 1) Diving and a systematic approach 2) Identifying new crannogs 3) Are they artificial or not? 4) What's the chronology/dating? 5) Involve the public in the archaeology (that's NOSAS & ARCH & lots of other community groups)

And this too is gleaned from his talk. These are Michael's research questions: 1) What is the chronological relationship between crannogs and terrestial settlement? 2) Is there a recognisable pattern to the adoption of different Iron Age architecture on top of crannogs? 3) Is there a recognisable pattern to crannog construction methods and resource use (ie timber versus stone, pile driven or packwork mound, oak/alder versus pine/birch)?

So, lots to be thinking about.... What do you think?

I should there's another linear shoal visible in Lochindorb on the Pastmap AP layer at NH 96997 36013 which is perhaps less convincing as a crannog.

Below is Michael's reading list from the talk

Blundell, O. 1909. Notice of the Examination, by means of a Diving-dress, of the Artificial Island, or Crannog, of Eilean Muireach, in the South End of Loch Ness. Proceedings of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland 43 (1908-1909): 159-64. journals.socantscot.org/index.php/psas/article/view/7142

Blundell, O. 1910. On Further Examination of Artificial Islands in the Beauly Firth, Loch Bruiach, Loch Moy, Loch Garry, Loch Lundy, Loch Oich, Loch Lochy, and Loch Treig. Proceedings of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland 44 (1909-1910): 12-33. journals.socantscot.org/index.php/psas/article/view/7171

Blundell, O. 1913. Further Notes on the Artificial Islands in the Highland Area. Proceedings of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland 47 (1912-1913): 257-302. journals.socantscot.org/index.php/psas/article/view/7289

Blundell. O. 1907. Ancient Catholic Homes of Scotland. London: Burns and Oates.
archive.org/details/ancientcatholich00blun/page/n5/mode/2up

Blundell, O. 1909. The Catholic Highlands of Scotland vol. 1. Edinburgh: Sands. archive.org/details/thecatholichighl01blunuoft/page/n9/mode/2up

Blundell, O. 1917. The Catholic Highlands of Scotland vol. 2. Edinburgh: Sands.
archive.org/details/catholichighland02blunuoft/mode/2up

Blundell, O. 1925. Old Catholic Lancashire vol 1. London: Burns and Oates.

Blundell, O. 1938. Old Catholic Lancashire vol 2. London: Burns, Oates & Washbourne.

Blundell, O. 1941. Old Catholic Lancashire vol 3. London: Burns, Oates & Washbourne.

Cavers, G. and Crone, A. 2018. A Lake Dwelling in its Landscape: Iron Age Settlement at Cults Loch, Castle Kennedy, Dumfries & Galloway. Oxford: Oxbow Books.

Crone, A. and Cavers, G. 2010. Eaderloch Crannog, Loch Treig, Lochaber, technical report, publication report and survey. AOC Archaeology Ltd. report to Historic Scotland. <http://her.highland.gov.uk/hbsmrgatewayhighland/DataFiles/LibraryLinkFiles/285212.pdf>, last accessed, 09/01/2017/

Crone, A., Cavers, G., Allison, E., Davies, K., Hamilton, W.D., Henderson, A., Mackay, H., McLaren, D., Robertson, J., Roy, L. and Whitehouse, N. 2019. Nasty, Brutish and Short?; The Life Cycle of an Iron Age Roundhouse at Black Loch of Myrton, SW Scotland. Journal of Wetland Archaeology 18(2): 138-62. doi.org/10.1080/14732971.2019.1576413

Dixon, N. 2004. The crannogs of Scotland: an underwater archaeology. Stroud: Tempus Publishing Ltd. ((Contains report on Lochindorb survey pp. 78-83))

Fraser, H. 1917. Investigation of the Artificial Island in Loch Kinellan, Strathpeffer. With a Report on the Bones and on the Pottery. Proceedings of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland 51 (2016-2017): 48-98.

Fraser, H. 1918. Artificial islands in the Dingwall District', Trans Inverness Sci Soc Fld Club Vol. 8 1912-18: 231-62.

Garrow, D. and Sturt, F. 2019. Neolithic crannogs: rethinking settlement, monumentality and deposition in the Outer Hebrides and beyond. Antiquity 93(369): 664-84. doi.org/10.15184/aqy.2019.41

Grigor, J. 1863. Notice of the Remains of Two Ancient Lake Dwellings or Crannoges, in the Loch of the Clans, on the Estate of James Rose, of Kilravock, Nairnshire, with a Plan. Proceedings of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland 5 (1862-1864): 116-9. journals.socantscot.org/index.php/psas/article/view/5116

Grigor, J. 1865. Further Explorations of the Ancient Lake Dwellings in the Loch of the Clans, on the Estate of Kilravock, Nairnshire. Proceedings of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland 5 (1862-1864): 332-5. journals.socantscot.org/index.php/psas/article/view/5145

Hale, A. 2001. Marine crannogs: previous work and recent surveys. Proceedings of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland 130: 537-58. journals.socantscot.org/index.php/psas/article/view/9531

Hale, A. 2004. Scottish marine crannogs. Oxford: British Archaeological Reports, British Series 369.

Michie, J G 1910[2010]. Loch Kinnord: Its History and Antiquities. Ballater: Deeside Books.

Ritchie, J. 1942. The lake-dwelling, or crannog in Eadarloch, Loch Treig: its traditions and its construction. Proceedings of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland 76 (1941-1942): 8-78. journals.socantscot.org/index.php/psas/article/view/8170

Shelley, M. 2009. Freshwater Scottish loch settlements of the Late Medieval and Early Modern periods; with particular reference to northern Stirlingshire, central and northern Perthshire, northern Angus, Loch Awe and Loch Lomond. PhD thesis, University of Edinburgh.

Shelley, M. 2011. Timothy Pont and the Freshwater Loch Settlements of Late Medieval and Early Modern Mainland Scotland. Scottish Geographical Journal 127(2): 108-16.

Stratigos, M., & Noble, G. 2018. A new chronology for crannogs in north-east Scotland. Proceedings of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland, 147: 147-73. doi.org/10.9750/PSAS.147.1254

Stratigos, M.J. (forthcoming in 2021). ‘Island Dwellings at 60° North: New evidence for crannogs in Iron Age Shetland’. Oxford Journal of Archaeology.

Stratigos, M.J. (forthcoming in 2021). ‘Rev Odo Blundell’s investigation of Eilean Muireach, Loch Ness, Scotland’ in Campbell, P., Flemming, N. and Taneisha, T. (eds.). Antiquities under the sea: Forerunners in the exploration of underwater archaeology. Leiden: Sidestone Press.

Stratigos, M. & Noble, G. (forthcoming in 2021). ‘Building crannogs in the 9th–12th centuries AD in northern Scotland: An old tradition in a new landscape’ in Theune, C. and Dixon, P (eds) Proceedings of RURALIA XIII; Stirling, Scotland, October 2019. Leiden: Sidetone Press.



Highland Crannog Reading List.docx (15.04 KB)

The top of the Clashmore crannog is always above water because of the C19th draining that Malcolm mentioned. Its also very close to the land and when the loch level is low its easy to walk across on what is left of a causeway. So we could get across, open one trench, remove rubble and find a stone walled roundhouse, which appeared to have been modified to reduce its size. We found a little iron slag. We had planned 4 days on the site but had to give up on day three. It rained heavily all night and through the day and the loch level rose flooding the trench. As a final act we dug out a spadeful of material below the water level and Graeme took it off to AOC labs. It included the top level of floor material as hoped and produced the dates Michael mentioned. The site was inaccessible for several days after that.
The advantage of the site was material above water, proximity to land & easy access for conventional dig and because the drainage of the loch was nearly 200 years earlier, little danger of encountering large amounts of waterlogged structure that would need a lot of conservation. We confirmed it was an IA crannog, that it had a roundhouse which had been modified and the last phase of occupation was a few decades either side of year 0 and that iron was being processed somehere nearby. Not a lot but nevertheless quite significant.