Atlas of Hillforts of Britain and Ireland

SC3306 Castle Law, Roxburghshire

LiDAR 1m DTM Hillshade

LiDAR 1m DTM Hillshade

Satellite Imagery

Satellite Imagery

Scroll left/right to view further images.

HER:  Scottish Borders 55395 (None)

NMR:  NT 51 SW 7 (55395)

SM:  None

NGR:  NT 5093 1242

X:  350930  Y:  612420  (OSGB36)

Summary

This fort is situated on the hillock forming the NW end of a ridge that rises SE into Newfield Hill, and while the approach from the SE is relatively gentle, on the NW and SW the ground falls away steeply, on the latter flank down to the E bank of the Slitrig Water. Sub-oval on plan, the fort measures internally about 76m from NE to SW by 45m transversely (0.28ha), but the ramparts have been mutilated by surface quarrying. Nevertheless, three lines can be distinguished on the SW and two elsewhere, the outer accompanied by an internal quarry-ditch. On the SW this outer rampart and ditch swing out wide to allow the insertion of the third rampart, which appears to spring from the inner at its NW and SE ends. There are opposed entrances on the NE and SW, but apart from evidence of quarrying the interior is featureless.

Status

Citizen Science:  

Reliability of Data:  Confirmed

Reliability of Interpretation:  Confirmed

Location

X:  -309071  Y:  7440532  (EPSG: 3857)

Longitude:  -2.7764333127786402  Latitude:  55.40328231802739  (EPSG:4326)

Country:  Scotland

Current County or Unitary Authority:  Scottish Borders

Historic County:  Roxburghshire

Current Parish/Community/Council/Townland:  Cavers

Monument Condition

None

Condition:
Extant  
Cropmark  
Likely Destroyed  

Land Use

None

Current Use:
Woodland  
Commercial Forestry Plantation  
Parkland  
Pasture (Grazing)  
Arable  
Scrub/Bracken  
Bare Outcrop  
Heather/Moorland  
Heath  
Built-up  
Coastal Grassland  
Other  

Landscape

Hillfort Type

None

Type:
Contour Fort  
Partial Contour Fort  
Promontory Fort  
Hillslope Fort  
Level Terrain Fort  
Marsh Fort  
Multiple Enclosure Fort  

Topographic Position

Position:
Hilltop  
Coastal Promontory  
Inland Promontory  
Valley Bottom  
Knoll/Hillock/Outcrop  
Ridge  
Cliff/Plateau-edge/Scarp  
Hillslope  
Lowland  
Spur  

Dominant Topographic Feature:  None

Aspect:
North  
Northeast  
East  
Southeast  
South  
Southwest  
West  
Northwest  
Level  

Altitude:  220.0m

Boundary

N/A


Dating Evidence

In the absence of excavation, there are neither stratified artefacts nor radiocarbon dates to provide a chronology for the defences.

Reliability:  D - None

Principal Activity:
Pre 1200BC  
1200BC - 800BC  
800BC - 400BC  
400BC - AD50  
AD50 - AD400  
AD400 - AD 800  
Post AD800  
Unknown  

Other Activity:
Pre Hillfort:   None
Post Hillfort:   Extensively scarred with surface quarries

Evidence:No related records

Investigation History

None

Investigations:
1st Identified Map Depiction (1858):   Annotated Camp in Roman type on the 1st edition OS 25-inch map ()
Other (1948):   Description (RCAHMS 1956, 107, no.149)
Other (1965):   Revised at 1:2500 by the OS

Interior Features

Featureless apart from later surface quarries

Water Source

None

Source:
None  
Spring  
Stream  
Pool  
Flush  
Well  
Other  

Surface

The quarries all appear to be relatively recent

Interior Features (Surface):
No Known Features  
Round Stone Structures  
Rectangular Stone Structures  
Curvilinear Platforms  
Other Roundhouse Evidence  
Pits  
Quarry Hollows  
Other  

Excavation

None

Interior Features (Excavation):
No Known Excavation  
Pits  
Postholes  
Roundhouses  
Rectangular Structures  
Roads/Tracks  
Quarry Hollows  
Other  
Nothing Found  

Geophysics

None

Interior Features (Geophysics):
No Known Geophysics  
Pits  
Roundhouses  
Rectangular Structures  
Roads/Tracks  
Quarry Hollows  
Other  
Nothing Found  

Finds

None

Interior (Finds):
No Known Finds  
Pottery  
Metal  
Metalworking  
Human Bones  
Animal Bones  
Lithics  
Environmental  
Other  

Aerial

Other than relatively recent quarries

Interior Features (Aerial):
APs Not Checked  
None  
Roundhouses  
Rectangular Structures  
Pits  
Postholes  
Roads/Tracks  
Other  

Entrances

See main summary

Total Number of Breaks Through Ramparts:  
2:   None

Number of Possible Original Entrances:  
2:   None

Guard Chambers:  

Chevaux de Frise:  

Entrances:
1. Simple Gap (North east):   None
2. Simple Gap (South west):   None

Enclosing Works

At least two ramparts and ditches, the outer with a counterscarp bank

Enclosed Area:
Area 1:   0.28ha.
Total:   0.28ha.

Total Footprint Area:  Noneha.

Ramparts

None

Multi-period Enclosure System:
✗   None

Ramparts Form a Continuous Circuit:
✓   None

Number of Ramparts:  
NE Quadrant:   2
SE Quadrant:   2
SW Quadrant:   3
NW Quadrant:   2
Total:   3

Morphology

Current Morphology:
Partial Univallate  
Univallate  
Partial Bivallate  
Bivallate  
Partial Multivallate  
Multivallate  
Unknown  

Detailed Morphology:
Partial Univallate  
Univallate  
Partial Bivallate  
Bivallate  
Partial Multivallate  
Multivallate  

Surface Evidence

None

Enclosing Works (Surface):
None  
Earthen Bank  
Stone Wall  
Rubble  
Wall-walk  
Evidence of Timber  
Vitrification  
Other Burning  
Palisade  
Counter Scarp Bank  
Berm  
Unfinished  
Other  

Excavated Evidence

None

Enclosing Works (Excavation):
None  
Earthen Bank  
Stone Wall  
Murus Duplex  
Timber-framed  
Timber-laced  
Vitrification  
Other Burning  
Palisade  
Counter Scarp Bank  
Berm  
Unfinished  
No Known Excavation  
Other  

Other

Gang Working:
✗   None

Ditches:
✓   None

Number of Ditches:  1

Annex:
✗   None

References

RCAHMS (1956) The Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Scotland. An inventory of the ancient and historical monuments of Roxburghshire: with the fourteenth report of the Commission, 2v. HMSO: Edinburgh



Terms of Use

This work is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0 and should be cited as:

Lock, Gary and Ralston, Ian. 2024. Atlas of Hillforts of Britain and Ireland. Available at: https://hillforts.arch.ox.ac.uk


Document Version 1.1