Atlas of Hillforts of Britain and Ireland

SC2614 Mid Torrie, 'The Auld Knowe', Perthshire (Wester Torrie; Callander)

Satellite Imagery

Satellite Imagery

HER:  Stirling 293 (None)

NMR:  NN 60 SE 1 (24378)

SM:  3199

NGR:  NN 6526 0480

X:  265260  Y:  704800  (OSGB36)

Summary

What may be the remains of a fort enclose an elongated ridge that rises above the river terrace on the S bank of the River Teith. The rampart, which is largely reduced to a scarp but is accompanied by an external ditch cut through the rock on the spine of the ridge on the NW, can be traced on an irregular course around the gentler flanks on the SE, SW and NW to enclose an area measuring a maximum of 70m from NW to SE by 38m transversely (0.19ha). At the SE end an outer rampart encloses a further area of about 0.08ha on a lower terrace. The ramparts have been severely mutilated and several tracks cut through them on the SE, the SSW and the W. That on the SSW is evidently later, and while the gap on the W is set in a shallow re-entrant, the one running up the spine of the ridge through gaps in both ramparts on the ESE is quite likely to mark the position of the original entrance. Within the interior, on the very summit of the ridge, there is a probable dun or broch, though its wall is now reduced to a grass-grown mound enclosing an area about 15m in maximum diameter. The interior of the fort is otherwise featureless.

Status

Citizen Science:  ✗

Reliability of Data:  Confirmed

Reliability of Interpretation:  Unconfirmed

Location

X:  -464685  Y:  7601673  (EPSG: 3857)

Longitude:  -4.1743370050348725  Latitude:  56.21668342603822  (EPSG:4326)

Country:  Scotland

Current County or Unitary Authority:  Stirling

Historic County:  Perthshire

Current Parish/Community/Council/Townland:  Kilmadock

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:  76.0m

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:   A dun or broch has been inserted into the interior, heavy stone robbing

Evidence:No related records

Investigation History

The RCAHMS collection contains oblique aerial photographs taken by: CUCAP; John Dewar in 1971; and RCAHMS Aerial Survey Programme in 1998.

Investigations:
1st Identified Map Depiction (1862):   Annotated Roman Camp in Roman Type on the 1st edition OS 25-inch map (Perth and Clackmannan 1866, sheet 124.6)
Other (1902):   Sketch-plan and description by David Christison (1902)
Other (1957):   Description for RCAHMS Survey of Marginal Lands (RCAHMS)
Earthwork Survey (1960):   Plan (RCAHMS DC5404)
Other (1972):   Scheduled
Other (1978):   Visited during RCAHMS Fieldwork

Interior Features

Featureless apart from the dun or broch

Water Source

None

Source:
None   ✓
Spring   ✗
Stream   ✗
Pool   ✗
Flush   ✗
Well   ✗
Other   ✗

Surface

A dun or broch

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

The dun or broch

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:  
3:   None

Number of Possible Original Entrances:  
2:   None

Guard Chambers:  ✗

Chevaux de Frise:  ✗

Entrances:
1. Simple Gap (South east):   None

Enclosing Works

Single rampart extending round the ridge, with an ecternal ditch at one end and an outer rampart at the other

Enclosed Area:
Area 1:   0.19ha.
Total:   0.19ha.

Total Footprint Area:  Noneha.

Ramparts

None

Multi-period Enclosure System:
✗   None

Ramparts Form a Continuous Circuit:
✗   None

Number of Ramparts:  
NE Quadrant:   0
SE Quadrant:   2
SW Quadrant:   1
NW Quadrant:   1
Total:   2

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

Christison, D (1902) 'Notices of an ancient fort and stone circle at Wester Torrie, near Callander, Perthshire'. Proc Soc Antiq Scot 36 (1901-2), 614-18



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


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