Atlas of Hillforts of Britain and Ireland

SC2647 Ogle Hill, Perthshire

Satellite Imagery

Satellite Imagery

HER:  Perth and Kinross Heritage Trust MPK1419 (None)

NMR:  NN 91 SE 3 (26068)

SM:  3073

NGR:  NN 9694 1148

X:  296940  Y:  711480  (OSGB36)

Summary

This fort is situated on the summit of Ogle Hill, which lies at the foot of the N spur of Coul Hill, and though it has been noted on three occasions, by David Christison (1900, 72, 73, fig 29), RCAHMS (in 1956) and the OS (in 1967), there is some doubt as to the exact composition of its defences. Nevertheless, it is oval on plan, and probably measures about 30m from E to W by 20m transversely (0.05) within the remains of a wall reduced to little more than a band of stony debris. In addition to this inner wall, there are up to two outer lines of defence, though whether these both encircle the whole summit is unclear. Where best-preserved, in the saddle on the E, they comprise earthen ramparts with external ditches, but on the flanks of the hill they are reduced to scarps. The position of the entrance is unknown and the interior has been obscured by trees since the mid 19th century, and though now in a clearing is partly encumbered by scrub and bracken. An evaluation trench was excavated across the defences in 2015 (Poller 2015).

Status

Citizen Science:  ✗

Reliability of Data:  Confirmed

Reliability of Interpretation:  Confirmed

Location

X:  -408138  Y:  7615281  (EPSG: 3857)

Longitude:  -3.6663638891228305  Latitude:  56.284597008134945  (EPSG:4326)

Country:  Scotland

Current County or Unitary Authority:  Perth & Kinross

Historic County:  Perthshire

Current Parish/Community/Council/Townland:  Auchterarder

Monument Condition

None

Condition:
Extant   ✓
Cropmark   ✗
Likely Destroyed   ✗

Land Use

Clearing

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:  245.0m

Boundary

N/A


Dating Evidence

No dating evidence is yet available from the excavations across 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:   Planted with trees in the 19th century

Evidence:No related records

Investigation History

None

Investigations:
1st Identified Map Depiction (1860):   Annotated Roman Outpost in Roman type on the 1st edition OS 25-inch map (Perth and Clackmannan 1866, sheet 118.7)
Earthwork Survey (1899):   Sketch-plan and description by David Christison (1900, 72, 73 fig 29)
Other (1956):   Description for RCAHMS Survey of Marginal Lands
Other (1967):   Resurveyed at 1:2500 by the OS
Other (1971):   Scheduled
Earthwork Survey (2015):   By RCAHMS (SC1501061 & SC1501067)
Geophysical Survey (2015):   By Tessa Poller
Excavation (2015):   Evaluation by Tessa Poller (2015)

Interior Features

Featureless

Water Source

None

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

Surface

None

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

NO APPARENT FEATURES

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

Entrances

None known

Total Number of Breaks Through Ramparts:  
0:   None

Number of Possible Original Entrances:  
2:   Not known

Guard Chambers:  ✗

Chevaux de Frise:  ✗

Entrances:No related records

Enclosing Works

Wall and two outer ramparts with ditches

Enclosed Area:
Area 1:   0.05ha.
Total:   0.05ha.

Total Footprint Area:  Noneha.

Ramparts

None

Multi-period Enclosure System:
✗   None

Ramparts Form a Continuous Circuit:
✓   None

Number of Ramparts:  
NE Quadrant:   3
SE Quadrant:   3
SW Quadrant:   3
NW Quadrant:   3
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:
✓   Accompanying the outer defences

Number of Ditches:  2

Annex:
✗   None

References

Christison, D (1900) 'The forts, "camps", and other field-works of Perth, Forfar and Kincardine'. Proc Soc Antiq Scot 34 (1899-1900), 43-120

Poller, T (2015) Ogle Hill Excavations 2015; Data Structure Report. Available at https://www.gla.ac.uk/schools/humanities/research/archaeologyresearch/projects/serf/furtherinformation/



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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