Featured: Friendly specialist tours to ancient, mystical and historical sites in the UK and beyond

Friendly specialist tours to ancient, mystical and historical sites in the UK and beyond

Solving Stonehenge, the new key to an ancient enigma

Solving Stonehenge, the new key to an ancient enigma

Who's Online

There are currently, 329 guests and 0 members online.

You are a guest. To join in, please register for free by clicking here

Sponsors

<< Our Photo Pages >> Creag Bhreac Cairn - Cairn in Scotland in Cowal

Submitted by Iain_P on Saturday, 19 August 2017  Page Views: 2796

Neolithic and Bronze AgeSite Name: Creag Bhreac Cairn
Country: Scotland County: Cowal Type: Cairn
Nearest Town: Dunoon  Nearest Village: Innellan
Map Ref: NS1495571532
Latitude: 55.901228N  Longitude: 4.961428W
Condition:
5Perfect
4Almost Perfect
3Reasonable but with some damage
2Ruined but still recognisable as an ancient site
1Pretty much destroyed, possibly visible as crop marks
0No data.
-1Completely destroyed
3 Ambience:
5Superb
4Good
3Ordinary
2Not Good
1Awful
0No data.
4 Access:
5Can be driven to, probably with disabled access
4Short walk on a footpath
3Requiring a bit more of a walk
2A long walk
1In the middle of nowhere, a nightmare to find
0No data.
2 Accuracy:
5co-ordinates taken by GPS or official recorded co-ordinates
4co-ordinates scaled from a detailed map
3co-ordinates scaled from a bad map
2co-ordinates of the nearest village
1co-ordinates of the nearest town
0no data
5

Internal Links:
External Links:

Creag Bhreac Cairn
Creag Bhreac Cairn submitted by Iain_P : The view after clearance, showing the position of the quartz (Vote or comment on this photo)
This is a fascinating Cairn in Argyll, due mainly to an unusual quartz crystal foundation stone supporting the western slab in the semicircular forecourt of the burial mound. The mound itself was pretty much hidden under waist high ferns, and I only spotted the slabs when I was actually standing in the semi-circle.

Thank goodness for GPS devices. How did people do it before? Here's the 10 figure reference in case you go there and find this as tricky as I did: NS 14955 71532. You will get very wet and muddy...

It's a scheduled monument, only discovered in 1991, and the HES site says:"The cairn is crescentic on plan and measures 5m from E to W by 3.5m transversely, with a forecourt of six upright slabs (up to 0.6m high) opening onto the N." And " The monument is of national importance because of its as yet unique form and for its potential to contribute to our understanding of prehistoric burial practice of presumed late Neolithic/early Bronze Age date."

The semicircle was just visible in the overgrowth (see first image, taken facing South, with the Western slab marked in blue). I attempted to clear the site a little to better photograph it and as I pulled at the grass, a "mat" of heather and moss lifted to show a huge quartz rock crystal acting as a foundation/support for the Western slab. The crystal foundation is not mentioned in the original entry for the investigation of the site nor in any other reports I can find online.

[Pdf downloadable here: Rennie, E B. (1991h) The Tom, Innellan (Dunoon & Kilmun parish): cairn', Discovery Excav Scot, 1991. Page(s): 54-5 Fig 20]

There's the suspicion that it's a modern stone placed there recently. I can't say for sure as I didn't want to start digging but it certainly seemed to be wedged in tight against the stone, and was definitely under the surface, though difficult to know how much was underground. I still had to pull away a lot of matted material under the "flap" to see even the top properly - I guess the top was some 25cm across - so if it was put there in recent times it was some time ago, and would have taken quite an effort, and it's in a very isolated area.

The Canmore entry gives more information and several photographs and says: "The site was revisited and photographed by David Dorren in May 2010." but there's no mention of, or image of, the quartz. I've sent this observation to HES and will post any developments here.
You may be viewing yesterday's version of this page. To see the most up to date information please register for a free account.


Creag Bhreac Cairn
Creag Bhreac Cairn submitted by Iain_P : A wider view of the cairn, facing South (Vote or comment on this photo)

Creag Bhreac Cairn
Creag Bhreac Cairn submitted by Iain_P : Just one more... Taken from the side, this one more clearly shows the "job" the quartz seems to be doing. It's jammed in right under the slab and appears to act as a support for it. (Vote or comment on this photo)

Creag Bhreac Cairn
Creag Bhreac Cairn submitted by Iain_P : Looking down on the slab and rock. This view gives the impression that the quartz is resting against the slab, but in fact it's under it, and wedged in tightly against the base (or near base) of the slab as if supporting the slab in its vertical position (Vote or comment on this photo)

Creag Bhreac Cairn
Creag Bhreac Cairn submitted by Iain_P : The quartz close up (1 comment - Vote or comment on this photo)

Creag Bhreac Cairn
Creag Bhreac Cairn submitted by Iain_P : A closer view (Vote or comment on this photo)

Creag Bhreac Cairn
Creag Bhreac Cairn submitted by Iain_P : A close up view of the semicircle before clearing away loose vegitation

Do not use the above information on other web sites or publications without permission of the contributor.
Click here to see more info for this site

Nearby sites

Click here to view sites on an interactive OS map

Key: Red: member's photo, Blue: 3rd party photo, Yellow: other image, Green: no photo - please go there and take one, Grey: site destroyed

Download sites to:
KML (Google Earth)
GPX (GPS waypoints)
CSV (Garmin/Navman)
CSV (Excel)

To unlock full downloads you need to sign up as a Contributory Member. Otherwise downloads are limited to 50 sites.


Turn off the page maps and other distractions

Nearby sites listing. In the following links * = Image available
 6.8km E 95° Everton Cist Cist (NS2170070611)
 6.9km ESE 109° Blood Moss Cist C Cist (NS2140068970)
 7.2km ESE 113° Craigengowr Cist Cist (NS2142168420)
 7.3km ESE 108° Blood Moss Cist A Cist (NS2180068940)
 7.3km SE 139° Skelmorlie Serpent Mound Artificial Mound (NS195658)
 7.3km ESE 109° Blood Moss Cist B Cist (NS2178068830)
 8.2km E 92° Daff Cup Mark Rock Art (NS23177092)
 8.6km N 6° Ardnadam Chambered Cairn (NS16188003)
 9.1km ESE 117° Back o' the World Cup Marks Rock Art (NS2286067030)
 9.1km ENE 59° Larkfield Moor* Rock Art (NS22957591)
 9.5km ESE 108° Back o' the World Cairn A Cairn (NS2386068222)
 10.0km SW 216° St Mary's Well (Rothsay)* Holy Well or Sacred Spring (NS0866763750)
 10.1km E 92° Crawhin Hill 2 Rock Art (NS25107083)
 10.2km SE 146° Knock Hill Fort Hillfort (NS20286286)
 10.2km SW 216° Townhead Neolithic Settlement Ancient Village or Settlement (NS086635)
 10.2km SW 235° Dun Burgidale* Stone Fort or Dun (NS0627766051)
 10.3km E 87° Crawhin Hill 1 Rock Art (NS2526071679)
 10.4km ESE 110° Back o' the World Cairn B Cairn (NS2455767532)
 10.5km WSW 242° Acholter* Standing Stone (Menhir) (NS0546466961)
 10.7km E 90° Garvock 2 Rock Art (NS2565971070)
 10.7km E 89° Garvock 1 Rock Art (NS2569971200)
 10.9km SW 221° Craigberoch* Standing Stone (Menhir) (NS0745263652)
 10.9km WSW 244° Colmac Bridge* Standing Stone (Menhir) (NS0491367160)
 10.9km E 99° Garvock Hill Cairn B Cairn (NS2573369442)
 11.0km E 99° Garvock Hill Cairn C Cairn (NS2571769290)
View more nearby sites and additional images

<< Rockcliffe (Cumbria)

Castlehill Wood Dun >>

Please add your thoughts on this site

Ritual and Domestic Life in Prehistoric Europe, Bradley

Ritual and Domestic Life in Prehistoric Europe, Bradley

Sponsors

Auto-Translation (Google)

Translate from English into:

"Creag Bhreac Cairn" | Login/Create an Account | 2 News and Comments
  
Go back to top of page    Comments are owned by the poster. We aren't responsible for their content.
Re: Creag Bhreac Cairn by Iain_P on Tuesday, 08 August 2017
(User Info | Send a Message)
Thanks Runemage that's really interesting. I must admit I was completely transfixed by this piece, partly because it was under the surface and I felt like I'd uncovered some special "find" and also because it looked so brilliant and bright in contrast to the dull background of mud and grey stone.
[ Reply to This ]

Re: Creag Bhreac Cairn by Runemage on Monday, 07 August 2017
(User Info | Send a Message)
What a lovely piece of quartz it is too Iain. Natural pieces like that often aren't seen as different enough to include in many archaeological reports, because quartz is such a common find and it's often part of the bedrock, so not something brought from miles away.

I'd doubt if it was a later addition, the New Age fad for burying crystals at sites was fortunately short-lived and tended to consist of a few tumbled semi precious gemstones or lasercut and shaped individual crystal points, rather than natural lumps like the one you've found, which are far too heavy to transport very far in any quantity in a rucksack.

I'm not familiar with the geology of that area, but for example at Cairnholy2, I found some natural bedrock quartz lumps by a tree near the site http://www.megalithic.co.uk/modules.php?op=modload&name=a312&file=index&do=showpic&pid=73106

Quartz is found in varying quantities at many neolithic sites, sometimes in lumps like the one you've found, sometimes in a scatter of much smaller pieces, sometimes incorporated into the rocks used to construct a site as white seams or sometimes little individual crystals.
Menhir de grionnais http://www.megalithic.co.uk/modules.php?op=modload&name=a312&file=index&do=showpic&pid=52679

Occasionally, quartz or quartzite is used to make the entire site, e.g. Roche a trois pieds http://www.megalithic.co.uk/modules.php?op=modload&name=a312&file=index&do=showpic&pid=59261
Duloe http://www.megalithic.co.uk/modules.php?op=modload&name=a312&file=index&do=showpic&pid=68671
and sometimes as a pavement, the Newgrange controversy still has supporters for both sides, were the quartz boulders used to face the sides of the monument, or were they a pavement or courtyard outside the entrance? http://www.megalithic.co.uk/modules.php?op=modload&name=a312&file=index&do=showpic&pid=97313
Rune - quartz nerd.
[ Reply to This ]

Your Name: Anonymous [ Register Now ]
Subject:


Add your comment or contribution to this page. Spam or offensive posts are deleted immediately, don't even bother

<<< What is five plus one as a number? (Please type the answer to this question in the little box on the left)
You can also embed videos and other things. For Youtube please copy and paste the 'embed code'.
For Google Street View please include Street View in the text.
Create a web link like this: <a href="https://www.megalithic.co.uk">This is a link</a>  

Allowed HTML is:
<p> <b> <i> <a> <img> <em> <br> <strong> <blockquote> <tt> <li> <ol> <ul> <object> <param> <embed> <iframe>

We would like to know more about this location. Please feel free to add a brief description and any relevant information in your own language.
Wir möchten mehr über diese Stätte erfahren. Bitte zögern Sie nicht, eine kurze Beschreibung und relevante Informationen in Deutsch hinzuzufügen.
Nous aimerions en savoir encore un peu sur les lieux. S'il vous plaît n'hesitez pas à ajouter une courte description et tous les renseignements pertinents dans votre propre langue.
Quisieramos informarnos un poco más de las lugares. No dude en añadir una breve descripción y otros datos relevantes en su propio idioma.