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Art as Metaphor: The Prehistoric Rock-art of Britain

Art as Metaphor: The Prehistoric Rock-art of Britain

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<< Our Photo Pages >> Na Carraigean Edintean - Stone Circle in Scotland in Perth and Kinross

Submitted by Nick on Tuesday, 04 November 2003  Page Views: 13089

Neolithic and Bronze AgeSite Name: Na Carraigean Edintean Alternative Name: Na Clachan Aoraidh, Edintian
Country: Scotland County: Perth and Kinross Type: Stone Circle

Map Ref: NN839620  Landranger Map Number: 43
Latitude: 56.735152N  Longitude: 3.899414W
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
 4 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.
 3 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
 3

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Na Carraigean Edintean
Na Carraigean Edintean submitted by cosmic : Viewed from East (Vote or comment on this photo)
This excellent little four-poster requires a bit of effort, as it's up the top of a wooded hill, situated a short way above Loch Tummel. The stones form the corners of a 3m square, graded to the SW, where the largest (1.2m tall) stands.

Take the track up Glen Fincastle from the B8019 (the road past Clunie Dam) and walk up into Allean Forest. Surprisingly, the OS map tracks turned out to be relatively accurate this time, which is a bit of a first...

It was a bit misty today, as you will see from the photographs, and I could only make the stones out when I got within around 30m. Pity, as the views are supposed to be pretty spectacular from here. I'll have to wander back on a good day!

One of this site's alternate names is Na Clachan Aoraidh, which means 'the stones of worship'. The site is just to the west of Edintian (another alternate name for the site), a local farm, whose now anglicised name in reality is Aodann an t-Sithein, 'Face of the Fairy Hill', according to Seton ordon's "Highways and Byways in the Central Highlands".

Note: A recent excavation report on this site which was damaged by fire a couple of years ago. Cobbles. Arranged around a pre-existing (sacred?) tree throw. Lots of quartz. Fascinating!
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Na Carraigean Edintean
Na Carraigean Edintean submitted by Graeme : Wednesday 4th November 1400hrs Clear day Discovered by accident, there's no sign or marker, path is rough. (Vote or comment on this photo)

Na Carraigean Edintean
Na Carraigean Edintean submitted by cosmic : Viewed from West (Vote or comment on this photo)

Na Carraigean Edintean
Na Carraigean Edintean submitted by cosmic : Viewed from South (Vote or comment on this photo)

Na Carraigean Edintean
Na Carraigean Edintean submitted by cosmic : Viewed from North (Vote or comment on this photo)

Do not use the above information on other web sites or publications without permission of the contributor.

Nearby Images from Geograph Britain and Ireland:
NN8362 : Stone Circle by Rob Burke
by Rob Burke
©2007(licence)
NN8362 : Na Clachan Aoraidh by Richard Webb
by Richard Webb
©2013(licence)
NN8362 : Na Clachan Aoraidh by Richard Webb
by Richard Webb
©2021(licence)
NN8362 : Na Clachan Aoraidh by Richard Webb
by Richard Webb
©2013(licence)
NN8362 : Na Clachan Aoraidh by Richard Webb
by Richard Webb
©2013(licence)

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"Na Carraigean Edintean" | Login/Create an Account | 4 News and Comments
  
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Na Carraigean Edintean excavation - worth a look! by Andy B on Wednesday, 21 November 2018
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The excavation of Na Clachan Aoraidh, a four poster stone circle in northern Perthshire - Clare Ellis and Matt Ritchie

The stone circle of Na Clachan Aoraidh – the ‘Stones of Worship’ – is set high on the limestone ridge of Cnoc na Craoibhe above Loch Tummel (NN 8386 6200, NN86SW 3). The site is a ‘four poster’ stone circle – a square arrangement of four large stones on a low stone-built circular platform. An illegal bonfire was set within the central hollow of the stone circle, a scheduled monument (SM 1572) on Scotland’s National
Forest Estate. It was unclear from surface observations whether the fire had had a detrimental effect upon any archaeological deposits, and an excavation was commissioned by Forestry Commission Scotland in order to evaluate any damage, and ascertain the extent and nature of the surviving archaeological deposits.

Conclusion (Extract)
The primary aim of the excavation was to determine the extent of damage caused by the illegal bonfire. Physical signs of the bonfire were limited to the topsoil with little or no impact upon the archaeological deposits below. ... A cremation deposit was placed within the hollow of a tree throw and it was around this that the monument was constructed. Whether this is an example of the fortuitous exploitation of a natural hollow or the deliberate placing of a monument over a former significant natural feature in the form of a sacred tree is impossible to determine.

...

There is no evidence to indicate that a funerary pyre was located under the monument, as is clearly the case elsewhere in other Bronze Age burial monuments . Rather, the evidence indicates that the cremation was brought to the site already mixed within a soil rich in ash. ...

Quartz, including two cores that had been burnt, was probably brought to site as part of the funerary pyre deposit. However, a relatively small amount of fractured quartz was also deliberately scattered over the cobble platform of the monument presumably to imbue it with more ‘glitter’ than that afforded by the greyish white psammite cobbles, and perhaps encourage the play of sun and/or moonlight across the monument.

The Late Bronze Age date obtained from the cremation and ash of the central deposit at Na Clachan Aoraidh is intriguing; clearly further dating of a range of these monuments is required in order to better understand their chronology.

Especially see page 36 / 16 - a illustrated storyboard by Alan Braby exploring the archaeological evidence: the community gathering to say farewell to their dead; the deposition of the woman’s ashes and bone fragments in a shallow pit; and the orientation of the later stone circle towards the summer solstice sun rising over the
mountains of Carn Liath and Beinn a’Ghlo in the north-east.

Full report available here:
http://www.tafac.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/v24-EllisRitchie-p21-38.pdf

With thanks to the Tayside And Fife Archaeological Journal who have refreshingly put their journal online
http://www.tafac.org.uk/category/journals/
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The staged deposition of quartz and other lithics within and around a four-poster by Andy B on Wednesday, 21 November 2018
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Na Clachan Aoraidh, Loch Tummel, Perth & Kinross
The staged deposition of quartz and other lithics within and around a four-poster stone circle - Torben Bjarke Ballin

Following the setting of a bonfire within the centre of the stone circle of Na Clachan Aoraidh (NGR:NN 83857 62024), Argyll Archaeology was commissioned by Forestry Commission Scotland to undertake an excavation in order to evaluate any damage that might have occurred to the archaeological deposits as a result of the fire; ascertain the extent and nature of the surviving archaeological deposits; and by doing so, ensure the continued protection of the monument and enhance the historic environment record.

The excavation revealed that the damage caused to the monument by the illegal bonfire was minimal and confined to the topsoil, with no apparent contamination of the underlying archaeological deposits. Excavation also revealed that the stone circle was of simple construction. The monument comprised a thin oval platform of water worn cobbles and four probable contemporary stone orthostats which were arranged around a central pit. The pit contained re-deposited burnt bone mixed with ash and re-deposited soil. The outer portion of the platform was made up of slightly larger cobbles and the whole platform was edged by a single kerb of large water worn cobbles.

The monument appears to have been centred on a tree throw, and the obvious implication is that this was a deliberate act either to exploit a natural hollow and/or memorializing an already ritually significant place previously identifiable by a sacred tree. A previous geophysical survey had identified a number of anomalies and features within the monument and immediately out- with it. However, excavation revealed that the majority of the inferences made from the results of this survey were erroneous, with many of the features identified turning out to be the result of variations in the mineralogy and iron content of the various soils and/or the presence of large swaths of bedrock. The lithic assemblage includes 185 pieces, mainly in quartz, but supplemented by flint and agate. The purpose of the present report is to characterize the site’s lithic artefacts in detail, with special reference to raw-materials, typo-technological attributes, and on-site distribution.

More at
https://www.academia.edu/37811704/ (free registration required to view)
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Re: Na Carraigean Edintean by BigSweetie on Monday, 21 April 2003
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This circle is off the beaten track, so here are directions:

Travel N on the A9 from Perth, turning off at Pitlochry. Continue through the centre of Pitlochry, passing on your right the turn-off to rejoin the A9. The road you are on becomes the B8019. Approximately 2km N of Pitlochry, take a left turn on to the bridge over the River Garry. This road (still the B8019) twists and turns its way alongside the River Tummel, and then Loch Tummel. After approximately 5km, the Queen's View visitor centre is on the left of the road. About 500m further is the Allean Forest car park on the right of the road. Park here.

All the paths and forestry roads that I will mention are marked on the OS map. On a map at the car park, there are two trails shown, one red and one yellow. Neither of these leads to the circle, but you will follow them both part of the way. Start out up the path (marked red and yellow initially), and when the red and yellow trails first seperate, take the yellow trail to the right (a wide forestry road). After approximately 250m, you will see a narrow grassy trail leading up to the left through the trees. Go up this path, which will bring you out onto another main forestry road. Turn right onto this road, which you will follow almost all the way to the circle.

After about 400m, the road doubles back on itself to the left as it starts to climb quite steeply. The next turn, about 200m later, is sharp to the right. The road then curves it's way round the side of Meall na h-Iolaire. You will pass two forestry roads leading off to the right, one about 1.0km from the sharp right turn, the other a further 500m, but in each case, continue on the road you're on. After the second of these junctions, the road follows the edge of a small hill for approximately 500m, when it turns sharply to the left. Instead of turning to the left, you will see straight in front of you a grassy track leading up onto the secondary peak of the hill you have been following the edge of. Climb up this track, and you will be rewarded with the sight of the circle on the crest of the hill, 150m along the track.
[ Reply to This ]

Re: Na Carraigean Edintean by Anonymous on Monday, 21 April 2003
This circle is more commonly known as Na Clachan Aoraidh - the stones of worship.

This four-poster is magnificently situated in the Forestry Commission's Allean Forest. It's quite a steep walk from the car park to the circle itself, on forestry roads and grassy tracks, about 8.0km in length (4.0km each way). But it's well worth the trek, as the circle sits on a hill cleared of trees, with fantastic views of the surrounding mountains.

The circle sits on a raised artificial platform, approximately 18.0m in diameter, and 0.6m in height. The platform is covered in grass, but some of the stones of which it is made are visible on the S edge. The surrounding area has been cleared of it's trees, leaving many stumps, but the circle and it's platform have obviously escaped planting in the past.

Of the four stones, only the SW stone is fully upright at a height of 1.2m, with the other three leaning at steep angles, but all four stones are of a similar size and shape. At the centre of the circle is a small hollow that is apparently the result of some amateur archaeology, although whether anything was found is unknown.
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