Proc Soc Antiq Scot, (1989)9 11 , 43-54

Corse Law, Carnwath, : a lithic scatter Ann Clarke*

ABSTRACT The results of a large fieldwalking exercise are presented. The flaked lithics recovered suggest activity in this area from the Mesolithic period through to the Bronze Age. Spatial analysis also points least possibleat one to discrete episode lithicof production.

INTRODUCTION Over a period of 11 months during 1987-88 members of the and District Archae- ological Society fieldwalked an area of some 300 acres which had been ploughed in advance of forestry planting. More than 2200 flaked lithics of Mesolithic to Bronze-Age date were recovered s wela , s workea l d canne post-medievad an l l pottery e autho Th invite.s wa r o dt examin artefacte eth producd san reportea .

LOCATION (NCR NT 018505) (illus 1) fieldwalkee Th d are locates ai Carnwateithe0 n do A7 re sidth Edinburgo hf t e o h road. Althoug hforestre mosth f o t y ploughin investigateds gwa e greateth , r dept f peaho t cover upslope forestrbeyonw ne e dyth roa Hild dan l Wood prevente plouge dth h from disturbine gth ground ol d surface, henc finde eth s from this are rathee aar r sparse maie Th . n scatte thus ri s bounded to the west by the River North Medwin, to the east by the forestry road, and the northern and southern boundaries limited by the extent of forestry ploughing.

ARCHAEOLOGICAL BACKGROUND aren Cors a lie w an s i e containinLa considerabla g e numbe f upstandino r g prehistoric remains particulan I . districe rth Carnwatf to Soute th d hh Pentlandan s woulde appeath e b o rt principal are Neolithif ao c activit Lanarkshiryn i e (RCAMS 1978). Here, long cairns, henges and small cairns have been recorded, as well as finds of Cumbrian and Porcellanite axes. Barrows and several complexes of small cairns represent activity during the Bronze Age, and ther soms ei e evidenc r settlemenefo Iroe th n n i Aget . Withi fieldwalkine nth g area itself isolated cairns and a group of small cairns (probably dating to the Bronze Age) are present (RCAMS 1978), and it is possible that some of the finds are related to these. otheo N r lithic scatters have been immediatfoune th n di south-wese th e o areat t ,bu t there are five unexcavated Mesolithic sites located along a stretch of the River Clyde (Lacaille 1954). * Artefact Research Unit Coate5 , s Place, 44 SOCIETY OF ANTIQUARIES OF , 1989

Glasgow

Lanark 0 10 20 3Ototi

0.5 1km

ILLU S1 Locatio illue nse smaps4 D r fo :

METHOD FIELDWALKING The plough furrows, which lay at c 4 m intervals, were systematically fieldwalked. The ground was divided into a grid of individual furrow units, measuring 20 m from north to south by transversely4m thesd ,an e were basi e use collectionr th s dfo a larga thiy n .I e s wa are a coule db covered with ease e gridTh . , although perhap coarso to s r detaileefo d spatial analysiss ha , proved satisfactor defininn yi broae gth d distributio f artefactsno . CLARKE: CORSE LAW, CARNWATH LITHIA : C SCATTE5 4 | R

LITHICS The analysis involved a sort based on materials and lithic types. This method was developed during wor larga n ko e assemblage from Kinloch, Rhum (Wickham-Jones, forthcom- ing) and provides a rapid way to assess the character of the finds. Little other detailed work was applied given that this is only a surface collection and, as such, may not be truly representative of the original remains.

LITHIE TH C ASSEMBLAGE RAW MATERIALS A total of 2262 flaked lithics was recovered, composed of a variety of raw materials. Chert was dominant (75%), supplemented by flint (21%) and pitchstone (3%), whilst quartz and agate were presen smaln i t l quantities (table 1). Rolled cortical surface l materiaal n o s l types suggest that pebble sources were exploited. Most of the materials would have been derived locally, althoug chere probabls hth wa t y more widely available than flint (Wickham-Jones& Collins 1978). Pitchston exotin a s ei c stoneprobablt i d an , y came from Arran, although source analysis woul necessare db provo yt e this.

PRIMARY KNAPPING Chert (tabl) e1 flakeTherx si e de ar pebble cores7 majorit2 e d core.e Th s an th f syo wer e produced usinga prepared flat platform, and they include a mix of single, double, multi and opposed platforms. Three scalar cores indicate a different knapping technique whereby the core is held against an anvi strucd lan k from above wit hammerha thiy .B s method, flake removee sar d from both ends simultaneously. coree Mosth f sto show evidenc removae th r e fo bot f lo h blade flakesd san t bu , fou solele ar r y blade cores. Som echere 93th %f t o consist flakef s o knappin d san g debrisd an , thif cortes o sha % x7 present. Blades comprise 4%, man whicf yo brokene har . Lengthe th f so complete specimens range from 16 to 54 mm by 5 to 18 mm in width, with just over half under widem 10m . Flint (tabl) e1 Two flint cores and one half of a flint pebble were recovered. One of the cores is amorphous, whilst the other has a double flat platform from which both blades and flakes have been removed. Seventy-eigh fline r centh tpe f t consisto t flakef havso % debrisd 11 e an s d an , TABLE 1 Corse Law: Lithic assemblage by type and material Type Chert Flint Pitchstone Quartz Agate Total Inner flakes 1320 312 30 69 1677 Secondary flakes 63 35 — 14 103 Primary flakes 15 6 — 2 — 23 1 16 — — 4 9 8 14 Inner chunks Secondary chunks 24 3 — — — 27 9 — — — — Primar 9 y chunks 1 4 1 — 4 3 3 Core3 pebbled san s Inner blades 59 41 28 — — 128 3 1 Secondar— y blade — s 8— 5 0 8 — — 1 6 5 3 2 Retouched 4 1 2262 9 Tota 7 l6 0 47 1702 6 4 SOCIET ANTIQUARIEF YO SCOTLANDF SO , 1989

cortex present. Blades comprise 10%, many of which are broken. The complete specimens widthn i m m , wit7 2 hlengto n t i ove 6 m y ranghrm b hal8 6 ef froo lest wide2 sm 1 tha m .0 n1 Pitchstone, agat quartd ean z (tabl) e1 Four cores of pitchstone and one of agate were found. Those of pitchstone are small in size and use prepared flat platforms. Two are single platform blade cores, whilst the others are less well formed. The agate core may have originally been a single platform core which was later reworke bipolaa n di r fashion. Fifty-one per cent of the pitchstone consists of flakes and debris, none of which has cortex. Blades comprise 42% of the pitchstone. Unbroken lengths range up to 25 mm and widths range from 6 to 13 mm with the majority being 8 to 10 mm wide. There are 13 flakes of agate, and all the quartz pieces are flakes. SECONDARY KNAPPING (tabl) 3 , illue2 & s2 retoucheTher0 8 e ear d pieces. Sevent flintchertf % o r cene therd e y29 ,pe on an ar ,t s ei piece of pitchstone. Scrapers dominane Thesth e ear t form, comprisingtotale th f ,o wit% h42 two-thirds mad flinf eo t rese chertf th to majorite d unbrokean Th e . th f yo n scrapers have lengths mor lesr eo s equao lt widthse th , thus formin roughlga y round shape generan .I l thos chern eo t thicketene b do t r than thos flintf eo .

TABLE 2 Corse Law: retouched type materiay sb l Retouch type Chert Flint Pitchstone Total Scrapers: Entire edge retouched — 6 — 6 6 — 6 — Dista retouched en l d 5 1 — 4 1 1 Partial retouch Broken — 7 — 7 Edge retouch: Blades 1 7 — 8 Flakes 16 1 8 Microliths 10 5 — 15 Invasively flaked: Barbed-and-tanged — 7 — 7 3 — 3 — Leaf point Oblique arrowhead — 1 — 1 ?Chisel arrowhead — 1 — 1 3 — 3 — Borers

Difference amounn si scrapef to r edg alse ear o apparent betwee materiao tw e nth l types. The chert pieces show a tendency for retouch to be located on one side and end or two sides and end (illus 2:1-4), whilst for flint the dominant type is for a scraping edge either round the entire circumference of the piece or on the distal end alone (illus 2: 5-8). Three of the six distal end scrapers are laterally broken, but the breakage does not truncate the scraping edge. One of the chert scrapers is retouched on the ventral face down one side.

CLARKE: CORSE LAW, CARNWATH: A LITHIC SCATTER | 49

Edge retouch Thes totale emajorite th compris f Th .o made % y ar flint n e20 eo chero ; thertw te ear pieces and one of pitchstone. Half of these pieces are made on blades, and of these the most common form is for retouch down either side, in two cases this is quite abrupt (illus 2: 12,13). All are truncated by lateral breakage. One other blade is retouched down one side only while another is obliquely worked at the proximal end. Edge retouch on the rest of the pieces is more varied. Of interest are three pieces (one of flint, one pitchstone and one chert) which exhibit working on the ventral face. One other fragment shows abrupt retouch on two converging edges foro t mpointa .

Microliths These form 19% of the total; two-thirds are made on chert and the rest of flint. The majority are fragments with abrupt microlithic retouch down one side, and there are three example completf so e backed blades reste th scalen o f , therO .tw e eear triangles possible on , e crescent, two pieces retouched on either side to form a point, and one miscellaneous piece with partial retouch on both sides.

Borers Ther three ear e borerswhicf o made o har tw thic ,n eo k flake anothed an s r mada n eo blade. On two of the pieces the retouch is along two long edges to form a point (illus 2: 9, 10) entire th e ewhil edgon bees n eo e ha n retouched steeply (illus 2:11) lattee interesf o .Th s ri t i s ta may dua a hav d l eha functio f scraperno borerd an .

Invasive flaked pieces There are seven barbed and tanged points, all made on flint (illus 3: 1-7). Two pieces are burnt; three have tips missing and two have broken barbs. There are two leaf points made on flin ; bott9) h(illu, 8 hav : s3 e broke bees nha n tipse bifaciallOn . y invasively e flakedth d an , other has been invasively flaked on one face while the opposite face has been worked around the edges. One other piece is apparently unfinished; it has an irregular outline and both proximal and distal tip missinge sar face bees eha On . n invasively flaked whils opposite tth e facbees eha n worked around the edges.

Miscellaneous otheo Thertw re retoucheear obliqudn a piecess i e e arrowheaOn . d mad flinn eo t (illus 3: 10). Thi bees sha n bifacially retouched dow lefe nth t edg therd ean ligh s ei t retouch dowe nth right edge on one face. The proximal end has been worked to form a tang. The second piece is also of flint (illus 3:11). It has been invasively flaked on the dorsal face with some cortex remainin centree th e ventran gi Th . l facbees eha n invasively flakee th t da proximal end. In outline form it bears some resemblance to a chisel arrowhead (the sides diverge foro t mbroaa d proximal end). However thin ,i s cas chisee eth l edg forme s eproximai e th n do l end, rather than on a side, and it has been retouched as opposed to leaving the original flake edge. 50 | SOCIETY OF ANTIQUARIES OF SCOTLAND, 1989

OTHER FINDS WORKED CANNEL There are four pieces of cannel. One is simply a thick flake and another a tabular fragment with no immediate signs of working. The other two pieces are a bracelet fragment and an incomplete roughout for a possible bracelet. They are described below. Flake 50 mm long, 32 mm wide and 15 mm thick with pronounced bulb of percussion. Tabular fragment otheo N . r signmm workingf 0 so 3 y b Maximum .m 0 7 my b dimensionm m 5 10 f so Bracelet fragment thicm m k 8 wit 1 wid m 2 d probablha 4m e an eoutee inneTh . r rfac diamete mm flas ei 8 t6 witc f hro bevellin widdeepm m eithen m m e sectioo n 2 I .5 g1 c r innee e edgen th ar side e rflad e Th .fac sar an t s ei triangular, formeslightlo tw y dyb convex faces meetin righa t ga t angle. Long multi-directional striations are evident over the whole of the piece indicating the surface finishing method. Roughout Abou piece thira beets th f eha do n destroye laminay db r breakag innee th t r ecircumferencbu e remains intact. It is sub-circular in plan with a maximum width of 47 mm and maximum thickness of almos s innei e d Th . an rt diametecircular3m 5mm m 6 innee 4 s Th .ri r fac curves ei crosn di s sectiod nan partially smoothed meett I . flattise sdeeon rathem a ht m p a sid0 r3 eabrupc t angle ,opposit e whilth n eo e side it continues on a shallow concave slope before meeting a flat surface c 20 mm deep. This concave area bears sign peckingf so outee aree .Th rpeckinf on a faco s eha g whils resbeee s tth t ha n roughly smoothedo t form irregular faceting. About a third of the perimeter is of a much shallower curve and forms an angle to the rest. Here the width of the piece is 29 mm minimum. The piece has probably been worked by first pecking to form the rough shape and then by grinding. It t knowisno n whethe finishee th r d artefac intendes bracelea wa e t b o r whethedt o t presens it r t inner diameter was the proposed size. The piece may have been abandoned unfinished due to breakage or working error. Worked cannel or lignite has been found at three other sites in Lanarkshire. At Cairny a bracelet fragment was found during excavation of a small cairn dated to the Bronze Age (Maxwell 1976) 'pulle.A y ring founs wa 'Lupust dCallt a a d a ,an Broc h there wer pieceo etw f so cannel with hour-glass perforations (RCAMS 1978).

POTTERY John Terry post-medievaTher0 2 e ear l pottery fragmentsherd4 1 d san claf so y tobacco pipe pottere .Th y sherds coarsa f o l eal wheel-throwe ar n earthenware typica traditionae th f lo l output from small country potteries durin 16te g th 17t o ht h centuries lighA . t grey-coloured fabri reducea f co d firinge accounteth f o 8 1 r dfo remainino pinkisd tw sherdsre e a th f hf o g fabricO s . sherdswa e , whilon , othee eth r exhibite outen da r surface of pinkish red, which changed to a light grey colour as viewed across the sherd break. The colour chang lattee th purelf s eri o resula s y a firinf o t g conditions and/or positioning while insid kilne eth . A yellowish green-coloured patchy glaze of a common lead base has been applied to the inner surface sherdoe grefe th 1th f 1 yo n s i fabri outee cth groupn r o surface d an , gre a f syo decorative sherth m ed ri dan two reddish sherds. smalle Th , fragmentary, natur thesf eo e sherds, together wit predominance hth plaif eo n body sherds (16) preclude identificatioy san f standarno d vessel types e rimsherOn . straight-sides di m c 0 1 f o d dan diameter with external glaze. It is decorated with two parallel incised lines running around the outer surfac rime th .f eo CLARKE: CORSE LAW, CARNWATH LITHIA : C SCATTER 51

pottere Th y woul 17th-centura t dfi y date best, wher comparabls i t ei largeo et r collections from the area and Forth region (Haggarty, pers comm). Most of the clay tobacco pipe is probably of a similar date, although some of the thicker walled stems may be of a slightly earlier, 16th-century, date. Two pipe bowls are present, one othee th plai d r ndecoratean d wit hsingla e lin tinf eo y incised knife-point marks around dan reae th bowle r n th halo f .o fm belo ri e wth

FUNCTION OF THE LITHIC ASSEMBLAGE The flaked lithics probably represent a series of assemblages deposited over several millenniacollectioe th s a t unstratifieds ni bu , difficuls i t i , asseso t t s their complex functional relationships. Behavioural pattern procurementf so , manufacture discard an often e dca e us , n b determined through detailed technological analysis. Thiincludy ma s e examinatior fo , nof example, core preparation, flake and blade production, selection of flakes for formal tools, reuse and breakage. Although no such analysis was carried out on the Corse Law material, there are apparent differences in the selection and use of the various raw materials which, viewed at a broad level and with the spatial information, provides some interesting patterning.

MATERIAW RA L SELECTION Certain difference materiaw showra e b n i sn ln ca selectio througe us d examinn nhan a - ation of the artefacts produced. Chert, although being the dominant material, occurs mainly in the form of flakes and debris and comprises over 90% of all cores. The flint contains a smaller proportion of flakes, debris and cores. This would suggest that, while chert pebbles were probably being knapped in the immediate vicinity, there is less evidence for the primary knapping of flint. In comparison, the flint appears to have been deliberately selected for retouched pieces, particularl r non-microlithiyfo c types. Where cher useds i tpredomis i t i , - nantl scraperr yfo s (possibl differena f yo t typ thoso et flintn ee aboveo se , microlithsd an ) . Blade production also differs between flincherd thosan ts ta e blades produce chern d o mor e tar e frequent and tend, on average, to be slightly shorter and narrower than those on flint. Here, it is interesting to note the large proportion of pitchstone blades which were consistently smaller in size than the rest.

SPATIAL DISTRIBUTION The broad distribution of artefacts can be seen in illus 4. Most of the pieces are concen- tratesouthere th n di sectioe n th hal f o fn betwee maie th rive e nd nth road an r e .b Thiy sma further sub-divide. d B int groupo d otw an sA GroupA Here, chert is the dominant raw material. There are three relatively large concentrations of knapping debris, although interestingly core o thern direce n si e ar t association majorite Th . y of the microliths were found here and pitchstone is also well represented. Group B Although cher presens ti t here ther bettea s ei r representatio flinf no t tha An i . Thery ema smala als e ob l concentratio non-microlithif no c retouched pieces. Apart fro above mth e observations, ther eotheo n appea e rb immediatelo t r y obvious relationships between either the distributions of different artefact types or of raw materials. 52 SOCIET ANTIQUARIEF YO SCOTLANDF SO , 1989

(a)

ILLUS 4a, b Corse Law: lithic distribution: a, flint; b, chert

DISCUSSION The differences, outlined above, in artefact production between flint and chert may be relate knappine th o dt g qualitie originae th materialf sw o lra . Cher less i t s homogeneous than flint and, as such, the flaking of this material may be less controllable. This can result in, for example, thicker flakes, more chunky debri minimad san l secondary retouch. Better quality materials such as flint can be more carefully flaked and may also be selected for those pieces for which fine retouc requireds hi invasivelg e , y flaked arrowheads. presence Th variet a material w f eo ra f yalso y osma indicate differing extractive strategies, som period-specifice whicf b eo y hma t ElginhaughA . , East Lothian chere th , t used durine gth Mesolithi differenca periof o s dwa t colour thereford an , e possibly fro mdifferena t source from CLARKE: CORSE LAW, CARNWATH LITHIA : C SCATTE53 | R

that use laten di r periods (Clarke 1988) contrasty B .note s wa dt i , tha Weardalen i t , northern England, the chert, although being locally abundant did not appear to have been used until the post-Mesolithic periods (Young 1987). More locally, chert was flaked on five Mesolithic sites alon onl n Clydsite e o g th ye d on (Eastfieldean this swa ) supplemente fliny db t (Lacaille 1954). t CloburA n Quarry, Lanarkshire, flaked cher dominans wa tpost-caire th n i t n construction phases (Pollard 1988) indicating the common use of this material in later prehistoric periods. lace t Corsstratigraphf th k o A w eLa y means that resolutio period-specifif no c strategies i almost impossible. Certainly there appears to be at least one episode of stone tool manufacture on thisitd esan mainl cherf yo t (illus 4). Her associatioe eth n with microlith suggesy sma t activity durin Mesolithice gth . Later period indicatee sar presence th y db specifif eo c retouched types particulan i , e rth arrowheads. Flin bees ha t n selecte thesl al r ed fo pieces , although whether they were produced locally and chosen in preference to chert or whether they were imported is not clear. The pitchstone is an exotic stone brought into the area most probably from Arran. It is presen mann o t y Scottish site smaln si l quantities commoa d an , n smal e forth ms i l bladt a s ea Cors (Thorpw eLa Thorpe& e 1984). Imported pitchston bees eha n foun Mesolithin di c through to Bronze-Age contexts and that found at Corse Law must remain undated. Finally presence th , groue th f smalf epo o l cairns running diagonally acros centre sth f eo the area deserves attention maie Th . nt plannegria grou no o dt s durinn pdwa o Royae gth l Commission survey, although several cairns were located durin fieldwalkine gth 198n gi 7 (illus associatioy 4).An n wit artefactuae hth l scatter must remain tenuous; however possibls i t ,i e that the main concentration of artefacts lies just to the south of the cairn group.

CONCLUSION A fieldwalking project such as that carried out by the Lanark and District Archaeological Society at Corse Law is a rare event in Scottish archaeology. Not only was a large area covered visitebus site th tewa d ove carefulonf ra o e g perious l e griddin th timf do d collectioed an gan n methods ensured thaassemblage th t somd eha e context. Information retrieve thin di s manne relativf o s ri e value assemblage th : e probably repre- sentsmala t sbu l par thaf to t lying locationaundee th pea e d rth temporatan d lan l dat onln aca y be accurately determined by excavation. However, much work has been done recently on the quality of information to be retrieved from the plough zone. In the south of England, in particular, emphasi beins si g place fieldwalkinn do valia s ga d too archaeologr lfo related yan d methodologie interpretatiod san beine nar g refined (Haselgrov alt ee 1985) t musI . rememe tb - bered too that, in general, certain types of site can only be found through fieldwalking of disturbed ground Mesolithig e , c settlemen otherd an t s wit upstandino hn g structural remains. The great enthusiasm of amateur archaeological societies and the practical aspects of their local knowledge and permanent presence in an area are invaluable to the recording of a region's archaeology. It is now up to the professional bodies to provide not only training and encourage- men sucn i t h fieldwor t als bu koa prope r framewor e analysi e th informatio th r f fo ko s n retrieved.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to thank the members of the Lanark and District Archaeological Society, in particular Joan and Phil Taylor, for providing the information on the fieldwalking and finds location in such a coherent manner. I should also like to thank the Royal Commission on the 54 | SOCIETY OF ANTIQUARIES OF SCOTLAND, 1989

Ancien Historicad tan l Monument Scotlanf so surveyinr dfo monumente gth s discovered during fieldworke th . Thank Joho t alse e n spotterar e o Terrdu th r yfo y report, Mike Brooke th r sfo artefact photograph Jacd yan k Stevenso advicr nfo e durin preparatioe gth thif no s report. The Lanark and District Archaeological Society would also like to thank the land-owners, Messrs Maxwell Stuart, Baitlaw, Lamingto gavo newh permissio allono t w acces lane d th dan o st who have also donated all the objects retrieved to Biggar Museums. Finally, the Historic Buildings and Monuments Directorate provided a grant to the Lanark and District Archaeo- logical Society to cover the costs of the report production.

REFERENCES Clarke n 198An , 8 Elginhaugh: flakede th lithic assemblage. , RoyaMS l Museu Scotlandf mo , Artefact Research Unit. Hazelgrove , Millet C ,Smith & M , I (eds, ) 1985 Archaeology from Ploughsoil.e th Sheffield. (Dept Archaeolog Prehistoryd yan , Univ Sheffield.) Lacaille, A D 1954 The Stone Age of Scotland. London. Maxwell S 197G , 6 'Excavation caire th Cairnyt nf a s o , Lanarkshire', Proc Antiqc So Scot, (19757 10 - 6), 301-6. Pollard J 198,A 8 Reportlithicsfrome th n o excavationse th cairne oth fCloburn t a Quarry 1986-87. MS, Dept Archaeology, University of Glasgow. RCAMS 1978 Royal Commissio Anciene th Historican nd o tan l Monument Scotlandf so , Lanarkshire, an inventory of the prehistoric and Roman monuments. Edinburgh. Thorpe, O W & Thorpe, R S 1984 The distribution, and sources of archaeological pitchstone in Britain', J Archaeol Sci, 11 (1984), 1-34. Wickham-Jones, C R & Collins, G 1978 The sources of flint and chert in Northern Britain', Proc Soc Antiq Scot, 109 (1977-8), 7-21. Wickham-Jones R forthcominC , g Rhum: Mesolithice th Laterd an Sites Kinloch.t a Edinburgh. (=Soc Antiq Scot Monogr Ser,) 7. Young ,R 1987 Lithics Subsistenced an North-Easternn i England. Oxford. (=Brit Archaeol Rep, 161.)

This paper is published with the aid of a grant from the Historic Buildings and Monuments Directorate (SDD)