Burghead,R " from Part I
Total Page：16
File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb
Continuatio Macdonald'r M f no s Pape "n o Burghead,r " from Part I. Vol. IV. of the Proceedings. ANTIQUARIES OF SCOTLAND. 343 The Fortifications.—In their latest form e fortificationth , Burgheaf o s d constructeo seemes e b o dt surrouno t s da unequao defend tw d an e dth l terraces at the extremity of the promontory. With this view, each of these areas was enclosed within a rampart of stones, the portion of it that n betweera n them being f courseo , , commo botho nt , though belonging really to the upper or more elevated ; and three, or more properly four, nearly parallel fosses or ditches with intervening earthworks, separated the me headland th froe resf mth o t n consequencI . f beineo g thus entirely accommodated to the nature of the ground, the outline of the defences, especially of those of the lower area or fort, was somewhat Generar irregularfo t bu l d Eoy'an ; s PlaSectionsd an n whicf o , h Plate VIII a reduce s i . d copy t i woul, d havbeew no en almost impossible, even with the aid of Shaw and other writers who saw them when com- paratively entire, to re-connect the few isolated mounds that are still to be seen. With him, however guidea s ,course a ramparte th , th f eo d san earthworks, as well as their various measurements, may be accurately determined; while existing remains and appearances, taken along with descriptione th f theso locay mb l antiquarie lase th t f centure so th d yan beginnin presente th f go , instruc pretts u t y definitel manyn i y other par- ticulars. southere Th upper no r terrace shapn i , unlikt e no lette e eth reversed D r , was washesideso soute tw e seawestth ,d n dth o han ,y abov,b e whice hth rock rose perpendicularl thifeetn 5 y4 O s . there reste fee2 df 4 grave o t l and sand, covered ovethina y rb , black, peat-like deposit, givin sure gth - face of the area an elevation of 87 feet in all. Obviously, little was needed in a rude age to strengthen this already inaccessible spot; but, notwithstanding, what seeme dpila f stoneo e 0 fee1 s to fro t hig m7 h and 15 feet broad at the base was reared along its precipitous edge. The eas r lano t d e nortside th wels a s h, a l which rose abruptly above eth lower terrace protectes wa , -y ad b continuatio e samth f neo stony barrier, with a height, however, of 18 feet, and by a sudden depression of the ground, partly natural and partly artificial, 40 feet deep on the east and e openingsnortho th n Tw o . 5 4 , each about eight feet wide, broke this encirclin e extrem th wese n th o tg en e i bulwarkrighth e f on o t e th ; terrace, and almost at the very point of the headland ; the other in the east but towards the centre. According to tradition, a flight of steps, VOL. IV. PART II. Z 4 34 PBOCEEDING SOCIETE TH F F SO YO e solith df o rock t ou , t onc cu frod e formeele m th r dow high-wateo nt r mark; opposite the latter, the hollow in front of the east side of the area giveo t mean y openinge was b a ,th so f s filleso , ,dup easy accese th o st interior portioA . f thio n s area s e showshadin a ,Pla e th th y nb n go ane differencth d Sectionse f leveth eo a fee n y raises i w lb tfe wa , da covering of stones. Measured inside its defences, the greatest length of uppee breadtth s it rfeed 0 terracan 38 th s 225ewa . The northern or lower terrace, with a height above the sea of 45 feet of sandstone, pebbles lighd an , t mould depresseds wa , t happenedi s a , o ,t same th e depth beneat evidentld surfac e uppere hth ha th d f eo an , y been wavee s sidetima th it scoope t y n a ,sei b t whe drelativou e nth e levef o l sea and land was different from what it now is. Of an oblong shape, but becoming narrower towards either end, it extended further inland than the other, if indeed it might not he said to have occupied all the rest of the promontory e uppeth , r terrace bein cornea fact n gi bu tr which, owing superioe th o t r hardnes underlyine th f o s g sandstone somr fo r e o , other reason withstood ,ha influencee dth whico st whole hth e headlan oncd dha e been exposedlowee th r r fortFo . , however conveniena , t though irregular boundar founs ridgea y wa n f drocki o , cappe deposia y db f sano d t an d a thin stratum of a peat-like substance, which branched off from the north-east uppee anglth f ero area—a narrow prolongation t werei s a f , o , the terrace itself—an continues dwa same th en d i direction til t nearlli y reache seae dth . This natural barrier fee0 12 t0 , 5 broabases it d t dan ,a elevation tope whicd a fee 5 th an d 4 ,t a thha o t f froabov no 0 me 4 th e lower terrace n s raiseadditionaa wa ,o t d l heighfee2 y wha1 b tf o tt seemed a mass of stones. At its abrupt and somewhat rounded termi- nation, an opening was left 10 feet wide, whence, down almost to high water-mark thed an ,n alon promontorye e poine shorth th g th f o o tet , piles wherwa d t e steeei clos th uppee po et th sid f ro e - terracean n ra , other rampart, apparently of loose stones, 30 feet in height and from 40 to 50 feet in breadth at its base. The space thus enclosed as the lower fort, had a length of nearly 780 feet and an average breadth of feet0 15 . A furthesa r defenc easte onle th th ,n yeo quarter from whic forte hth s were easily assailable, the trenches and earthworks already mentioned were drawn acros e headlanth s do seat froa . mse Thes e were neither ANTIQUARIES OF SCOTLAND. 345 unifor sizemn i , nor n consequenci , e e chieflirregulath f o y r landward boundar lowee th f yro fort, quite paralle anothere on e trenche o t lTh . s had an average width at the bottom of 20 feet and a depth of about 10 belo surface e wgroundth th f eo , which here sloped gently downwards from the upper terrace as well as from that prolongation of it already described as stretching north-east and partly enclosing the lower; and between them were spaces abou fee0 4 breadthtn i t n whico , e santh h d f anthe o y heapedt mn mound la i graveou p g u d du ls that a ros o t e height of from 10 to 12 feet, or of 20 above the bottom of the adjoin- trenchg t thesin Bu e. dimensions varie t differenda t points. Neae th r middle earthworke th , s were broke openingy nb fees8 t wide, opposito t e which the soil had either been left untouched or the fosses afterwards rilled up. Such was the appearance which the extremity of the promontory would presen ordinarn a o t y observer sixty years e supago t b I mus t -. no t posed, however, tha ramparte th t s were even then reallye entireth n O . contrary s wil a e afterward, b l s shown e area th d ,bee ha s n once sur- rounded with wall whicf so heape hth f stoneso s described above wern ei part the remains; while other structures may have been included in the original plan, every vestige of which had been long removed. By the natives of Burghead its fortifications were invariably designated TJie Broch Baileys, r simplo Baileys,e yTh e trencheth d earthworksan s being sometime f distinctiono sy calledwa e Brigs, y Th b , Detached portions of them alone remain to tell of their former strength. Streets now cross each other at right angles on the site of The Brigs, a soli- tary fragment of the first line of earthworks being all of them that bees ha n spared terracee Th . s themselves Nature's a , s handiwork, have more successfully resisted aggression; but their defences have suffered greatly from a foe they were never meant to repel. Of the rampart whic rounn hra easte dth , south d nortan , he uppe sideth f sro areat no , a trace is to be seen, except a small mound to the left of the opening e extremitth t e headlanda th f yo ; while, thoug a hpil f stoneo e s still crown steee edge th sth pf e o slop e which bound northe th e are n sth o a, its proportions are sadly reduced from what they once were. So much of the barrier that enclosed the lower area on the east as was natural, still remains, though greatly altered; the rest, however, has been z2 6 34 PROCEEDING SOCIETE TH F F SO YO swept away, as well as a large portion at either end of its seaward line of defence.