8 36 PROCEEDING , SOCIETYE 188913 TH Y .F O SMA , VIII. THE DUNS AND FORTS OF LORNE, NETHER LOCHABER, AND THE NEIGHBOURHOOD. BY DAVID CHRISTISON, M.D., F.S.A. SOOT., SECKETARY. Before undertaking an investigation of the prehistoric, forts in any part of Scotland, it is natural to inquire whether the results may be ex- pecte repao dt troublee yth t firsA t. sigh t i seemt f thii s s a question must be answered in the negative, so great is the state of ruin -and decay into which these structures have fallen. Yet the poverty of the remain perhaps i s n insufficiena s t reaso r neglectinfo n recoro gt d their characteristics, ere they suffer still further dilapidation, and the important part which they must have played in the obscure early history of our country surely entitles the mreceivo t e more attention from archaeologists than they have hithert witht trusI ome . I tshal able e showlb o et th n i , present instance, that the field of inquiry is more productive than appears t firsa t sight thad an ,t amids e generath t l ruin, occasional fragmentn i s fair preservatio encounterede nar , whic bote har h interestin themselven gi s and afford a key to the original structure of the forts in the district in general. e th n importan fino t A t de ou w e tar questio w e outseth Ho , t na is t forts? Obviously, in.a district so rough and broken as Lome, of which it was said of old, " that it was as ill to harry as to pyke a sheep's head," t wouli folle d b searco yt innumerable th fortr hfo n o s e likely sites which mee investigatoe th t t evera r y turn. Inquiry amon nativee th g s would be equally futile I hav s a ,e found them ignoran existence th f o t f forteo s which they "see without seeing" every day of their lives. It is to the Ordnance maps that we must turn for guidance; but, unfortunately, the s insufficieni 1-inc p n exhaustiva ma h r fo t e e 6-incinquiryth d han , scale must be carefully searched, as many forts are marked on the latter which are omitted in the former. It is also necessary to visit every Dun marked on the map. This arises partly from the wide signification of the word, which apparently may mean either a fort whether on a hill or not , unluckil or ,e investigatorth r yfo hil a ,whic n o l h fortthero n s ei ; THE DtTNS AND FORTS OF LOKNE, ETC. 369 partly becaus e Ordnanc eth trustee b o t sho o dt t e wmapno e whetherar s , e dunonth s marked upon them e remainth , f fortso s exis r nott o tI . should also be noticed that even the 6-inch map does not give all the forts, whether entere sucs da under ho name th r dunf eo . Probable yth number omitte triflings i d I havwitt t me hebu , three instancee th n si present inquirysucy b hf I constantle defect. ar e w s y mad feeo e et th l irreparable loss sustaine sciency db e throug e omissiohth systematia f no c archaeological survey from the general survey of the country, we may at leas thankfue b t l tha Ordnance th t e maps affor degrea d f guidanceo n ei finding archaeological remains, without whic exhaustivn a h e inquiry like the present would be impracticable. Several of my expeditions were made alone; in a good many others I was accompanie brothery m Johr y b dM , n Christison r AllaD y nb r o , Macnaughto occasion two Kev the or . sby AlexTaynuilt none of on - and ; ander Stewart, LL.D., Ballachulish r CampbellD ; , Craigrannocr D h; Beddoe, F.B.S., Clifton r RawdonD r o ; , Liverpool. Even wit able hth e assistanc thesf eo e gentleme impossibls wa t ni mako et e other than rough plans and observations of objects so widely scattered, often reached with difficulty, and generally with but scanty time for investigation. I claim therefore no more than to give a fair general idea of the size, construction, and other attributes of these forts, leaving it to others to fill up this sketch with accurate survey d minutsan e details, where such e seeb mo t desirable. As the most convenient method of treating my subject, after some preliminary explanations I shall first describe the forts and dims, and then offer some general remarks detailee baseth n do d descriptions. Explanation theof Descriptions Plans.and 1. The numbers prefixed to the descriptions correspond with the numbers of the forts in their respective districts on the sketch map (Plate XXIII.). Duns without remains are not numbered, and they are not entered on the maps because of the smallness of the scale. For the same reason the forts are numbered on the map by districts, wholeinsteaa s a f o avoit ,do d double figures d namesan ; , except those large oth f e districts, have been dispensed with. A 2 VOL. XXIII. 0 37 PROCEEDING -THF O SE , SOCIETY188913 Y . MA , 2. The names'of the duns are taken from the Ordnance map, as the only, published authority; but in the general remarks I have given reasons for doubting their accuracy in several instances. 3. The forts-are approximately laid down on the plans as if the north were at the top of the page. 4. The measurements are in feet. 5. The scale of 120 feet to the inch was selected in my paper on forte th f Peeblesshiro s e e mos(Proo.,.th s ta suitabl ) 188613 . n ep i , their case for the size of the pages in our Proceedings. A larger scale might with advantage have been chosen for the Argyleshire forts, as they are much smaller than the Peeblesshire ones, but on the whole it seemed preferable to preserve the same scale for both. Some of the plans are not quite to scale, but the figures on them are accurate. n somI . 6 e instance• e sites e fortssth s th laie wela , ar s d, a l down no the plans, but as a rule the general nature of the site is merely indicated on a system slightly modified from that adopted in my plans of the Peeblesshire forts e steepnesth , f slopeso s being markee featherth y b d - ing of an arrow from 0 to 4, and the perpendicular height above the nearest level ground note feetn di . The heights are mere eye-estimates, except where greater precision wa e Ordnancsth attainablf o d eai Survey'y eb s contour lines. 7. Absolutely mural precipices guard one or more sides of many Argyleshire forts. These are drawn on the plans as if slightly sloped, but are shown correctly in the sections. I. DESCRIPTION OF THE FORTS. A. FORTS OF LOCHABBE, LINNHE LOCH, AND WEST SHOEES OF THE FIETH OF LOENE. 1. Dun Dige.—In the marshy flat, close south of Glen Nevis House. circulaA r flat-topped mound, apparentl f earthyo n feet.highi 6 , 0 8 d an , diameter, without rampar r parapeto t , surrounde shalloa y db w ditch4 2 feet wide, partly wet ,moun w witlo a hd outsid . eit Possibly thia s si mediaeval work. Gaelie Digeth s i c for e f Englisdylce,mo th n i h sense of either ditch or wall. E DtlNFOKTD TH SLOENEF AN O S , ETC. 371 2. Dundbliairdfjliall (fig. 1) stands on the highest and most southerly of six little eminences, which crown a depression in the hill range forming the western side of the lower stretch of Glen Nevis. The fort is 1127 feet above the sea, and about 1000 above the river, the slop p o precipitouswhict eto s e veri h e th y t Th a steep. d an , fee0 40 t towardf southe o e ridg descentth d th fee0 n eo an o ,t 20 t s f so the Kiachnish waters on the east, are also steep, and so is that towards the other little eminences on the north, but as it is only about 50 feet high e mosth , t accessibl ethin faco ss e vallui eside Th .m somewhas i t looo Fig . Dhndbhairdghall1 . pear-shaped, measuring from cres o crest t t abou fee5 110y d b 18 tt an , is not regularly curved, but consists of a number of tolerably straight facets of various lengths. It rises from 6 to 7 feet at the two ends, but not more than a foot or two on the flanks, above the interior. The exterior height is vague, as it is difficult to say where the vallum ends upon e naturath l slopese valluTh .m grassa consistf o yw mounno s d with stony de'bris on it, but not in large quantity. A considerable amount of debris has also slipped down the slopes on the flanks. The entrance, e north-westh t a t corner s quiti , e e foundatioruinedth t bu wala , f o nl 372 PROCEEDINGS OF THE SOCIETY, MAY 13, 1889. 23 feet long remains, which appears to have formed its south side. The interior consist a smalle f o s r eastern portion a large d ran , western portion at a somewhat lower level, which seem to have been separated a straigh y b t doubl r eveo e n treble wall, running obliquely acrose sth fort.