Our first excavation of the 2024 season gets under way next week, with a full team back at The Cairns Iron Age site in South Ronaldsay, Orkney.
Work began on the site in 2006, revealing a large broch (c100BC-AD200) and structures dating from the Iron Age through to the Norse period.
Surrounding the broch is an extensive cluster of structures within a ditched enclosure some 65-70 metres in diameter. Later in the building sequence, this settlement sprawled even more extensively over the infilled remains of the ditch.
To date, 21 buildings have been partly or wholly excavated and these are providing remarkable evidence for the range of activities and practices carried out in the settlement – including food processing and consumption, metalworking, bone-working, textile production, and animal husbandry.
At the helm again this year is UHI Archaeology Institute lecturer and Iron Age specialist Martin Carruthers.
He explained: “Previous excavation has produced well-preserved, stratified occupation deposits inside the broch, and UHI Archaeology Institute postgraduate students have been analysing elements of that to add to the story of the life of the household 2,000 years ago.
“Back on site, the broch remains a major focus of the 2024 dig season. One of the key tasks relates to its current, quite unusual layout. Is this the result of later modifications to the interior or was the interior laid out this way from the outset?
“Various researchers have suggested that layouts like that of The Cairns broch – are secondary developments resulting from the growth and development of the household. I suspect what we’re actually seeing is that it was laid out that way from the start, which implies it’s a broad social change that’s occurring in the Iron Age relationships and built into the way of life of the broch. Hopefully we can prove that quite early in the season.
“In general, we’re looking to continue revealing the history of the broch, which was up and running for 200 years at least, and more fully understand its biography.”
Outside the broch, the team will be getting to grips with two buildings outside its entrance – Structures O and T.
We know they are contemporary to the use of the broch, so understanding how they were used is crucial to understanding Northern Isles brochs and their external settlements. Excavating them carefully will allow comparisons between what was going on in the broch and its “village”.
Martin added: “We’ll also be revisiting the area around Structure B2 – one of the sub-rectangular, “wag”-like buildings to the west of the broch and overlying it.
A “wag” is a type of building well-known in Caithness and Sutherland and largely found in association with broch sites. These have generally been dated to the 5th and 6th centuries AD, but The Cairns examples were active in the 3rd and 4th centuries AD – considerably earlier than previously thought.
“Structure B2 was constructed after the broch went out of use,” explained Martin. “We know that in it there is a large hearth that we want to fully explore and understand to see how the building sits in the later life of the site.
“This hearth might be similar to one found at the centre of another substantial, post-broch era building. The area around this hearth was particularly finds rich so we suspect we’ll get a nice range of finds from B2 this year.”
Students involved in post-excavation work
As mentioned above, post-excavation work has been ongoing since the end of the 2023 season.
Most recently UHI Archaeology Institute postgraduate students have been analysing plant and animal remains from within the broch as part of their studies.
Jean Rumball, from New Zealand, is an MLitt student and has been working on the animal bone from the broch’s West Room – an assemblage of over 3,000 hand-recovered mammal bones. Full analysis of these will reveal much about the diet, food practices, animal husbandry, and economy of the broch.
Already, Jean’s work is confirming and enhancing what we have already seen, which is that there seems to be a tremendous amount of deer being consumed in the broch. Lots more information and detail will result from the study.
On the subject of deer, Kath Page is looking at the over 216 pieces of antler from across the site as one of her PhD case studies. Kath’s work is focused on building up a database using case study sites, with the aim of looking for a change in the spatial and temporal exploitation of red deer across prehistoric Scotland.
Kariane Bourgault, from Canada, is looking at the domestic animal remains – in particular the teeth – as part of her Masters by Research (MRes).
This is showing how livestock populations (and their consumption) changed over the life of the site. Analysis of the dentition is also building up a mortality profile for cattle, sheep, and pigs, showing the age at which the animals were slaughtered.
Julie Brunner, from Germany, is looking at the carbonised plant remains from The Cairns for her MLitt dissertation.
Focusing on the south-eastern room, her ongoing work complements that carried out in the western room and allows comparisons that will shed light on practices and activities under way in different areas 2,000 years ago, as well as changes over time.
A distinctive feature of the south-east room, for example, are the plentiful grasses, which are relatively absent elsewhere in the broch interior.
Analysis of cereal deposits also suggests that grain was being processed elsewhere before being brought into the broch ready for use. In addition, the evidence suggests crops were being cut low on the stalk, implying the importance of straw to the occupants – presumably for roofing, bedding, flooring and animal fodder.
The question of how exactly how Iron Age long-handled combs were used has been the subject of unresolved debate for over 100 years.
MSc Archaeological Practice student Alannah Edwards is working on an experimental approach to these combs, using replicas based on examples from The Cairns to create a tablet-woven textile.
She hopes to reproduce the distinctive wear patterns seen on the originals to try to determine if the combs were indeed used in this way. Beyond this she is investigating how much the combs had to be used to develop the wear.
Another of our MSc students, Ross Dempster, is doing his degree placement at The Cairns. He has already been helping with the site setup and, once digging begins, will be supervising the removal of a section of overburden along the edge of the broch wall.
Ross aims to use the placement to build up supervisory skills and to see how a research dig operates behind the scenes.
The 2024 excavation runs, on weekdays, between June 10 and July 5. Visitors are welcome 10am-4pm on weekdays and an open day is scheduled for Friday, June 28.
The site is near Windwick Bay, South Ronaldsay, Orkney. Follow the sign to Windwick on the A961 between St Margaret’s Hope and Burwick (see map below).
Please be aware that parking spaces are limited. Look out for our staff members or students who will be able to advise you on the best place to park.
We look forward to seeing you on site!
