Coleman, R. J. and Photos-Jones, E. (2008). Early medieval settlement and ironworking in Dornoch, Sutherland. Edinburgh: Society of Antiquaries of Scotland. https://doi.org/10.5284/1017938.

Monitoring and excavation during the development of a new business park in Dornoch in 1997 revealed numerous features including a building, ditched enclosures and several hearths, all sealed beneath an artefact-rich cultivation soil. Radiocarbon dates obtained place the main period of activity here in the late 1st millennium ad. The evidence recovered also suggests a tradition of ironworking here from the early medieval period continuing through into the medieval period. A small assemblage of finds was recovered from the excavation, including quantities of iron slag, bog iron ore, fragments from a clay-lined furnace, whale bone, a bone counter and a bone pin beater. This paper reports on the results of the work and includes an extended section on the analysis of the iron making and working evidence.

A brief account of methodology is followed by an archaeological description which is organised into four phases: phase 1 is 8th-9th centuries; phase 2 is 9th-10th centuries; phase 3 is 10th-11th centuries; phase 4 is 15th century. This is followed by a brief account of the radiocarbon dating. There are specialist reports on pottery, geochemical fingerprinting of pottery, copper alloy and bone objects, metallurgical waste analysis, faunal remains and plant remains.

Monitoring and excavation during the development of a new business park in Dornoch in 1997 revealed numerous features including a building, ditched enclosures and several hearths, all sealed beneath an artefact-rich cultivation soil. Radiocarbon dates obtained place the main period of activity here in the late first millennium AD. The evidence record also suggests a tradition of ironworking here form the early medieval period continuing through into the medieval period. A small assemblage of finds was recovered from the excavation including quantities of iron slag, bog iron ore , fragments from a clay-lined furnace, whale bone, a bone counter and a bone pin beater. Reports on the results of the work and includes an extended section on the analysis of the iron-making and iron-working evidence.