Proceedings of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland 120

A short essay on the problems with the way in which the British heritage is seen and used, concentrating on two particular traits, its overwhelming national emphasis and its venerable continuity. Au(adp)

Miss Kennedy's brief summary report is transcribed. Contemporary drawings and photographs are reproduced and set in context. There is a brief discussion on the tidying and reconstruction of the monument and of the significance of Miss Kennedy's results. Au

The lack of place-names in Ptolemy's Geography north and west of the Great Glen suggests that Agricola did not penetrate into these areas. The location of the place-names in the territory of the Vacomagi suggests that he may have marched back from Mons Graupius through the Spey and Tay valleys. Au

An attempt to clarify when and where at Helmsdale the remarkable group of copper alloy bowls and strainers were found. The bowls are described and discussed, along with the results of analysis of their composition. It appears likely that the bowls consist of a mixture of Continental and British pieces, some manufactured in the later second century AD. Others may be later than this and it is quite possible that the group was not deposited until the third or perhaps even the fourth century AD. Au

Excavations in 1960 led to the discovery of a large number of wooden artefacts. These include a diverse range of containers, pegs, pins, spatulae, handles, and tools as well as parts of structures and other worked wood. The material, which has remained largely unpublished, provides an insight into domestic life in Scotland in the sixth/eighth centuries AD as well as further information on both contemporary woodworking techniques and the movement of goods and/or ideas. Au

As part of a long-term programme of research on historically documented fortifications, excavations were carried out in 1974--75 at Dumbarton Castle, anciently known as Alt Clut or Clyde Rock. These disproved the hypothesis that a nuclear fort, after the pattern of Dunadd or Dundurn, could be identified on the Rock, but revealed a timber-and-rubble defence of Early Historic date overlooking the isthmus which links the Rock to the mainland. Finds of especial interest include the northernmost examples of imported Mediterranean amphorae of the sixth century AD, and fragments from at least six glass vessels of Germanic manufacture. Discussion centres on early medieval harbour sites and trade in northern and western Britain. A detailed excavation record and finds catalogue is located on microfiche. Appendices include a `Gazetteer of coastal and inland sites, AD 450--850' (130--8), `The recovery rate of B1 amphora sherds' (138--9), and `Early medieval sculpture at Dumbarton' by John Higgitt (139--42). Au

In 1958, a field survey on the west coast of Islay produced a series of artefacts which suggest that there had been a rich female Viking burial on the site. Possible grave goods included two oval brooches, beads, spindle whorl, knives, sickle and the socket of a weaving batten. An ornamental buckle loop found at the site in 1978 may also belong to the grave, which appears to date to the late-ninth or tenth century AD. Au

A clearance excavation in an L-shaped tower-house prior to masonry consolidation was undertaken to attempt to examine and interpret the entrance into the tower. Extensive stone-robbing frustrated this aim, but a stone-lined chamber cut into the bedrock beneath the floor of the main cellar was found. The function of this chamber remains uncertain. MH