Stones, J. A., ed. (1989). Three Scottish Carmelite friaries. Excavations at Aberdeen, Linlithgow and Perth 1980-1986. Edinburgh: Society of Antiquaries of Scotland. https://doi.org/10.5284/1000184.

This volume presents the results of the three excavations which have taken place at the sites of Carmelite friaries in Scotland, It is interesting that of the half a dozen or so Scottish friaries which at the time of writing have been the subject of archaeological excavation, three should have been houses of the Carmelite order, which in so many other ways is so little understood.

An account of the surviving remains is presented. Very little survives above ground: sites include the Franciscan house at Inverkeithing, the Dominican house at St Andrew's and the Carmelite one at South Queensferry. The excavations at Aberdeen, Perth and Linlithgow were exploring unknown territory as virtually nothing was known of the Carmelites in Scotland. A composite illustration shows the state of knowledge of the Scottish Whitefriars convents at the time of writing. It is clear that the one common factor which defines Scottish Carmelite friaries is the simple church building, aligned E-W, tending to be long and narrow and aisleless. The accepted arrangement of the domestic and administrative buildings of the friary was a series of structures situated around one or more courtyards or cloisters, most commonly S of the church. At Aberdeen, Linlithgow and Perth there is evidence of burials within churches, within the cloister (at Linlithgow) and in an external cemetery to the N and E of the church at Linlithgow. Other areas of the friary precinct, neither occupied by buildings nor cemetery, would have been utilised as open land, possibly cultivated, or as gardens or orchards.

A summary account of the documentary evidence is presented. This is followed by a detailed archaeological description of the excavation. The archaeological contexts at Linlithgow have been divided into four periods: prehistoric occupation, most of which is likely to relate to the Neolithic period; medieval use of the site from the 13th century until the construction of the Carmelite friary church in the first half of the 15th century; the construction and occupation of the friary complex in the 15th and 16th centuries; and the destruction of the friary in the second half of the 16th century and subsequent use of the site. ailed archaeological description of each of the excavations. Radiocarbon dates appear at the end of the chapter.

This chapter comprises eleven separate sections including the contents of the microfiche which are reproduced. The dating of the burials (13th-17th century), their possible identity and the manner of burial (including wooden coffins from Perth) are all discussed. This is followed by a specialist report on the human remains which includes individual record sheets and radiocarbon dates from Aberdeen.

A summary report is followed by individual reports reproduced from microfiche. Objects of glass, stone, ceramic, lead, copper-alloy, iron, bone coins and a coin weight were recovered from Aberdeen. The assemblage from Linlithgow comprised Neolithic lithics, jet and bronze items, medieval and post-medieval glass, copper-alloy, stone, silver, lead and iron objects as well as coins and a jetton, wall plaster, pigments and a pigment container. Objects of glass, stone, ceramic, lead, copper-alloy, iron and bone with a coin were found at Perth.