Newsletter – Issue 163, May 2007
Society Activities
Lectures
Nothing until the summer is over. We start again on Wednesday, 17th October, with Jonathan Wordsworth on Working with farmers to protect Scotland’s Heritage.
Outings
Outing to Lamb’s House
Eight members went to Lamb’s House. Some consider that this house may have been the finest house in Leith in the 16th and 17th centuries – it is now owned by the National Trust and has been converted to office accommodation (not very prettily). From the outside it promises a lot with a turnpike stair, tall chimneys, crow-stepped gables and lots of interesting ‘bits’. Internally however everything has been covered up (destroyed?) by the conversion to offices. There are hints of what may lie behind the plasterboard/hardboard etc (massive fireplaces, ogee-arched sinks on the stair with the waste outlet at the bottom) but until they rip out these offices (and I believe there may be plans to do so, subject to finance), the inside of Lamb’s House is disappointing. This may be an ugly duckling about to become a swan, but for the present enjoy the exterior!
Castlehill, Penicuik
The dig has continued on a regular Sunday basis since our first session of the year on 4th March. Considerable progress has been made on recording the ‘revetment’ stones that curve round the NE end of the promontory – for the record these must become Trench 7. This year’s digging has taken place in trenches 1, 3 and 5.
Trench 1 was partially back-filled last year in the area declared ‘natural’ by our friends in BGS but between this and the hearth area a complicated clay context has been found that could possibly have been a clay floor but has been much disturbed by rabbit burrows, fallen trees and tree roots. Trench 3 was extended last year to section the inner bank along the line of the resistive linear array measurement. In addition to a putative post hole a large sandstone slab was found in the base of the ditch. This slab aligned well with a rise in resistance in the linear array readings that were taken when we first started work on the site. On extending the trench along the line of the ditch no continuation of the paving has been found. A single find from the bottom of the ditch is a glass sherd that has been identified as being from a bottle base dated by Robin as not earlier than late 18th century. This raises the question ‘Did it fall into the ditch from a higher level over winter or was the ditch a late constructed form of ha-ha to keep animals out of Castlehill Plantation?’ The investigation continues.
Lauriston/Cramond
The magnetometry survey made in March shows a significant circle at the north end of the field and this aligns well with a less clear high resistance circle on the area resistance survey. Don Matthews scaled both prints to the same size and printed them out on transparent film (this simplifies looking for features that are coincident). John Lawson, the City Archaeology Officer, has looked at the printouts and suggests that, after a further survey over cropmarks to the north, an excavation could be arranged next year on both sites.
Manuel Nunnery
Geoff Bailey has supplied a plan of the site to the north of the small gable end that is still standing (and scheduled). The field is under crop that will probably be harvested in August. The area indicated as being of interest extends to about twenty of our standard 20 by 20 metre squares so at least three days work is envisaged.
Ogilface Castle
An area ground resistance survey was made over 2000 sq. m. at the castle site at Woodend, Armadale on 21st April. Some large dressed stone slabs protrude through the grass of the field and appear to be in situ whereas others are down the slope towards a burn that flows on the north side of the promontory on which the castle stands. The steepness of the slope suggests that the burn has eroded the castle and this seems to be confirmed by the ground resistance printout that shows high resistance disappearing over the edge. A return to the site, with Dr Peter Morris to carry out a magnetometry survey, took place on 19th May in atrocious weather with high winds and heavy showers. However 1600 sq. m. was surveyed and the initial printout of the magnetometry confirms the basic shape of the castle that appeared on the resistance printout. The proposed resistance survey on the site nearer to Blackridge was abandoned (another date has yet to be arranged). Our thanks go to Peter for continuing in such conditions.