Assynt's "Year of Archaeology"
The remote community of Assynt, in North West Sutherland, is embarking on an ambitious project in the hope of revealing the secrets of people who lived there in the past.
The project will run events exploring ‘Life and Death in Assynt’s Past’, and will carry out archaeological digs at three sites: a 6000-year old burial mound, a 2000-year old broch and a longhouse from 200 years ago.
Projects leader of Historic Assynt, Gordon Sleight said: "Until recently Assynt’s archaeology has been little studied and very few excavations have been conducted here. To be able to engage in three major, professionally led, community excavations in one year is an amazing opportunity.
"Excavations on this scale are rare and we owe a huge debt of gratitude to our funders, (Heritage Lottery Fund, Leader and Historic Scotland) for showing such confidence in Historic Assynt and the Assynt community."
Local project officers have been appointed to help with the project. One of these, Brenda Gibson said: "This will be Assynt’s Year of Archaeology! We are lucky to be having all these opportunities to discover about our history, as this remote area of Scotland opens up its many-layered past for us all to see."
Gordon Sleight said: "Assynt is incredibly fortunate in the amount and quality of its surviving archaeology: one of the largest concentrations of Neolithic cairns in the whole of the UK around Ledmore and Borralan, and a beautiful coastline dotted with nine or more Iron Age farmsteads and defensive sites, of which Clachtoll Broch is not only the grandest but probably the most important such site between the North Coast and Skye."
A walk to the Clachtoll broch (leaving from Clachtoll beach car park at 3pm on Saturday (6th August) will launch the project, followed by an evening seminar event in Stoer Hall (7.30pm) at which Iron Age food and drink will be served. The public are welcome to attend.
Excavation and consolidation work at the Iron Age broch at Clachtoll will begin on Monday, 8th August and will run for three weeks. Further excavations will be at a Neolithic chambered cairn at Loch Borralan, Ledmore (29 August until 17 September), and a pre-Clearance longhouse in Glenleraig (26 September until 8 October). Other public events are being planned.
Mr Sleight said:"‘Visitors are welcome to the digs at any time between 9am and 5pm and there will be someone who can show them round. We're also looking for plenty of volunteers. No experience is required and there are jobs for all abilities. There will be on site training for volunteers in a variety of archaeological skills."
John Barber, the archaeologist with AOC Archaeology who will be leading the work at the broch, said: "Life and Death in Assynt’s Past will build on the previous successes of Assynt’s Hidden Lives Project of 2009. Work on three diverse sites will permit great breadth of learning for the volunteers, and we are confident that this year’s findings will make a meaningful contribution to the archaeological record and to our knowledge of Assynt’s rich and unique past. AOC Archaeology Group is proud to be working with a community as committed and proactive Assynt’s."
