#pkay17

[kingseatarchaeology]

On Thursday 14th and Friday 15th school groups from Breadalbane Academy and Dunkeld Primary visited Kings Seat to get involved in the ongoing excavation. After an introduction to archaeology and archaeological skills, delivered in the classroom by Gavin- PKHT Outreach Officer- they were given a tour of the hillfort and a chance to take part in practical workshops on site. The S2 and P7 groups began excavating in Trench 4, inside the upper citadel area of the fort. They learned the importance of excavating carefully, in consistent even layers to help us identify any different deposits or layers- an archaeological context. They were using their great observational skills to help them find small and large pieces of animal bone and teeth. Groups also took part in an artefact handling and recording workshop with Andy from AOC Archaeology. Using their analytical skills, groups were looking at various objects (including the stone mounds found on site) before discussing what they may have been and drawing their chosen artefact. All in all, it was a fantastic couple of days and everyone had a great time. Thank you for all your hard work!! 'After the long and muddy trail up, we looked at several interesting artefacts, like an axe head and roman oil lamp. We then began digging in trench 4. We found several teeth and bones and what could possibly be the start of a wall. It is much better to be on an archaeological site rather than a classroom as it is much easier to envision what life was really like back then.It was great fun!' - Liberty, S2, Breadalbane Academy

[kingseatarchaeology]

Day 5: Stone Moulds

Monday was our last day on site before the team had a well deserved break in the middle of the excavation. After a rainy Day 4 the weather was looking up, and we were raring to go.

It wasn't long before the Trench 2 team discovered a stone mould. This stone has a shape carved into it, used for moulding molten metal into a desired shape. This was really exciting, and Andy began to explain to some of the team the process of metal working in which this sort of mould would have be used. As the process of using crucibles to work with high sustained heat to work with molten metal was being explained, Bob from Trench 2 began finding fragments of crucible as if pre planned! This was great to aid our understanding of the process of heating and shaping metal to make objects.

As if this wasn't exciting enough, two further moulds came from Trench 3. These were slightly different, as they had previously been used as a saddle quern- a grinding surface for grain, seeds etc. You can see this from the curve, as the constant grinding alters the shape of the stone to resemble a saddle- hence the name. These later developed into rotary querns, where two stone discs were ground against each other with a handle to minimise work. These later evolved into mill stones you can see in windmills.

When held together you can see that the two pieces fit together, giving us more detail on the shape of the mould itself. These were found close to the wall or bank of hillfort, possibly suggesting that the stones were reused again, as part of the structure.

This was a brilliant day of work in the upper citadel. Now the Trench 3 team are on the hunt for the other piece(s) of the mould, and each stone is being checked even more carefully than before!

[kingseatarchaeology]

Day 3: Pipes and Pebbles Today in Trench 2 we have been working back on the soil to uncover the bedrock. While doing so we have uncovered many pebbles all circular and similar in size found very close together, and are sure we will find many more. It will be interesting to find out what these relate to, as they are different to the other stones in the trench. In the higher up segment a small piece of flint appeared, which is likely debitage (the waste flakes left over from shaping the stones into tools). A clay pipe was also found, in two pieces. We have fragments of the bowl and stem, and although not decorated, this also adds further to the history of the use of the site. Who has been up here? Were they enjoying the area, or working on the site? It is a little moment in history. 'This being my first dig of hopefully many more to come I've really enjoyed participating and watching parts of history slowly be uncovered and being able to see a clearer picture.'

[kingseatarchaeology]

Day 2: Planes and Points After yesterday's early finish everyone was keen to get stuck in. Trench 1 is the longest of the three at 30m down the side of the hill but twelve volunteers and professionals knuckled down. Harnessing our inner mountain goat, we started to uncover evidence of possible palisade walls that may have enclosed a large fort. A full workload, nice weather and a low flying Hercules jet made for a busy day! It was all worth it the end. Our volunteer Bob found a very rare quartz tool shaped into a point. Way to go, Bob!

[kingseatarchaeology]

Day 1: The Root(s) of all Evil

The first day of excavation at King’s Seat marks the start of a three year season of excavation, each September from 2017-2019.

Today, the team navigated their way up the winding slopes to our base for the next two weeks, with tents, tools and (most importantly) Tunnocks in tow. Arriving at the summit, it was clear how much of an impact the rhododendron previously covering the site would have had on access and visibility at the hillfort. The efforts of the volunteers who initiated and completed the vegetation clearance made it possible to identify all of the interesting lumps and bumps of this monument, which hopefully will understand even more about by the end of this two weeks.

After a site tour by Sarah at PKHT, and a health and safety talk by Andy from AOC, we laid out the three trenches which will be excavated this year. Trench 2 is at the summit, encompassing a rather impressive glacial erratic boulder, Trench 3 focuses on the entrance of the hillfort, and Trench 1 focuses on the terraces and ramparts cascading down from the lower terrace area. Many of these terraces may have been later activity, as a result of landscaping and manipulation of the terrain, and we hope to establish a good chronology for this over the course of the project.

The morning began with a Tunnock’s fuelled deturfing frenzy. Although, as there isn’t really much in the way of ‘turf’, the team opted for mattocks, saws and loppers to clear the fallen vegetation, matted roots and root stumps left by the rhododendron. Part of this excavation aims to assess the impact of these plants on the underlying archaeology, yet they did not impact our progress today! We made fantastic progress, clearing a lot of the trench area by lunchtime, and even coming down onto stone and possible features in Trench 2.

Now we wait to find out what lies beneath!

[kingseatarchaeology]

Topographical Survey Workshop August 2017

In August, a group of volunteers joined AOC’s survey team to undertake a survey of the King’s Seat hillfort before we begin excavations later this week. Training was given in various archaeological survey techniques, including use of a plane table which you can see in the pictures above. The plane table allows the surveyor to both observe and plot simultaneously, and is a good way to produce maps of small scale survey areas. We look forward to welcoming our volunteer team to the site again this Thursday, when we begin excavations!

[kingseatarchaeology]

Trowels Ready for King’s Seat

Welcome to the King’s Seat Community Archaeology Project Blog. Here you can read the latest news from the project including our excavation dig diary which will be coming very soon as it’s only 7 days now until we start our first season of excavations on the hillfort.

Preparations for the dig have been stepping up apace this week at PKHT and also on site with tree and lower lying vegetation clearance taking place to prepare the areas where the trenches will be going in. We have 5 trenches planned which we hope to open over the duration of the project and this year we’ll be starting with Trenches 1-3.

Keep checking back here for more updates as the Schools programme gets started next week and then deturfing!

[pkheritagetrust]

Volunteer with PKHT and Unlock the Hidden Secrets of King’s Seat Hillfort, Dunkeld!

We’re delighted to announce the launch of Perthshire’s latest community archaeology project. The King’s Seat Hillfort Community Archaeology Project is an exciting new venture that we’re embarking on in partnership with Dunkeld and Birnam Historical Society to find out more about this curiously named hill to the east of Dunkeld.

Project Background

Known as 'The Fort of the Caledonians', the hillfort of King’s Seat is situated on a prominent hill on a major bend in the River Tay. With such a dominating position in Strath Tay, King's Seat is not just a dramatic geographical feature in the landscape but a fascinating choice of location for human activity in the past. 

PKHT was approached in November 2015 by members of the Dunkeld and Birnam community who were concerned about the lack of access to the top of their local hill fort, and the impact that dense rhododendron and tree cover was having on the condition of the archaeological site. Initial vegetation removal by volunteers in 2016 revealed features that have been hidden secrets until now such as a large outcrop of rock which may offer a clue to the naming of the hill.

The King’s Seat Hillfort Community Archaeology Project is managed by out Heritage Officer Sarah Malone and is a Citizen-science project funded by Heritage Lottery, the Gannochy Trust, and Scottish & Southern Electric Community Fund. It is an exciting opportunity for professional archaeologists to work alongside volunteers and students to archaeologically excavate a portion of the hillfort to better understand the impact that vegetation is having and increase knowledge of this mysterious, unstudied site.

Get Involved

We have a variety of interesting opportunities for anyone from the local community interested in volunteering with the project

Even if digging isn’t your thing, there’s topographic survey to get involved in plus archival research and the chance to participate in place-name research. Here we’re hoping to help reveal more about the intangible heritage of the hillfort and its surrounding environs.

Local schools are involved with classroom-based lessons and site-based skills workshops already scheduled for September 2017. It’s also hoped that the imaginative work produced by pupils can be incorporated into interpretation materials.

The project will be running for three years with the first spades breaking turf this September for a two week excavation (7-19 September 2017).

If you’re interested in getting involved in the project then log-on and sign-up at www.pkht.org.uk/projects/kings-seat to express your interest. Guided walks and site tours will be taking place throughout this period, more information is available in our Perth and Kinross Archaeology Year Programme.