Caithness Broch Project
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The Caithness Broch Project is a Scottish charity which aims to promote the county of
Caithness Caithness (; ; ) is a Shires of Scotland, historic county, registration county and Lieutenancy areas of Scotland, lieutenancy area of Scotland. There are two towns, being Wick, Caithness, Wick, which was the county town, and Thurso. The count ...
as a heritage tourism destination. Established as a company in October 2013 and granted charitable status in January 2016, the organisation highlights the region’s archaeological landscape, particularly the numerous
broch In archaeology, a broch is an British Iron Age, Iron Age drystone hollow-walled structure found in Scotland. Brochs belong to the classification "complex Atlantic roundhouse" devised by Scottish archaeologists in the 1980s. Brochs are round ...
s (
Iron Age The Iron Age () is the final epoch of the three historical Metal Ages, after the Chalcolithic and Bronze Age. It has also been considered as the final age of the three-age division starting with prehistory (before recorded history) and progre ...
drystone Dry stone, sometimes called drystack or, in Scotland, drystane, is a building method by which structures are constructed from stones without any mortar to bind them together. A certain amount of binding is obtained through the use of carefully ...
towers), which have earned Caithness the reputation of being "''the home of the broch''". There are a greater number of brochs in Caithness than in any other region of
Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...
, with over half of all known sites found in the area. The ultimate goal of the organisation is to build a replica broch, which will serve as a tourist attraction and act as an important project in
experimental archaeology Experimental archaeology (also called experiment archaeology) is a field of study which attempts to generate and test archaeological Hypothesis, hypotheses, usually by replicating or approximating the feasibility of ancient cultures performing v ...
.
Alyn Smith Alyn Edward Smith (born 15 September 1973) is a Scottish politician. A member of the Scottish National Party (SNP), he served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Stirling from 2019 until 2024 when he unsuccessfully stood for the Stirling and ...
, Scottish National Party MEP, has credited the project with being a "model example of community-led activism".


Project aims and objectives

The aims of the Caithness Broch Project include, amongst others: * the promotion and preservation of existing archaeological sites in Caithness, by improving signage, access, and information releases; * the creation of an archaeological trail around Caithness, intended for use by both local residents and visitors, to encourage awareness of the area’s heritage; * the construction of a replica Iron Age broch and accompanying visitor centre, using authentic building techniques, which will eventually serve as a tourist attraction and drystone dyking workshop. To date, the organisation has led a number of community outreach events, including conservation work at Ousdale Broch, a broch exhibition featuring a 10,000-piece
Lego Lego (, ; ; stylised as LEGO) is a line of plastic construction toys manufactured by the Lego Group, a privately held company based in Billund, Denmark. Lego consists of variously coloured interlocking plastic bricks made of acrylonitri ...
broch built by Brick to the Past, and engagement activities in schools and with existing archaeological groups in the county. To coincide with
VisitScotland VisitScotland, formerly the Scottish Tourist Board (), is a national tourism organisation for Scotland. It is an executive non-departmental public body of the Scottish Government, with offices in Edinburgh, Glasgow, Aberdeen, Inverness, and ...
’s Year of History, Heritage and Archaeology in 2017, the project coordinated the Caithness Broch Festival, a year-long archaeology festival that included field walking, archaeological survey, and other hands-on archaeological activities, with Scottish newspaper The National acting as media partner. The festival was part of a three-year project undertaken to raise awareness of and learn more about brochs. More recently, work has been carried out at brochs at Achvarasdal, Thing’s Va,
Keiss Keiss () is a fishing village at the northern end of Sinclair's Bay on the east coast of Caithness in Scotland's Highland Council area. Keiss castle Keiss Castle, which is now partially ruined, is located less than 1 mile north of the village ...
, and Ousdale, where new interpretive signage has been installed and access to sites has been significantly improved. Accompanying leaflets with more detailed information were produced. The project also worked with ‘Flows to the Future’ to create an information panel at
Loch Rangag ''Loch'' ( ) is a word meaning "lake" or " sea inlet" in Scottish and Irish Gaelic, subsequently borrowed into English. In Irish contexts, it often appears in the anglicized form "lough". A small loch is sometimes called a lochan. Lochs which ...
. Additionally, online maps of the region’s brochs and other archaeological attractions have been created and are freely available. Caithness Broch Project has also attracted interest from the media and maintains a strong social media presence. In 2016, it was featured on
BBC Scotland BBC Scotland is a division of the BBC and the main public broadcaster in Scotland. Its headquarters are in Glasgow, employing approximately 1,250 staff as of 2017, to produce 15,000 hours of television and radio programming per year. BBC Scotla ...
’s
Landward ''Landward'' is a long-running Scottish television programme focusing on agricultural and rural issues, produced and broadcast by BBC Scotland. Overview BBC Scotland had first produced its own farming programme, ''Farm Forum'', in 1965. This was ...
, which showcased some of the archaeological sites of interest to the project and the construction of the replica broch. Promotional activity for the project has included the production Broch Rose Gin, a limited-edition gin inspired by prehistoric Scotland, by Dunnet Bay Distillers, and miniature chocolate brochs by Caithness Chocolate.


Ousdale Broch

Between 2015 and 2020, the project oversaw improvement work at Ousdale Broch, located a mile north of the Caithness-Sutherland border and a few miles south of Berriedale. The site, also known as Ousdale Burn or Allt a’ Bhurg (‘stream of the fort’) Broch, also encompasses the ruins of Borg, a post-Medieval clearance village, and the surrounding landscape has a rich
prehistoric Prehistory, also called pre-literary history, is the period of human history between the first known use of stone tools by hominins  million years ago and the beginning of recorded history with the invention of writing systems. The use o ...
, Norse, and later historic archaeological record. The area is designated a
Site of Special Scientific Interest A Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) in Great Britain, or an Area of Special Scientific Interest (ASSI) in the Isle of Man and Northern Ireland, is a conservation designation denoting a protected area in the United Kingdom and Isle ...
(SSSI). In 2015, site surveys established that the broch was in a serious state of disrepair, and that intervention would be required to conserve the surviving structure. After discussions with
Historic Environment Scotland Historic Environment Scotland (HES) () is an executive non-departmental public body responsible for investigating, caring for and promoting Scotland's historic environment. HES was formed in 2015 from the merger of government agency Historic Sc ...
determined that the broch could be consolidated, a structural inspection and a detailed repairs plan were carried out before funding applications to cover conservation works, interpretation panels, and the creation of a car park and walkable path were submitted. Environmental and archaeological works commenced in 2019, with an initial recording by Clyde Archaeology followed by vegetation clearance and consolidation of the structure. Certain features, including the interior staircase and one of the two
corbel In architecture, a corbel is a structural piece of stone, wood or metal keyed into and projecting from a wall to carry a wikt:superincumbent, bearing weight, a type of bracket (architecture), bracket. A corbel is a solid piece of material in t ...
led guard cells, were conserved, and an
aumbry An ambry (or ''almery'', ''aumbry''; from the medieval form ''almarium'', cf. Lat. ''armārium'', "a place for keeping tools"; cf. O. Fr. ''aumoire'' and mod. armoire) is a recessed cabinet in the wall of a Christian church for storing sacred vesse ...
(stone recess) was reconstructed. The cells, walls, and entrance were stabilised to prevent further collapse using
hardwood Hardwood is wood from Flowering plant, angiosperm trees. These are usually found in broad-leaved temperate and tropical forests. In temperate and boreal ecosystem, boreal latitudes they are mostly deciduous, but in tropics and subtropics mostl ...
pinnings, an innovative technique that is not yet widely used in the conservation of historic buildings. A new car park and path leading from the A9 were built by RJ Macleod and Highland Conservation Ltd, and information panels with details of the broch and the history of the surrounding area installed along the route.


Future plans

Alongside these activities, the principal goal of the project remains to construct a replica broch, using technologies that would have been available to Iron Age societies during the period in which these structures were built (generally in the first centuries BC and AD). This will necessarily draw on archaeological research as well as taking inspiration from existing sites, particularly those that are still upstanding:
Mousa Mousa ( "moss island") is a small island in Shetland, Scotland, uninhabited since the nineteenth century. The island is known for the Broch of Mousa, an Iron Age Broch, round tower, and is designated as a Special Protection Area for storm-petr ...
on
Shetland Shetland (until 1975 spelled Zetland), also called the Shetland Islands, is an archipelago in Scotland lying between Orkney, the Faroe Islands, and Norway, marking the northernmost region of the United Kingdom. The islands lie about to the ...
,
Dun Carloway Dun Carloway () is a broch situated in the district of Carloway, on the west coast of the Isle of Lewis, Scotland (). It is a remarkably well preserved broch – on the east side parts of the old wall still reach to 9 metres tall. History Mo ...
on the
Isle of Lewis The Isle of Lewis () or simply Lewis () is the northern part of Lewis and Harris, the largest island of the Western Isles or Outer Hebrides archipelago in Scotland. The two parts are frequently referred to as if they were separate islands. The t ...
, and Dun Dornaigil in
Sutherland Sutherland () is a Counties of Scotland, historic county, registration county and lieutenancy areas of Scotland, lieutenancy area in the Scottish Highlands, Highlands of Scotland. The name dates from the Scandinavian Scotland, Viking era when t ...
are examples of brochs that retain some of their original height. As some of the most elaborate feats of drystone engineering, the construction will also require input from architects, engineers, and drystone experts. Discussions over the most suitable location for the build are ongoing. Once complete, the structure will provide a base for a new heritage tourism attraction, comprising an authentic Iron Age
living history Living history is an activity that incorporates historical tools, activities and dress into an interactive presentation that seeks to give observers and participants a sense of stepping back in time. Although it does not necessarily seek to ree ...
experience and an exhibition centre. Drystone dyking workshops will also be offered to the general public to raise awareness of a once-thriving traditional industry in Caithness.


See also

*
Atlantic roundhouse In archaeology, an Atlantic roundhouse is an Iron Age stone building found in the northern and western parts of mainland Scotland, the Northern Isles and the Hebrides. Circular houses were the predominant architectural style of the British landsc ...
*
Butser Ancient Farm Butser Ancient Farm is an archaeological open-air museum and experimental archaeology site located near Petersfield in Hampshire, southern England. Butser features experimental reconstructions of prehistoric, Romano-British and Anglo-Saxon build ...
*
North Coast 500 The North Coast 500 is a scenic route around the north coast of Scotland, starting and ending at Inverness Castle. The route is also known as the NC500 and was launched in 2015, linking many features in the north Highlands of Scotland in one t ...
*
Oldest buildings in Scotland This article lists the oldest extant freestanding buildings in Scotland. In order to qualify for the list a structure must: * be a recognisable building (defined as any human-made structure used or intended for supporting or sheltering any use or ...
*
Scottish Crannog Centre Kenmore (, IPA: aˈçaun̴̪auvɔɾ is a small village in Perthshire, in the Highlands of Scotland, located where Loch Tay drains into the River Tay. History The village dates from the 16th century. It and the neighbouring Castle were originall ...


References


External links

*{{official, https://www.thebrochproject.co.uk/ Charities based in Scotland Caithness Tourism in Scotland 2016 establishments in Scotland Brochs