Carpow () is a diffuse

hamlet ''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play, with 29,551 words. Set in Denmark, the play depi ...

Perth and Kinross Perth and Kinross ( sco, Pairth an Kinross; gd, Peairt agus Ceann Rois) is one of the 32 council areas of Scotland and a Lieutenancy Area. It borders onto the Aberdeenshire, Angus, Argyll and Bute, Clackmannanshire, Dundee, Fife, Highland an ...

, Scotland. It is situated immediately to the east of the confluence of the

River Tay The River Tay ( gd, Tatha, ; probably from the conjectured Brythonic ''Tausa'', possibly meaning 'silent one' or 'strong one' or, simply, 'flowing') is the longest river in Scotland and the seventh-longest in Great Britain. The Tay originates i ...

and

River Earn , name_etymology = , image = River Earn at Forteviot.jpg , image_size = 250px , image_caption = The River Earn viewed from Forteviot bridge. , map = , map_size = , map_caption ...

, 2 km north east of Abernethy.

Etymology

The name ''Carpow'' is of

Pictish Pictish is the extinct Brittonic language spoken by the Picts, the people of eastern and northern Scotland from Late Antiquity to the Early Middle Ages. Virtually no direct attestations of Pictish remain, short of a limited number of geographic ...

origin. The first element is ''*cair'', meaning "fort, castle", and the second is ''*pol'', meaning "(sluggish) burn" (c.f.

Welsh Welsh may refer to: Related to Wales * Welsh, referring or related to Wales * Welsh language, a Brittonic Celtic language spoken in Wales * Welsh people People * Welsh (surname) * Sometimes used as a synonym for the ancient Britons (Celtic peopl ...

''caer-pwll'').

Archaeology

Carpow is most notable for its archaeological remains.

Mesolithic The Mesolithic (Greek: μέσος, ''mesos'' 'middle' + λίθος, ''lithos'' 'stone') or Middle Stone Age is the Old World archaeological period between the Upper Paleolithic and the Neolithic. The term Epipaleolithic is often used synonymo ...

hunter-gatherers arrived in the area more than 8,000 years ago. Nearby

Neolithic The Neolithic period, or New Stone Age, is an Old World archaeological period and the final division of the Stone Age. It saw the Neolithic Revolution, a wide-ranging set of developments that appear to have arisen independently in several part ...

standing stones and circles followed the introduction of farming from about 4,000 BC, and a remarkably well preserved

Bronze Age The Bronze Age is a historic period, lasting approximately from 3300 BC to 1200 BC, characterized by the use of bronze, the presence of writing in some areas, and other early features of urban civilization. The Bronze Age is the second pri ...

log boat dated to around 1,000 BC was found in the

mudflats Mudflats or mud flats, also known as tidal flats or, in Ireland, slob or slobs, are coastal wetlands that form in intertidal areas where sediments have been deposited by tides or rivers. A global analysis published in 2019 suggested that tidal f ...

of the River Tay at Carpow. During

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD * Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lett ...

times the settlement was the site of a camp and fort, which was made of stone, signalling the intent to stay for an extended period. An early medieval Picto-Scottish cross fragment once formed part the lintel of a well at Carpow House.

Roman fort

The Roman fort of Carpow was a Roman fortress situated at the confluence of the rivers Tay and

Earn Earning can refer to: * Labour (economics) *Earnings of a company *Merit Merit may refer to: Religion * Merit (Christianity) * Merit (Buddhism) * Punya (Hinduism) * Imputed righteousness in Reformed Christianity Companies and brands * Merit ...

.The site record for the Carpow fort at RCAHMS
/ref> The fortress is known to have been occupied from the late second century AD until the early third century AD. The site of the fort has not been comprehensively excavated but it is believed to have served as a naval supply depot for Roman forces in the

central lowlands The Central Lowlands, sometimes called the Midland Valley or Central Valley, is a geologically defined area of relatively low-lying land in southern Scotland. It consists of a rift valley between the Highland Boundary Fault to the north and ...

. Its occupation also coincided with the campaigns of

Septimius Severus Lucius Septimius Severus (; 11 April 145 – 4 February 211) was Roman emperor from 193 to 211. He was born in Leptis Magna (present-day Al-Khums, Libya) in the Roman province of Africa. As a young man he advanced through the customary succ ...

in the area.

References

External links

Carpow Roman Fort

Etymology

Archaeology

Roman fort

References

External links

See also