Bronze Age burial pots revealed as snow melted
Collared Urns discovered at Airlie are more than 3,500 years old
By susy macaulay
Published: 09/03/2011
Two Bronze Age burial pots have been discovered at the base of an Angus standing stone which toppled over during this winter’s bad weather.
The pots, known as collared urns, are more than 3,500 years old, and contain human bone fragments.
They were found beneath the Carlinwell Stone at Airlie, near Kirriemuir, which fell during last month’s thaw as the heavy snow and deep ice retreated.
Archaeologists were commissioned by Historic Scotland to excavate the base of the stone prior to raising the 7ft monolith back into position later this week.
Melanie Johnson, project co-ordinator with CFA Archaeology of Musselburgh and field archaeologist Leigh Garst discovered the pots as they excavated the original socket for the standing stone.
Ms Johnson said: “The pots are typical of early Bronze Age cremation burials.
“People were burned on pyres and their remains gathered, put into pots and buried upside down in a pit.
“One of the Carlinwell pots is very small, about 4in in diameter, and the other about 8in. The larger one is partially smashed, with the bits falling inside the pot.
“We can see there is plenty of bone inside, enough to tell us the gender and age of the person, and if they had illnesses or trauma wounds.
“They will be taken to a lab in Edinburgh, and radio-carbon dated.”
The find has excited John Sheriff, an investigator with the Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historic Monuments of Scotland.
He said: “This goes some way to proving that Carlinwell Stone is a genuine prehistoric standing stone, rather than something put up later.
“Human bones were found at the base of the stone in the early 18th century, and my hunch is they were also Bronze Age, although it’s possible there is no connection.”
Soil samples from around the stone’s socket will be analysed and any organic material found radio-carbon dated if possible.
That would go some way to solving the mystery of whether the stone was erected to mark the graves, or whether the pots were put in place afterwards.
Ancient Monuments Inspector for Historic Scotland Martin Brann said: “It is not uncommon for burials to be found in association with standing stones and stone circles, emphasising the ritual or religious significance of these monuments to prehistoric farming communities.
“Prehistoric settlement in the vicinity of Airlie is evident in the form of cropmarks showing on aerial photographs.”
After examination and processing by the National Museum in Edinburgh, the pots are likely to end up in Meffan museum, Forfar.
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