II.—SCOTTISH LAKE-DWELLINGS OR CRANNOGS.
It was not till after the discoveries on the Continent had attracted universal attention that archæologists began to look for similar remains in Britain. It was then found that early historic references to island forts, and some incidental notices of the exposure of buried islands artificially constructed of wood and stone, and other remains of lacustrine abodes, during the drainage of lochs and marshes in the last and early part of this century, had been entirely overlooked. The merit of correctly interpreting these remains in Scotland, and bringing them systematically before antiquaries, belongs to the late Joseph Robertson, Esq., F.S.A., Scotland, who read a paper on the subject to the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland on the 14th of December, 1857, entitled, "Notices of the Isle of the Loch of Banchory, the Isle of Loch Canmor, and other Scottish examples of the artificial or stockaded islands, called crannogs in Ireland, and Keltischen Pfahlbauten in Switzerland."
Mr. Robertson's paper, though not published, at once attracted attention, and stimulated so much further inquiry on the part of the members, that, at the very next meeting of the Society, another contribution on the subject was read by Mr. John Mackinlay, F.S.A., Scotland (B. 21), from which it appeared that as early as 1812 this gentleman had observed some remains (now surmised to be a crannog) in Dhu Loch, in the island of Bute, which were described in a letter dated the 13th February, 1813. This communication found its way to George Chalmers, Esq., author of "Caledonia," regarding which, writing on the 26th of April, 1813, he says:—"It goes directly to illustrate some of the obscurest antiquities of Scotland. I mean the wooden castles, which belong to the Scottish period when stone and lime were not much used in building. I will make proper use of this discovery of Mr. Mackinlay." In 1863, Dr. John Grigor, of Nairn, described "two ancient lake-dwellings or crannoges in the Loch of the Clans, Nairnshire." (B. 55.) The remains, however, were too imperfect to be of value in illustrating their structure, and the only relics found were a portion of a small stone cup or lamp, two whetstones, an iron axe-head, and some charcoal and bits of bone.
A more important discovery, made about the same time, was a group of artificial islands in Loch Dowalton, Wigtownshire, which were first described by his Grace the Duke of Northumberland (then Lord Lovaine) in a paper read at the Newcastle-upon-Tyne meeting of the British Association in 1863. (B. 56.) About two years later Mr. John Stuart, Secretary to the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland, visited Dowalton, and, owing to a greater drainage of the loch having been made in the interval, was enabled to re-examine the Dowalton islands under more favourable circumstances. The result of his labours was an elaborate paper to the Society, in which he gave a detailed account of the structure and relics of these crannogs, and also took the opportunity of incorporating into his article all the facts he could glean, so as to afford a basis for comparing the Scottish examples with those in other countries. (B. 94.)
Since the publication of Dr. Stuart's paper in 1866, little progress was made in the investigation of Scottish crannogs, though traces of them were occasionally noticed in various parts of Scotland, till the discovery and examination of the Lochlee crannog, Ayrshire, in 1878-9. The work done at Lochlee was important, not only because of the varied collection of relics secured, but also on account of the interest it had excited in archæological research, the fruit of which has already been reaped by the discovery of no less than five other lake-dwellings in the south-west of Scotland, all of which have now been carefully investigated. Full details of these investigations are given in the Collections of the Ayrshire and Galloway Archæological Association, as well as in my recent work on the "Scottish Lake-Dwellings." (B. 331, 344, 373, and 426.)
While such general indications of lake-dwellings can hardly be said to limit their geographical distribution to any given area in Scotland, it is a singular fact that, so far as the discovery of actual remains illustrative of the civilisation and social condition of their occupiers is concerned, we are almost entirely dependent on the investigations made at Dowalton, Lochlee, Lochspouts, Buston, Airrieoulland, Barhapple, and Friar's Carse, all of which are situated within the counties of Ayr, Dumfries, and Wigtown. In instituting a comparison between the relics of these respective groups their resemblance is so wonderfully alike that we have no difficulty in dispensing with the necessity of discussing the merits of each group separately; so that whatever inferences can be legitimately derived from a critical examination of any one group may be safely applied to the whole.
As a preliminary to this inquiry the following details of the investigation of lake-dwellings in Scotland will, I trust, be sufficient to give general readers a tolerably correct notion of the social conditions and environments of the people whose history, solely from an archæological standpoint, it is our object here to pourtray.
DOWALTON.
The loch of Dowalton was of an irregular form, about 1½ mile long, and about three-quarters of a mile in greatest breadth, and without any marked outfall for drainage. Sir William Maxwell effected this by making a cut, 25 feet deep, through the wall of whinstone and slate which closed it in at its south-eastern boundary. When the waters were allowed to run off in the summer of 1863 no less than five artificially constructed islands became visible. One of these had a cairn of stones on it which always remained above water, and was known as the "Miller's Cairn," from the fact of its having been used, like the Nilometer, to measure the quantity of water in the lake, and thereby to regulate its supply to neighbouring mills. "On approaching the cairn," says Dr. Stuart, "the numerous rows of piles which surrounded it first attracted notice. These piles were formed of young oak-trees. Lying on the north-east were mortised frames of beams of oak, like hurdles, and, below these, round trees laid horizontally. In some cases the vertical piles were mortised into horizontal bars. Below them were layers of hazel and birch branches, and under these were masses of ferns, the whole mixed with large boulders, and penetrated by piles. Above all was a surface of stone and soil, which was several feet under water till the recent drainage took place. The hurdle frames were neatly mortised together, and were secured by pegs in the mortise holes. On one side of the island a round space of a few feet in size appeared, on which was a layer of white clay, browned and calcined as from the action of fire, and around it were bones of animals and ashes of wood.... Lines of piles, apparently to support a causeway, led from it to the shore." (B. 94.)
The other islands were constructed in a similar manner, and of like materials. The largest and farthest from the shore measured twenty-three yards in diameter, and its surface was three feet lower than that of the others. Several canoes and bronze dishes were found in the mud in the vicinity of these islands, and in making excavations on them many relics and broken bones were collected, of which the following is a list as far as known up to the present time:—
RELICS FROM THE CRANNOGS IN LOCH DOWALTON.
Metal.—"Pot or patella of yellowish-coloured bronze ([Fig. 126]), with a handle springing from the upper edge, 7 inches in length, on which is stamped the letters P. CIPIPOLIBI. At the farther extremity is a circular opening. The bottom is ornamented with five projecting rings, and measures in diameter 6 inches; it is 8 inches in diameter across the mouth; the inside appears to be coated with tin, and has a series of incised lines at various distances. The vessel is ornamented on the outside opposite to the handle by a human face in relief, surrounded by a movable ring, which could be used in lifting the pot." (B. 94, p. 109.)
Fig. 126.—Bronze Dish (height, 5½ inches).
A bronze basin, measuring 10 inches in diameter and 4 inches in depth, shows several patches or mendings ([Fig. 127]). It is formed of several separate pieces of sheet-metal riveted together, and appears to have had an iron handle.
Fig. 127.—Bronze Dish, 10 inches in diameter.
Two bronze dishes, hammered out of the solid. One measures 12 inches in diameter and 4 inches in depth. The other has the same diameter as the former, but is 1 inch less in depth, and has a turned-over rim 1 inch in breadth ([Fig. 128]).
Fig. 128.—Bronze Dish, 12 inches in diameter.
A bronze ring, having attached to it a portion of the vessel of which it had been a handle ([Fig. 129]).
Fig. 129.—Bronze Ring-handle, 1⁄2 real size.
A penannular brooch and a circular ornament, with trumpet-shaped spaces, probably intended for enamel[99] ([Fig. 130]). Also a small ring, a fragment of bronze, and iron slag.
Fig. 130.—Bronze Brooch (1⁄1) and Bronze Ornament (2 inches in diameter).
Three iron hammers or axe-hammers ([Fig. 131]).
Fig. 131.—Iron Hammer-Axes (1⁄2).
Glass.—Two beads of earthenware of a ribbed pattern, showing traces of a green glaze; one of vitreous paste of a whitish colour, with red spots; half of another bead of white glass, streaked with blue; and a large bead, 1¼ inch in diameter, of a somewhat remarkable character. The latter has in the central perforation a tube of bronze, and the edge of both sides of the perforation is ornamented by three minute bands of twisted yellow glass, while the body is of blue glass, of a ribbed pattern ([Fig. 132]).
 |  Armlet of Whitish Glass streaked with Blue (1⁄2). |
 | |
| Portion of Armlet (1⁄1). | Blue Glass Bead, 1 inch long and 1¼ wide. |
Beads all real size.
Fig. 132.—Objects of Glass or Vitreous Paste.
Several portions of armlets of glass. Half of one is of white glass, and streaked with blue. Others are of a yellowish or whitish colour ([Fig. 132]). A small portion of blue glass.
Leather.—Portion of a leather shoe, 7 inches in length, nearly covered with ornamental stamped patterns ([Fig. 133]).
Stone.—A thin flat stone, of a rectangular shape and highly polished, is supposed to have been used as a mirror; five querns, a flake of yellow flint, and several whetstones.
Fig. 133.—Portion of Leather Shoe (length, 7 inches).
Fig. 134.—Bit of Samian Ware (1⁄1) and portion of a Crucible (1⁄2).
Wood.—Five canoes, measuring from 18 feet to 25 feet in length, and from 2 feet 7 inches to 4 feet 2 inches in breadth. Dr. Stuart describes one as being "25 feet in length, and strengthened by a projecting cross-band towards the centre, left in the solid in hollowing out the inside." A large wooden vessel, roughly cut out of the solid, and a portion of a bowl, with circular grooves made by means of a wood-turner's lathe.
Pottery.—A small fragment of Samian ware and an earthen crucible ([Fig. 134]).
Miscellaneous.—A small shale ring, unfinished, a bead of amber, and a copper coin.
LOCHLEE.
The site of the Lochlee crannog was a small lake, which formerly occupied about nineteen acres of what is now, and has been for many years, arable land, on the farm of Lochlee, near Tarbolton. Before it was artificially drained, some fifty years ago, no one appears to have surmised that a small island, which became visible in the summer-time, and formed a safe habitation for gulls and other sea-birds during their breeding season, had been formerly the residence of man; nor does it appear to have attracted the attention of the poet Burns, who lived on this farm for four years as ploughman to his father, then tenant of the place. The crannog was near the outlet, of the lake, and the nearest land, its southern bank, was about seventy-five yards distant. When the first drainage of the lake was carried out, the wrought woodwork exposed in the drains running through the island, and especially the discovery of two canoes buried in the moss, attracted some attention. It was not, however, till 1878, in consequence of some discoveries during the re-drainage of the locality, that this most important crannog was investigated.
Fig. 135.—General View of Site of Lochlee Crannog.
The general appearance which it presented before the excavations were commenced, as seen in [Fig. 135], was that of a grassy knoll, drier, firmer, and slightly more elevated than the surrounding field. Towards the margin of this mound were seen the tops of a few wooden piles, barely projecting above the grass, which at once suggested the idea that they might be portions of a stockaded island.
Fig. 136.—Mortised Beam with portion of an Upright (1⁄24) and a Wooden Peg (1⁄8).
Fig. 137.—Sketch showing part of surrounding Stockade with Mortised Beams.
The diameter of the island was about one hundred feet; and its superficies was thus occupied:—In the centre was a flat circular area about sixty feet in diameter. Then followed a double line of upright piles from 2 to 3 feet apart. These were bound together by short transverse beams with a hole, generally square, at each end ([Fig. 136]), into which the tops of the uprights penetrated, while others stretched along the circumference forming a firm network. The surface of these horizontal binders was about three feet above the level of the inner area, and thus the stockade presented the appearance of a breastwork. At the north-east corner this arrangement was more perfect than elsewhere (see sketch, [Fig. 137]) and constituted what was supposed to have been a landing stage, as from it a neatly-constructed flooring of wood extended for some yards inwards. Outside the stockade on the north side there was a mass of brushwood and stakes forming a kind of trellis-work, as if intended for further protection to the island. In the centre of the inner area there was a square portion, measuring 39 feet on each side, covered with closely laid beams of split stems of trees having the appearance and size of railway sleepers, which appeared to have been the flooring of a wooden house. This log-pavement (as we called it) had been Surrounded by a wooden wall, the stumps of which then only remained, and a line of similar stumps ran across it, from east to west, thus bisecting the building into two nearly equal compartments. The sides of this wooden foundation looked towards the four cardinal points, and its corners just reached to the surrounding stockades. On the surface of the wooden pavement were found some fragments of curiously worked beams and some large broad boards. Some were grooved and had also square-cut holes, in which both transverse and upright beams could be mortised. (See sketch, [Fig. 138].) A doorway, the stumps of the sideposts of which were readily distinguished, opened to the south; and in front, but more to the left, was an extensive refuse heap, in which many relics were found. This midden occupied the space between the south margin of the log-pavement and the surrounding stockades—some 10 or 12 feet in breadth by about double that in length.
Fig. 138.—Grooved and Mortised Beams lying over Log-Pavement.
Fig. 139.—Perpendicular Section through the Three lowest Hearths.
About the middle of the northern half of the log-pavement was found a remarkable series of four hearths, or fire-places, superimposed one above the other. The lowest was placed a little above the log-pavement, and had a layer of stones, clay, and earth intervening between it and the wood. About one and a half foot higher there was a second hearth; at a similar interval, a third; and at 2½ feet still higher, a fourth. These hearths were formed of small boulders laid closely together, like a stone causeway, embedded in, and surrounded by, a layer of clay ([Fig. 139]). They were oval or circular in shape and about four feet in diameter. The corresponding layers of clay extended considerably beyond the limits of the hearths around which they appeared to form a flooring. The third hearth (counting from below upwards) had been more elaborately constructed than the others, and it was surrounded by a number of stumps of stout uprights which no doubt were the remains of a secondary building, as their lower ends did not penetrate much beyond the level of the hearth. The space underneath the clay bed corresponding to this hearth, and extending downwards to the log-pavement, was, next to the refuse heap, the most prolific in relics. In it were found, about the level of the second fire-place, nearly the entire skeletons of two animals like a goat or sheep, the skulls of which had short horn-cores attached to them.
Gangway.—Beyond the midden, outside the island, the tops of a few piles were detected, and upon making exploratory excavations, these turned out to be the remains of a gangway. As this structure was very peculiar and somewhat comparable to the wooden structures described by Virchow and others in the German Pfahlbauten, I will here quote my original description of it in extenso. (See plan and sections, facing [page 416]):—
"We commenced this inquiry by excavating a rectangular space, 30 feet long, 16 feet broad, and 3 to 4 feet deep, in the line of direction indicated by the piles, and exposed quite a forest of oak stakes. Other trenches were then made with exactly similar results. The stakes thus revealed did not at first appear to conform to any systematic arrangement, but by-and-by we detected, in addition to six single piles, small groups of three, four, and five, here and there at short intervals. This observation, however, conveyed little or no meaning, so that we could form no opinion as to the manner in which they were used. Up to this point no trace of mortised beams was anywhere to be seen. In all these trenches the stuff dug up was of the same character. First or uppermost was a bed of fine clay rather more than 2 feet thick, and then a soft dark substance formed of decomposed vegetable matter. The source of the latter was evident from the occurrence in its upper stratum of large quantities of leaves, some stems, branches, and the roots of stunted trees in situ. The tops of the piles in the trench next the crannog were from 2 to 3 feet below the surface of the field, but they rose gradually as we receded from the crannog, and in the trench next the shore one or two were found on a level with the grass. About 4 feet deep the stuff at the bottom of the trench was so soft that a man could scarcely stand on it without sinking ankle-deep. It was not nearly so heavy as the upper strata, but more adhesive, and of a nutty-brown colour, which, on exposure, quickly turned dark. Notwithstanding the flabbiness of this material, the piles felt quite firm, and this fact, together with the experience derived from our examination of the deeper structures of the island, led to the supposition that the piles must terminate in some more solid basis than had yet been made apparent. To remove all doubts on this point, though a long iron rod could be easily pushed downwards without meeting any resistance, we ordered a large deep shaft to be dug in the line of the piles, and the cutting nearest the crannog was selected for this purpose. This was accomplished with much difficulty, but we were amply rewarded by coming upon an elaborate system of woodwork, which I found no less difficult to comprehend than it now is to describe. The first horizontal beam was reached about 7 feet deep, and for other 3 feet we passed through a complete network of similar beams, lying in various directions. Below this—i.e. 10 feet from the surface—the workmen could find no more beams and the lake silt became harder and more friable. We then cleared a larger area, so as, if possible, to exhibit the structural arrangement of the woodwork. The reason of grouping the piles now became apparent. The groups were placed in a somewhat zig-zag fashion near the sides of the gangway, and from each there radiated a series of horizontal beams, the ends of which crossed each other and were kept in position by the uprights. One group was carefully inspected. The first or lowest beam observed was right across, the next lay lengthways and of course at right angles to the former, then three or four spread out diagonally like a fan, and terminated in other groups at the opposite side of the gangway, and lastly, one again lay lengthways. Thus each beam raised the level of the general structure the exact height of its thickness, though large lozenge-shaped spaces remained in the middle quite clear of any beams. The general breadth of the portion of this unique structure examined was about 10 feet (but an isolated pile was noticed farther out), and its thickness varied from 3 to 4 feet. A large oak plank, some 10 feet long, showing the marks of the sharp-cutting instrument by which it was formed, was found lying on edge at its west side, and beyond the line of piles, but otherwise no remains of a platform were seen. All the beams and stakes were made of oak, and so thoroughly bound together that, though not a single joint, mortise, or pin was discovered, the whole fabric was as firm as a rock. No relics were found in any of the excavations along the line of this gangway." (B. 373, pp. 99-101.)
Structure of the Island.—Having now collected the chief facts regarding the log-pavement, its surrounding structures and superincumbent materials, we determined to sink a shaft about the centre of the crannog for the purpose of ascertaining, if possible, the thickness, composition, and mode of structure, of the island itself. This shaft was rectangular in form, and large enough to allow three men to work in it together. (See plan and sections, [page 416].) After removing the three or four layers of oak planks which constituted this portion of the log-pavement, we came upon a thin layer of brushwood, and then large trunks of trees laid in regular beds or layers, each layer having its logs lying parallel to each other, but transversely or sometimes obliquely to those of the layer immediately above or below it. At the west end of the trench, after removing the first and second layers of the log-pavement, we found part of a small canoe hollowed out of an oak trunk, evidently part of an old worn-out one, thus economised and used instead of a prepared log. Much progress in this kind of excavation was by no means an easy task, as it was necessary to keep two men constantly pumping the water which copiously flowed from all directions into the trench, and even then there always remained some at the bottom. As we advanced downwards we encountered layer upon layer of the trunks of trees with the branches closely chopped off, and so soft that the spade easily cut through them. Birch was the prevailing kind of wood, but, occasionally, beams of oak were found with holes at their extremities, through which pegs of oak penetrated into other holes in the logs beneath. One such peg, some three or four inches in diameter, was found to pass through no less than four beams in successive layers, and to terminate ultimately in a round trunk over thirteen inches in diameter. One of the oak beams was extracted entire, and measured 8 feet 3 inches in length and 10 inches in breadth, and the holes in it were 5 feet apart. Others had small round projecting bars, which fitted into mortised holes in adjacent beams. Down to a depth of about four feet the logs ware rudely split, but below this they were round rough trunks, with the bark still adhering to them. Their average diameter would be from six inches to one foot, and amongst them were some curiously gnarled stems occasionally displaying large knotty protuberances. Of course, in the act of digging the trench the wood was cut up into fragments, and, on being uncovered, its fibres had a natural and even fresh-like appearance, but in a few minutes after exposure to the air the freshly cut pieces became as black as ink. Amongst the débris thrown up from a depth of 6 feet below the log-pavement I picked up the larger portion of a broken hammer-stone or polisher, which, from the worn appearance presented by its fractured edges, must have been used subsequently to its breakage. After considerable labour, when indeed the probability of total discomfiture in reaching the bottom was freely talked of, our most energetic foreman at last announced, after cutting through a large flat trunk 14 inches thick, that underneath this he could find no trace of further woodwork. The substance removed from below the lowest logs consisted of a few twigs of hazel brushwood, embedded in a dark, firm, but friable and somewhat peaty soil, which we concluded to be the silt of the lake deposited before the foundations of the crannog were laid. The depth of this solid mass of woodwork, measuring from the surface of the log-pavement, was 9 feet 10 inches, or about sixteen feet from the surface of the field. Amongst the very last spadefuls pitched from this depth was found nearly one half of a well-formed and polished ring made of shale, the external and internal diameters of which were 3½ and 2 inches respectively.
RELICS FROM LOCHLEE.
Stone.—Several hammer-stones and sling-stones, etc. Five whetstones or hones of the ordinary form. They are made of hard clay-stone or sometimes fine sandstone, and vary in length from 5 to 7 inches. One 6¼ inches long has a groove running nearly its whole length ([Fig. 140]). A large oval pebble of white quartz used as an anvil. A flat circular stone, 3 inches in diameter and 1⅜ inch thick, shaped like a cheese. One stone celt made of a hard mottled greenstone ([Fig. 141]). Five upper and some bits of lower millstones or querns, mostly of granite. The former are all somewhat elongated, with a funnel-shaped hole in the centre and generally a small round hole near the margin, as seen in the accompanying illustration. Two cup-marked stones, one with two concentric circles ([Fig. 141]). One spindle-whorl of stone and three of clay ([Fig. 141]). Two flint flakes and one scraper ([Fig. 141]). Several worked portions of stones.
Fig. 140.—Hone, 6¼ inches long.
Bone and Horn.—Two chisels, five pointed objects, a small spoon, a needle with its eye in the middle, a small ring, and several worked bits of ribs were of bone. Of horn there were about forty worked pieces—clubs, hooks, bodkins, handles, etc. ([Fig. 142]).
Fig. 141.—Objects of Stone and Clay.
Wood.—A neat trough, like a butcher's tray, cut out of the solid wood ([Fig. 143]). Five dishes turned on the lathe, bowls, plates, a ladle, etc. A piece of ashwood, 5 inches square, having a curious design carved on both sides ([Figs. 144] and [145]). Six club-like implements, a mallet, and a few things apparently intended for agricultural purposes. Five varieties of pegs from five to fourteen inches in length, with heads and sometimes perforations. One here figured is 14 inches long ([Fig. 136]). Stern-piece of a canoe, a double paddle, portion of a large oar, and three canoes. The paddle and mallet are here figured ([Fig. 146]).
Fig. 142.—Objects of Bone and Horn.
Fig. 143.—Wooden Tray (1⁄6).
Iron.—An axe-head with a piece of the handle still in the socket ([Fig. 146]); a gouge 8 inches long, and a chisel 10 inches long, both having tangs on which there is a thick ridge to prevent their insertion too far into the handle; two knives with tangs; a small punch, an awl, and other pointed implements; a crosscut saw, in three fragments, together 38 inches in length; a large iron ring; a pair of shears; and a large three-pronged implement of a remarkable character. The last two objects are illustrated on [Fig. 147]. Two spear-heads with sockets and portions of the wooden handle remaining in each. The larger, 13 inches long, has a prominent centre ridge. Five daggers, all with tangs, one of which has a bone handle and a brass ferrule.
Fig. 144.—Carved Wood (1⁄1).
Bronze or Brass.—A curious spatula-like object of beaten bronze ([Fig. 147]). Three fibulæ and a ring pin ([Fig. 148]). The square-shaped portion at the top of the latter has a swastika or croix gammée on one side and a cross with four equal arms on the other. A spiral finger-ring with three twists, two portions of stout wire, and an object of unknown use.
Fig. 145.—Carved—other side of Fig. 144 (1⁄1).
A bridle-bit having the centre-piece of iron and the side-pieces partly of iron and partly of bronze—the rings being iron and the looped portion bronze ([Fig. 149]).
Lead.—One round knob like the hilt of a handle.
Fig. 146.—Iron Axe (1⁄2), Wooden Mallet (1⁄8), and Paddle (1⁄24).
Fig. 147.—Iron Prong (1⁄5), Iron Shears, (2⁄3), and Bronze Spatula (1⁄2).
Pottery.—Portion of the bottom of a dish like Samian ware, and five fragments of a whitish unglazed ware with parallel striæ, as if made on the wheel. Fragment of a small crucible.
Fig. 148.—Two Fibulæ (1⁄1) and a Ring Pin (1⁄2).
Glass.—Two beads, one of earthenware of ribbed pattern and coated with green glaze, like those from Dowalton. (See [Fig. 132].) The other is of green glass, smooth and shaped like dumb-bells.
Fig. 149.—Bridle-bit (1⁄2).
Leather.—Portion of a shoe and various bits of leather, one being closely set with copper nails ([Fig. 150]).
Miscellaneous.—Three portions of plain jet bracelets; another portion of jet is like part of a button; a boar's tusk worked into a sharp point; lumps of blue and red pigment, and large quantities of the horny coverings of insects like beetles, and one or two brilliant-coloured elytra; one solitary shell (Littorina littorea).
Fig. 150.—Fringe made from Stems of a Moss (Polytrichum commune) (1⁄3), and piece of Thick Leather with Copper Nails (1⁄1).
An object which has excited considerable curiosity is an apparatus made like a fringe by plaiting together at one end the long stems of a kind of moss ([Fig. 150]). Portions of similar articles were found in three different parts of the crannog and all deeply buried. One portion of this moss was plaited in four plies and shaped like a cue or pig-tail. It measured 17 inches long and 2 broad in the middle, and tapered to a point.
LOCHSPOUTS.
Lochspouts is a small lake basin, about three miles to the south-west of Maybole, somewhat oval in shape, and ensconced at the base of hilly ground, which encompasses it, except towards the north, where a narrow trap-dike runs across and cuts it off from the open valley beyond. It is thus a natural dam, formed in the face of a declivity, which, beyond the trap-ridge, still continues to slope rapidly downwards for a few hundred yards. No outlet could therefore at any time exist, except along this barrier, and an inspection of its present condition reveals several deep gashes through which at one time the surplus water made its escape. Indeed, some of the oldest inhabitants state that the name "Lochspouts" was given to it because, in former times, during heavy floods, its waters spouted across this ridge at different points. Within the recollection of some of them an artificial cutting was made through the rocky outlet, with the view of utilising its waters for a "walk-mill," an operation which reduced the level of the lake about ten feet, and its area to about two acres. A small island must have then appeared, but, apparently, its nature was unsuspected; and so it remained till 1879, when Mr. James Macfadzean recognised it as the site of an ancient lake-dwelling. This singular and, when surrounded by primeval forests, secluded little lake is now restored to its pristine dimensions; but its water, instead of acting as a defence to an island fortress, or propelling a primitive water-wheel, forms a reservoir for the domestic supply of the town of Maybole. The necessary alterations entailed by this transformation of the home of the crannog-builders—one of which was to clear out the accumulated débris of many a jovial feast in which, judging from the osseous remnants, pigs, oxen, and sheep were no rarity-came very opportunely, as it enabled archæologists to complete an investigation which was in the first instance initiated through the liberality of Sir James Fergusson, the proprietor.
The remains of the crannog, in the form of a low circular mound overgrown with coarse grass, lay at the north side of the lake, near the middle portion of the rocky ridge, and so close to the present margin that it formed a peninsula easily approached on terra firma.
At first the only possible investigation was to remove the débris down to the level of the water, and in the course of this operation the following facts were ascertained:—
(1) Composition of the Mound.—The surface of the mound was composed of coarse grass, having tough matted roots spreading in a thin layer of soil, which overlay about a foot and a half of stones and rubbish, in which no relics were found. Below this the materials were of a very variable character; sometimes vegetable mould, stems of grasses jointed like straw, and beds of heather and moss, which could readily be separated into layers; and at other times heaps of ashes and charcoal mixed with quantities of the shells of whelks, limpets, and hazel-nuts. Intermingled with this heterogeneous mass were large and small stones, broken bones, portions of deer-horns, and various relics. Though several ash-heaps were distinctly discernible in the vicinity of the hearths, no regular refuse-heap was met with; and the broken bones and horns seemed to be dispersed over the general area of the crannog.
(2) Log-Pavement.—About five feet deep (measuring from the centre of the mound), and only a few inches above the level of the surrounding water, there was exposed a rude, imperfect, and irregularly shaped wooden pavement, formed of flattened oak-beams. It covered only the central portion of the area contained within the circle of piles, the rest being laid with branches and stems of trees. On digging beneath this log-pavement large beams and brushwood were generally encountered, but the voluminous gushing up of water prevented reliable observations from being made regarding these deeper structures. Occasionally ashes and charcoal were turned up, and in one spot near the centre, and under my own inspection, the men succeeded in digging downwards more than two feet below the log-pavement before the water oozed up, in the course of which nothing was turned out but pure ashes, bits of charcoal, and large quantities of the shells of limpets and common whelks. At the bottom of this hole were solid oak-beams, apparently flattened; but no sooner were their surfaces exposed than the water rushed in and filled the trench. These observations gave rise to the conjecture that this understratum represented the accumulated débris of another, and, of course, an older, period of human occupancy—a conjecture which also derived some support from the fact that the surface of the log-pavement was on a higher level than the tops of the encircling piles.
(3) Hearths.—Over the log-pavement, and a few yards apart from each other, were three circular hearths, each about five feet in diameter, formed of flat stones embedded in a bed of yellow clay, and raised on a sort of pedestal composed of clay and stones, to the extent of one to one-and-a-half foot. One of them, on being demolished, was found to have been built directly over a former similarly constructed hearth, with an interval of about a foot. These hearths were situated near the centre of the crannog, but on its southern half—i.e. the semicircle farthest from the shore.
(4) Gangway.—On making a few trial trenches in the space directly between the shore and the crannog in search of a gangway, we could find no indications of woodwork. One day, however, my attention was directed to a portion of the log-pavement which looked like a wooden roadway projecting to the margin of the island, and pointing in a north-western direction, towards a prominence in the trap-ridge. Observing also, that, before the lake was lowered, this prominence would be the nearest land to the crannog, it immediately struck me that, if there was a gangway at all, it would be found along this line. Hypothesis was right this time. The adhesive nature of the lake sediment prevented the water from oozing up so quickly as it did on the crannog, so that we were enabled to expose the woodwork several feet below the level of the lake. Close to the crannog the upper beams of the gangway were about three feet below the surface of the grass; but as we neared the shore with the digging they became less buried, and some of the uprights were found even projecting above the ground.
The general plan on which this gangway was constructed appeared to be identical with that adopted by the crannog-builders of Lochlee. Upright piles, singly and in groups, were placed in a zig-zag fashion, between, and from which, the horizontal beams stretched, fan-like, and so formed a sort of latticework, with empty lozenge-shaped spaces between.
From one of these holes, or meshes, some five feet below the surface of the ground, a fine granite quern-stone was extracted. The piles projected some two feet or more above the body of the gangway; but there was no appearance of a subaqueous or superaqueous platform. It would thus appear that its upper transverses were originally under water—a remark equally applicable to the analogous remains at Lochlee—but to what depth the wooden structures reached could not be ascertained.
Further Excavations.—In order to facilitate the projected operations of clearing out the bed of the lake the Engineers of the Maybole Waterworks caused the rocky outlet to be cut down to the extent of 3 feet, which thus enabled them to remove a corresponding section of the crannog. The result of this was to show, as was conjectured from the facts ascertained in the previous explorations, that there was, about 2½ feet underneath the log-pavement and its hearths already described, another habitable zone with its log-pavement, mortised beams, etc., together with various relics of human industry. It would appear that this was the original surface of the crannog, as it corresponded with the surrounding stockades, some of which were found in position. Others were seen among a heap of wood collected from the excavated débris, amongst which were a few of the ordinary transverses containing square-cut holes at their extremities. One thick beam was deeply grooved and resembled the one found at Lochlee. (See [Fig. 138].) A few large flat planks, having a round handle-like projection some 18 inches long at one end, had only one square-cut hole, placed sometimes close to this handle, and at other times at the opposite extremity. Another stout oak beam, 6 feet long, contained a series of round holes about an inch in diameter, and from 5 to 6 inches apart. The holes, which were on the broad side of the beam, were about two inches in depth, but only penetrated half through it, and from one of them a portion of a wooden pin was extracted. This beam was in a fragmentary condition, being, like many others, partially charred.
RELICS.
Stone.—About a barrowful of hammer-stones and round pebbles from 1 to 6 inches in diameter. Polishers and whetstones also, numerous, the latter sometimes perforated for suspension. Three portions of sandstone had each a circular perforation funnel-shaped on both sides. Twelve quern stones, nearly all made of granite, of which nine or ten are the upper stones. One spindle-whorl 1¾ inch in diameter. Two polished discs, one being the segment of a circle ([Fig. 151]), are supposed to have been used as mirrors. An oval implement with two hollowed surfaces like the one represented on [Fig. 175]; its length is 3¼ inches, breadth 2⅝, and thickness 1 inch. The cup-shaped cavities are too large for mere finger-marks. It is made of a hard grey trap rock and, though well wrought all over, is not polished, nor does it exhibit any markings such as are seen on the ordinary hammer-stones. Two flint scrapers, one of which is here figured ([Fig. 151]).
Fig. 151.—Stone Disc (1⁄2) and Flint Scraper (1⁄1).
Bone and Horn.—A pin, chisel ([Fig. 152]), awl, two pointers, and a knife-handle are of bone. Of horn there are also only a few objects, as a pick, club, and some pointed implements of the tines of staghorn.
Wood.—No specific object, except the stave of a vessel like that of a milk cog, was found in the earlier explorations; but from the lowest stratum there were some curious wooden implements. (See B. 373, p. 310.)
Fig. 152.—Bone Chisel (2⁄3).
Iron.—Articles of iron were very rare and much corroded—only one retained its form sufficiently well to be recognised as a small dagger.
Bronze.—Two curious objects, a key and a spiral of bronze wire, are shown on [Fig. 153]. A small finger-ring. An armlet is said to have been also found, but unfortunately could not be procured for descriptive purposes.
Lead.—A small bead-shaped portion of lead perforated with a round hole is supposed to be a spindle-whorl.
Fig. 153.—Objects of Bronze (1⁄1).
Fig. 154.—Fragment of Samian Bowl (1⁄1).
Fig. 155.—Fragments of Pottery (1⁄1).
Pottery.—Several fragments of Samian ware, one ornamented ([Fig. 154]). Another kind of earthenware was of light colour, and showed handles and well-formed rims ([Fig. 155]).
Glass.—Two ribbed beads covered with a greenish glaze like those from Loch Dowalton ([Fig. 132]), one of an amber tint beautifully variegated ([Fig. 156]), and another of yellow vitreous paste.
Fig. 156.—A Conical Ornament of Rock-crystal, a Glass Bead, and a Ring and Pendant of Jet (all 1⁄1).
Rock-Crystal.—A conical piece of rock-crystal, polished and evidently ground to its present form, is here shown in outline ([Fig. 156]).
Jet or Lignite.—Several bits showing workmanship; a polished ring 1¼ inch in diameter ([Fig. 156]), and portions of two larger ones, probably bracelets; and a remarkable pendant in the form of an encircled cross ([Fig. 156]). The arms of the cross as well as the surrounding circle are adorned with a succession of incised circles alternating with short lines which are supposed to have been intended for the reception of some kind of enamel.
BUSTON.
About half-way between Stewarton and Kilmaurs there is a shallow basin of meadow-land which formerly, according to Blaeu's Atlas, was the bed of a lake of considerable size called Loch Buston. Within the recollection of the present generation this area was a mossy bog in summer and a sheet of water in winter; and about fifty years ago, when the present tenant, Mr. Robert Hay, came to reside on the farm, there was a small mound situated about its centre known as the Swan Knowe, on account of the number of wild swans that formerly used to frequent it. When subsequently engaged in reclaiming the bog, Mr. Hay states that as many as thirteen cart-loads of timber were removed from the "Knowe," and he distinctly remembers that, in consequence of the difficulty of detaching some of the mortised beams, his father made the remark, "there maun hae been dwellers here at ae time." He also states that until the land was thoroughly redrained, a few years ago, there was still a considerable mound to be seen; but at the beginning of December, 1880, when I first visited the locality, there was hardly any elevation to distinguish it from the surrounding field.
Notwithstanding the havoc committed on the woodwork of the crannog by a long exposure to atmospheric agencies before it finally sank under the protective influence of the muddy water, and subsequently, by the ruthless hands of the agriculturist, there still remained sufficient materials to give one not only a general, but particular and instructive notion of the mechanical principles on which the island and its superincumbent structures were constructed. The general results of the investigation may be categorically summed up as follows:—
1. The island was composed of a succession of layers of the trunks and branches of trees, intermingled in some places with stones, turf, etc.; and the whole mass was firmly knit together by means of upright piles and horizontal beams arranged in three, and in one part four, concentric circles.
2. The outer circle was intended more for protection than for giving stability to the island, and in some parts, as at the east side of the refuse-heap, the piles were closely set with their tops fixed into a transverse beam after the manner of a stair-railing; while those of the inner ones not only penetrated deeply and gave stability to the island, but also were used as part of the wall of the central building.
3. The area enclosed by the stockades was slightly oval in shape, measuring 61 feet by 56, and rudely paved with wooden beams, many of which were firmly fixed to the lower woodwork by stout wooden pegs as well as to the encircling stockades, thus affording here and there, as it were, points d'appui.
4. While there was one general hearth situated near the centre, evidence of one or two fire-places elsewhere was quite conclusive. One of these appeared to have been a smelting-furnace, as it contained flat stones much stained with fire-marks and several masses of heavy slag.
Fig. 157.—General View of Crannog at Buston, looking northwards.
5. The entrance to the central area, which was determined by the stumps of two massive door-posts, had a south-easterly aspect, and in front of it there was a well-constructed wooden platform, made of large oak planks supported on solid layers of wood, to which they were pinned down.
6. Beyond this platform, and separated from it by a massive wooden railing which was continuous with the inner circle of stockades, was the refuse-heap; and to the right a wooden pathway, also protected on its outer side, led downwards and westwards to the outer circle, where there appeared to have been a landing-stage. (See [Figs. 157] and [158].) About twelve yards in advance of this stage, and 4 feet from the surface of the field, a canoe was found buried in the ancient mud of the lake ([Fig. 159]).
Fig. 158.—Portion of north side of Buston Crannog, with the space between Inner and Second Circles of Piles dug out, showing arrangement of Mortised Beams and structure of Island.
This canoe was 22 feet long, 3 feet 6 inches broad at the stern, widening to about four feet in the middle, and 1 foot 10 inches deep. It is remarkable as showing evidence of having been repaired in two places by neatly fitting pieces of oak planking, which were kept in position by transverse ribs and wooden pins. The stern-piece was movable and fitted into a groove in the sides of the boat. In the mud removed from its interior were a few stones and portion of the skull of an ox.
The refuse-heap occupied an oblong position immediately in front of the southern entrance. It measured some 30 feet long by 15 or 20 broad, and 5 feet deep alongside the above-mentioned railing. Here nearly all the relics and some massive bones were found. These bones were abundantly impregnated with the mineral vivianite, both in its amorphous and crystalline condition, but the specimens of crystals here were much inferior to those from Lochlee. The position of the refuse-heap is seen in the immediate foreground of [Fig. 157], after the removal of its contents, as a pit partially occupied with water.
Fig. 159.—Appearance of Canoe in situ after exposure.
The crannog was about one hundred and fifty yards from the nearest shore, and there was no trace of a gangway observed.
LIST OF RELICS.
Stone.—Hammer-stones, polishers, and whetstones were comparatively rare, only some half dozen being found. Among the latter are fragments of a circular grindstone of fine red sandstone, showing a diameter of about fifteen inches, and a large oblong smooth stone perforated at one end.
Two blocks of sandstone with irregularly shaped cavities in each; a third has a large cup-shaped cavity 5½ inches in diameter and 2½ inches deep, and on it are the marks of sharpening tools; hence the cup is supposed to have been for holding water for facilitating the operation of sharpening. Another small fragment has a neatly formed cup-shaped cavity. Two querns, both upper stones; one is of the usual form, but the other is flat and more like a modern millstone. It measures 18 inches across and the central hole is 3 inches in diameter, but not funnel-shaped. For the insertion of a handle there is a square-cut hole near the margin.
Fig. 160.—Flint Knife and Clay Crucible (1⁄1).
Fig. 161.—Four Pins and a Needle of Bone, and one Pin of Bronze. All (1⁄1).
Two spindle-whorls, one of which was of cannel coal. Three crucibles, one having particles of gold in its crevices and another the remains of a yellowish slag ([Fig. 160]). One flint knife ([Fig. 160]), two scrapers, two cores, and a few chips.
Bone.—Twenty pins, of which only one was ornamented with a check pattern ([Fig. 161]). One darning-needle ([Fig. 161]). Three round knobs and one curiously worked object. One of the knobs is ornamented with circular lines. Three nearly perfect toilet combs and fragments of others ([Fig. 162]).
Horn.—A polished dagger 7½ inches long, another roughly cut, and a few handles.
Wood.—Fragments of a wooden bowl, ornamented with three incised lines parallel to the rim, which must have been made on a wood-turners lathe; one small fragment had a clasp of thin brass over it as if it had been mended. Portions of an oar, a canoe, a board pierced with holes, and some large pins like those found at Lochlee.
Fig. 162.—Bone Comb (1⁄1).
Iron.—Axe-head ([Fig. 163]), a gouge, six knife-blades, all with tangs, a punch, and three awls. Socketed spear-head, ornamented with two groups of circular lines on the socket portion ([Fig. 164]). Three large arrow-points or tips of the crossbow bolt; portion of an ancient kind of padlock;[100] two spiral objects, and a small instrument bifurcated at the point ([Fig. 164]).
Bronze.—A circular brooch ([Fig. 164]), two pins, one with an ornamented stone and a blue bead setting in the top of the head ([Fig. 161]), and several little bits of brass-foil.
Fig. 163.—An Iron Axe (2⁄3).
Gold.—Two spiral finger-rings, and a small coin, doubled up when found ([Fig. 165]). Regarding this coin, Dr. Evans reports as follows:—
"The two plates of gold seem originally to have formed the shell of an early forgery of a coin, the oxidised core of which forms the contents of the small tube. I thought at first that the substance might be resinous, but I think it is some salt of copper. Some chemist could readily try this [this has since been proved to be a salt of copper]. The coin itself belongs to a class of trientes which have been found almost exclusively in England, and are probably of Saxon origin. See Smith's "Coll. Ant.," vol. i. Pl. xxii. 9. Others were in the Bagshot Heath or Crondale find. See Num. Chron., vi. These probably belong to the sixth or seventh century. The find is of value as helping to assign a date to the crannog." (B. 373, p. 231.)
Fig. 164.—Bolt of Padlock (1⁄1), Spear-head (1⁄2), and a small Tool of Iron (1⁄1), and a circular Brooch of Bronze (1⁄1).
Fig. 165.—Two Gold Rings, a Gold Coin, and a Glass Bead. (All 1⁄1.)
Glass.—A cylindrically-shaped bead, variegated with three different colours, red and yellow predominating over patches of transparent glass ([Fig. 165]); a tiny bead of yellow paste; a round object of the size of a marble, made of variegated paste, but without any aperture; a flattened drop of a whitish paste about the size of a shilling; one or two bits of dark slag; three fragments of bright-green glass.
Several strips of leather.
Jet.—Fragments of three armlets, and a small ornament like the terminal link of an antique necklace.
Fig. 166.—Fragment of Pottery (1⁄1).
Pottery.—Fragment of Samian ware, and fragments of dishes of other pottery.
One portion is here figured showing a curious aperture like the spout of a jug and a neatly formed rim ([Fig. 166]).
Fig. 167.—Scarlet Beads of Vitreous Paste (1⁄1).
AIRRIEOULLAND.
"This crannog," writes Sir H. Maxwell, "is situated in the centre of a peat moss, formerly a lake, and still in most summers and all winters a quaking morass. Towards the centre of this moss, which is about sixty acres in area, there is a circular enclosure 54 feet in diameter, surrounded by a low wall. This is marked in the Ordnance Survey maps as a fort; but no fort, in the ordinary acceptation, could exist in the centre of what had been, at no very great distance of time, a lake. Although no timbers were visible at the time of our visit, the whole surface of the enclosure being green with grass, and the surrounding moss covered with heather and bog plants, its situation and character indicated its true nature to those experienced in lake-dwellings, and a very slight excavation at once confirmed this view. Beginning in the centre, the diggers exposed beneath the shallow layer of vegetable soil the familiar features of a fascine-dwelling. The only novel and most interesting feature in this crannog is the surrounding fence, which, doubtless, was the usual mode of protecting the huts or wigwams of the interior, but which in most crannogs hitherto examined has been reduced by the action of the waves to a shapeless mound or beach of small boulders. Here, however, owing to flat flags having been used, the structure is perfect, surrounding the entire islet to a height of about three feet. The depth of the structure from the surface to the alluvial bed of the lake was 4 feet. The lake bottom, into which the piles were driven, was soft peat, 7 feet deep. The moss around the island had grown since the structure was made to the level of the island; but no deductions could be made from that fact as to the age of the crannog, owing to the varying rate of the growth of moss, and to the uncertainty as to when the lake became filled up and moss ceased to grow. In the wonderfully accurate and laborious map of Timothy Pont, published in 1672, the present moss appears as a lake. Three days' labour sufficed to clear out the greater part of the contents of the enclosure. The chief relics disclosed, besides great quantities of bones of the usual kind, including those of the goat and the roe-deer, were 17 small beads of scarlet vitreous slag ([Fig. 167]), forming a portion of a necklace; a rough shale ring, several excellent hammer and grinding-stones, many quartz pebbles, which had been brought for some unknown reason [sling-stones?] from the seashore, distant about a mile; two broken crucibles ([Fig. 168]), a spinning-whorl of bone or horn. From a depth of three feet, flint flakes, a small jet ring, a portion of a perforated jet ornament, and a remarkable button-like object of bronze ([Fig. 168])." (B. 426, p. 113.)
Fig. 168.—Broken Crucible and a Bronze Button (1⁄1).
BARHAPPLE.
Fig. 169.—A Ring,
Cannel Coal (1⁄1).
Barhapple ("horse hill") Loch is a small lake some 500 yards long and 300 broad. Here, in 1880, in consequence of drainage operations, a crannog became visible; but, owing to the sponginess of its surface, no effective examination could be carried out. The Earl of Stair, finding that during the summer of 1884 the island had become much drier and harder, made arrangements to have it thoroughly investigated. That the increased firmness and consolidation of the island was due to shrinkage was manifest from the fact that the upright piles, which, when discovered, barely showed above the mud, now projected 2 or 3 feet, and presented the appearance of a decayed forest, with its stunted trunks still standing. It was also observed that this shrinkage extended to all parts of the mossy lake-bed; and, as a consequence of this, two double lines of piles became visible in the long grass, one commencing at the north and the other at the east shore of the lake. Both lines were directed to the crannog, but stopped short of it by some 20 or 30 yards. As to the structure of the crannog, it was remarked that not only the uprights, but the horizontal beams were more methodically arranged, and of a stronger character towards the margin. Here the uprights, many of which were made of young trees of oak and ash, were firmly supported, especially in the outer circle, by the intertwining among them of horizontal timbers. On the north side, in a line with the piles of one of the gangways, a distinct roadway, made of round beams, was traced, running from the margin of the island to the dwelling-house, which was situated on the east side, directly facing the other gangway. In this building two fire-places were recognised, one a little north of the other, and around them was a layer of charcoal from 5 to 12 inches thick, containing the fag-ends of burnt beams, heather, and brushwood. From among these embers some large prepared beams, also partially burnt, were disinterred, two of which terminated in round tenons, having at a little distance from their extremities a raised head or flange. From these and other appearances it was inferred that the crannog had been destroyed by a conflagration during a strong north-west gale, and as there was no evidence of much accumulated débris, it was supposed that this catastrophe occurred shortly after its erection. On making a trench through the island it was found that below the burnt layer there were beds of brushwood, ferns, etc., to a depth of 2 or 3 feet. Beneath this lay the peaty substance of the lake-bottom, through which an iron rod could be readily plunged to the extent of 4 feet, when it struck some hard material, probably rock or silt of the original glacial bottom.
Although this was the largest crannog hitherto found in Scotland, being 157 yards in circumference, it was extremely poor in relics, a fact which may be accounted for by the shortness of its duration. The list of relics includes three shale rings ([Fig. 169]), two of which were only fragments; half a canoe; a broken paddle, and some worked pieces of wood.
WHITE LOCH OF RAVENSTONE.
This small loch, which is within a few minutes' walk of Ravenstone Castle, is surrounded by a broad fringe of marsh and tall reeds. Within this marshy area, and just skirting the water's edge on its western side, there is a flat mound, some 80 feet square and 6 or 7 feet high, having on its surface the ruins of dry stone buildings. These ruins consist of the foundations of walls, a foot or so high, which clearly define the outline of a superstructure divided into five rectangular compartments. This building did not occupy the whole surface of the island, measuring only 55 feet by 47. The mound was composed of large flags and boulders, on the top of which a few trees found a suitable habitat, and no less than four of the compartments were occupied each by the trunk of a venerable looking ash. Upon investigating the base of the mound, piles and the projecting ends of transverse beams were discovered in several places, and the conjectured opinion that the entire mound was built over a substratum of woodwork was conclusively proved by digging a central pit through the only vacant compartment in the stone building. The result of this was to reveal, at a depth of eight feet, a network of beams lying transversely to each other, but to an undetermined depth.
The north or land side of the island showed signs of having been roughly built up with large undressed flags, but the rest of its stony perimeter was quite dilapidated. That the wooden island was inhabited as a crannog, before its level was raised to its present height by the addition of the enormous mass of stones and earth underlying its final buildings, an idea suggested by the discovery of charcoal and the shells of hazel-nuts over the woodwork, is a hypothesis that requires further proofs before it can be accepted as well founded in fact. (B. 426, p. 121.)
FRIAR'S CARSE.
The site of the crannog at Friar's Carse was a small pear-shaped basin situated behind a wooded knoll, close to the Parliamentary road to Dumfries, and in the midst of a well-cultivated but singularly undulating district. By deepening the outlet of this lake to the extent of two feet, a partial drainage was effected, which reduced its area from 10 to 3 acres. It was only then (1878) that it became generally known that a small bushy island near the middle of the loch had been artificially constructed of oak-planks and trunks of trees. As the weather was dry for some weeks previous to our visit, and the water particularly low, we readily stepped on to the island, over what appeared to have been the old bed of the lake, then presenting a hard, crisp, and dried-up surface of aquatic plants. The island was nearly circular in shape, measuring 80 by 70 feet, strongly built, and surrounded by piles, some of which, however, were only visible through the water. The log-pavement, which by this time had been completely bared, was composed of parallel beams of oak, arranged in groups, lying in various directions, and firmly united together by the overlapping and sometimes mortising of their ends. At the margin of the island there was a large quantity of stones, especially on its north side—i.e. the side towards the deepest portion of the lake.
Through these stones, which shelved under the water, a few heads of the surrounding piles projected, some above and some below the water. Mortised holes were here and there to be seen in the horizontal beams, but there was no appearance of a breastwork surrounding the wooden pavement—thus differing from the Lochlee crannog. In the centre were a few ends of uprights, in rectangular rows, seemingly the remains of partitions, one of which I traced for 40 feet in a straight line.
Upon inquiring where the rubbish removed from the island was located, we were informed that it had been wheeled to the west side of the crannog, and heaped up close to where we had stepped on to the island. Here it lay for some days; but one morning, to the great astonishment of the workmen, it was nowhere to be seen. Upon examination, it turned out that the apparently dry bed of the lake was a matted crust of mud and the roots of aquatic plants, which, virtually floating over the water, suddenly gave way under the accumulated weight and so the entire mass of the crannog rubbish disappeared in the water beneath. With this singular, but unfortunate, catastrophe terminated all prospects of finding any more relics. It appears that there was not a great depth of débris on the island, its maximum thickness being only 2 to 3 feet in the centre, where it formed a heap of ashes, charcoal, and some broken bones. Here a few fragments of pottery were found.
A circular portion of the log-pavement, near its centre, was covered with small stones, as if to protect it from fire; some remains of clay-flooring were observed in other parts of the island.
Fig. 170.—Perforated
Stone Axe (1⁄3).
Regarding the deeper structures little can be said. Mr. Nelson attempted to cut a hole through the timber, and, as far as the water allowed the men to penetrate, he saw nothing but layer upon layer of oak-beams lying transversely to each other. Judging, however, from the solidity and firmness of the island, the great size of some of the logs, and the depth of the surrounding water (still about twelve feet a little to the west of the island), the total thickness of this mass of timber cannot be less than 12 or 16 feet.
In Grose's "Antiquities of Scotland"[101] the following reference to this island occurs:—
"Here was a cell dependent on the rich abbey of Melrose, which, at the Reformation, was granted by the Commendator to the Laird of Elliesland, a cadet of the Kirkpatricks of Closeburne. From whom it passed to the Maxwells of Tinwald, and from them to the Barncleugh family, also cadets of the Lords of Maxwell. From whom it went to the Riddells, of Glenriddell, the present possessors. The old refectory, or dining-room, had walls 8 feet thick, and the chimney was 12 feet wide. This old building having become ruinous, was pulled down in 1773, to make way for the present house.
"Near the house was the Lough, which was the fishpond of the friary. In the middle of which is a very curious artificial island, founded upon large piles and planks of oak, where the monks lodged their valuable effects when the English made an inroad into Strathnith."
The relics collected during the operations above recorded are very few. A canoe 22 feet long, and a ponderous axe-hammer head of whinstone ([Fig. 170]) were found at some distance from the crannog. Two handles of jars with traces of a yellowish glaze, some fragments of pottery ornamented with rows of pitted impressions ([Fig. 171]), a circular stone polisher, and an oval-shaped mass of vitreous paste, are all that were found on the crannog itself.
Fig. 171.—Fragments of Pottery (2⁄3).
STONE LAKE-DWELLINGS AND OTHER ARTIFICIAL ISLANDS.
But besides the wooden islands there are others, still extant in several of our Scottish lakes, which appear to be composed entirely of stones and earth irregularly heaped together. In the absence of any historical knowledge as to their age there is no prima facie reason why some of these should not be contemporary with the former, as it cannot be assumed that the crannog-builders made wood a sine quâ non in the structure of islands. There were, no doubt, certain stagnant marshes and small lochs in which a wooden foundation was essential for the construction of an island, owing to the softness and yielding nature of the mud; but, on the other hand, there were others with compact rocky or gravelly beds, in which any solid materials, as stones, earth, turf, etc., would be equally applicable. The outlets of the larger lakes, more especially such as were formed in glacial and rock-cut basins, were more adapted for the latter, and as far as my observations have enabled me to form an opinion, these are the very situations in which the lake stone-dwellings abound. Some of them are mere shapeless cairns, without any indications of having been formerly inhabited, while on others some remains of stone buildings are to be seen. As to wooden huts or houses, had such structures ever been erected on them, it is not likely that they could, for any length of time, have resisted the decaying tendencies of atmospheric agencies, so that all traces of them would have disappeared long ago.
The social or military exigencies that led people to construct artificial islands would also lead them to take advantage of such natural ones as would be found most suitable, and we may reasonably infer that it is in the absence of the latter that the former would be resorted to. The great and primary object of the island-builder was the protection afforded by the surrounding lake or morass, the securing of which has continued to be the ruling principle in the erection of defensive works down to the Middle Ages, long after the wooden islands ceased to be constructed. The transition from the crannog to the massive mediæval castle, with its moat and drawbridge, is but a stage in the progressive march of civilisation.
GEOGRAPHICAL DISTRIBUTION OF SCOTTISH LAKE-DWELLINGS.
To these remarks on the structural details of a few typical crannogs, as disclosed by systematic research, I subjoin a tabulated list of all the sites hitherto recognised in Scotland, comprising not only the artificial islands, whether of wood or other materials, but also some natural ones known to have been artificially strengthened, as well as a few examples of castles, etc., now or formerly located in bogs or drained marshes.
LIST OF SCOTTISH CRANNOGS
ALPHABETICALLY ARRANGED,
WITH NOTES AND REFERENCES.
| N.B.—An obelisk (†) before a name inthis text indicates that the island is, in whole or in part, constructedof wood. N.S.A. or O.S.A. stand for New or Old StatisticalAccount of Scotland. | ||
† | Achilty L., co. Ross. N. S. A., vol. xiv. p. 238. | |
| Achray L., co. Perth. B. 94, pp. 172-7. | ||
| † | Airrieoulland, co. Wigtown. B. 426. | |
| Ard L., co. Perth. O. S. A., vol. x. p. 130. | ||
| [102] | † | Arisaig L., co. Inverness. B. 150, p. 576. |
| † | Banchory (L. of the Leys), co. Aberdeen. Proc. S. A. Scot., vol. i. p. 26; vol. vi. p. 126. | |
| † | Barean L., co. Kirkcudbright. B. 373, p. 37, and Dumf. and G. N. H. Soc., 1865. | |
| † | Barhapple L., co. Wigtown. "Ayr and Wig. Col.," vols. iii. and v.; B. 373; B. 192. | |
| [103] | † | Barlockhart L., co. Wigtown. Proc. S. A. Scot., vol. xi. p. 583; vol. xv. p. 267. |
| † | Barnsallzie L., co. Wigtown. Ibid., vol. ix. p. 377. | |
| Battleknowes, co. Berwick. N. S. A., vol. ii. p. 171. | ||
| [104] | † | Black Cairn, Beauly Firth, co. Ross. "Hill Forts and Stone Circles of Scotland," p. 89; N. S. A., vol. xvii. p. 350. |
| † | Boghall (Beith), co. Ayr. N. S. A., vol. v. p. 580. | |
| Borgue, co. Kirkcudbright. N. S. A., vol. iv. p. 54. | ||
| Brora L., co. Sutherland. O. S. A., vol. x. p. 303; N. S. A., vol. xv. p. 151. | ||
| [105] | † | Bruich L. (Beauly), co. Ross. B. 442. |
| † | Buston, co. Ayr. "Ayr and Wig. Col.," vol. iii.; B. 373. | |
| † | Canmor (Kinord) L., co. Aberdeen. B. 94, pp. 167-71. | |
| [106] | † | Carlingwark L., two crannogs, co. Kirkcudbright. O. S. A., vol. viii. p. 304; B. 94, p. 126; Proc. S. A. Scot., vol. vii. p. 7, and x. p. 286. |
| † | Castle Loch, co. Wigtown. Rev. G. Wilson's "Notes." | |
| Castletown, co. Roxburgh. N. S. A., vol. iii. p. 164. | ||
 Fig. 172.—A large Bronze Cauldron from Carlingwark Loch. | ||
Closeburn, co. Dumfries. Phil. Trans., 1756, p. 521; Grose, "Ant. of Scot.," vol. i. p. 150. | ||
| Clunie L., co. Perth. O. S. A., vol. ix. p. 231. | ||
| Collessie, co. Fife. O. S. A., vol. ii. p. 418. | ||
| † | Corncockle (Applegarth), co. Dumfries. B. 94, p. 163. | |
| † | Cot L., co. Linlithgow. Ibid., p. 159. | |
| [107] | † | Croy, co. Inverness. N. S. A., vol. xiv. p. 448. |
| † | Dhu Loch, co. Bute. B. 21, p. 43. | |
| Dolay L., co. Sutherland. B. 94, pp. 172-7. | ||
| Doon L., co. Ayr. N. S. A., vol. v. p. 337. | ||
| † | Dowalton, five crannogs, co. Wigtown. B. 56, 94, 373, and 426. | |
| Earn L., co. Perth. O. S. A., vol. xi. p. 180. | ||
| Eldrig L., three crannogs, co. Wigtown. Rev. G. Wilson's "Notes." | ||
| [108] | † | Eriska, co. Argyll. B. 427, p. 192. |
| Fasnacloich (Appin), co. Argyll. B. 94, p. 175. | ||
| Federatt, co. Aberdeen. O. S. A., vol. ix. p. 191. | ||
| Fell L., co. Wigtown. B. 192, vol. ix. p. 378. | ||
| [109] | Fergus L., co. Kirkcudbright. O. S. A., vol. xi. p. 25. | |
| † | Flemington, L., co. Nairn. B. 55, p. 118. | |
| Forfar, Loch of, co. Forfar. B. 1; O. S. A., vol. vi. p. 528; B. 94, p. 125; B. 216, p. 31. | ||
| Freuchie L., co. Perth. B. 94, p. 173. | ||
| † | Friar's Carse, co. Dumfries. B. 373, p. 152, and B. 374, p. 73. | |
| Fullah L., co. Perth. B. 94, p. 172. | ||
| Glass L., co. Ross. O. S. A., vol. i. p. 282. | ||
| Granech L., co. Perth. B. 94, p. 177. | ||
| † | Green Knowe, co. Lanark. N. S. A., vol. vi. p. 346; Proc. S. A. S., vol. vi. p. 160, and vol. viii. p. 19. | |
| Gynag L., co. Inverness. N. S. A., vol. xiv. p. 65. | ||
| Heron L., two islands, co. Wigtown. B. 192, vol. ix. p. 378. | ||
| Hogsetter L., Shetland. Proc. S. A. Scot. vol. xv. p. 303. | ||
| [110] | † | Kielziebar L., co. Argyll. B. 134, pp. 332 and 516. |
| † | Kilbirnie L., co. Ayr. B. 268, p. 284. | |
| Kilchonan, co. Argyll. O. S. A., vol. xi. p. 281. | ||
| [111] | † | Kinder L., co. Kirkcudbright. Old. S. A., vol. ii. p. 139. |
| † | Kinellan L., co. Ross. N. S. A., vol. xiv. p. 238; B. 94, p. 126. | |
| Laggan L., co. Perth. O. S. A., vol. xviii. p. 327. | ||
| [112] | † | Ledaig, co. Argyll. B. 190. |
| [113] | † | Leven L., co. Kinross. B. 460, p. 118. |
| † | Loch-of-the-Clans, two crannogs, co. Nairn. B. 55, pp. 116 and 332. | |
| † | Loch-in-Dunty, co. Nairn. B. 55, p. 118. | |
| [114] | † | Loch-inch-Cryndil, co. Wigtown. B. 212, pp. 381 and 388. |
 Fig. 173.—Wooden Comb from Ledaig (2⁄3). | ||
† | Lochindorb, co. Moray. O. S. A., vol. vii. p. 259. | |
| † | Lochlee, co. Ayr. "Ayr and Wig. Col.," vol. ii.; B. 331 and 373. | |
| † | Lochmaben, co. Dumfries. B. 94, p. 160; Arch. Scot., vol. iii. p. 77. | |
| † | Loch-na-Mial, Island of Mull. B. 172, p. 465. | |
| † | Lochnell, co. Argyll. B. 190, vol. ix. p. 105. | |
| † | Lochore, co. Fife. B. 94, p. 160. | |
| † | Lochrutton, co. Kirkcudbright. O. S. A., vol. ii. p. 37. | |
| † | Lochspouts, co. Ayr. "Ayr and Wig. Col.," vol. iii. p. 18; iv. p. 9; B. 373, pp. 158 and 305. | |
| Lochwood, co. Dumfries. O. S. A., vol. iv. p. 224. | ||
| [115] | † | Lochy L., co. Inverness. B. 94, p. 160. |
| [116] | † | Lomond L., co. Sterling. Ibid., p. 131. |
| † | Lotus L., co. Kirkcudbright. Proc. S. A. Scot., vol. xi. p. 21. | |
| [117] | Machermore L., several crannogs, co. Wigtown. B. 192. | |
| † | Merton L., co. Wigtown. B. 94, p. 123. | |
| Mochrum L., co. Wigtown. B. 192. | ||
| Monivaird L., co. Perth. O. S. A., vol. viii. p. 570. | ||
| Morall L., co. Perth. B. 94, p. 176. | ||
 Fig. 174.—Bone Comb from Crannog in Loch-inch-Cryndil (1⁄1). | ||
Morton, co. Dumfries. N. S. A., vol. iv. p. 96. | ||
| Moulin L., drained, co. Perth. O. S. A., vol. v. p. 69. | ||
| Mountblairy, co. Moray. O. S. A., vol. iv. p. 399. | ||
| † | Moy L., Ellan-na-Glack, co. Inverness. N. S. A., vol. xiv. p. 100; B. 94, p. 129. | |
| [118] | † | Oban (Lochavoullin), co. Argyll. |
| Orr L., co. Dumfries. O. S. A., vol. ii. p. 342. | ||
| Peel Bog, co. Aberdeen. N. S. A., vol. xii. p. 1089. | ||
| † | Quien Loch, co. Bute. B. 21, p. 45. | |
| † | Rannoch L., co. Perth. N. S. A., vol. x. p. 539; B. 94, p. 129. | |
| † | Ravenstone L., co. Wigtown. B. 426, p. 121. | |
| Rescobie L., co. Forfar. B. 94, p. 176. | ||
| † | Rothiemurchus, Loch-an-Eilan, co. Moray. N. S. A., vol. xiii. p. 137; B. 94, p. 145. | |
 Fig. 175.—Stone Ring (1⁄1) and Stone Implement with a hollow surface on each side (1⁄2). | ||
[119] | † | Sanquhar, Black Loch of, co. Dumfries. Proc. Dumf. and Gal. N. H. Soc., 1863-4, p. 12, and B. 373, p. 36. |
| Shin L., co. Sutherland. B. 94, pp. 172-7. | ||
| † | Spinie L., co. Moray. O. S. A., vol. x. p. 625. | |
| Stravithy, co. Fife. N. S. A., vol. ix. p. 365. | ||
| † | Sunonness L., co. Wigtown. B. 192, p. 738. | |
| Tay L., co. Perth. B. 94, p. 173; O. S. A., vol. xvii. p. 465; N. S. A., vol. x. p. 465. | ||
| † | Tolsta, Lewis, co. Ross. Proc. S. A. S., vol. x. p. 741. | |
| Torlundie, drained loch at, co. Inverness. Proc. S. A. Scot., vol. vii. p. 519. | ||
| † | Tullah L., co. Perth. B. 94, p. 172. | |
| Tummell L., co. Perth. O. S. A., vol. ii. p. 475; B. 94, p. 129. | ||
| Urr L., co. Dumfries. B. 94, p. 160. | ||
| Vennachar L., co. Dumfries. B. 94, p. 177. | ||
| Weyoch L., co. Wigtown. B. 192. | ||
| Yetholm L., co. Rosburgh. N. S. A., vol. iii. p. 164. | ||
CRITICAL EXAMINATION OF RELICS.
The great value, however, of the investigations of the lake-dwellings, especially in the south-west of Scotland, depends on the quantity and variety of the remains of human industry discovered in and around their sites. It is from such fragmentary remains as food refuse, stray ornaments, broken weapons, useless and worn-out implements, and such-like waifs and strays of human occupancy, that archæologists attempt to reconstruct the outlines of the social life and organisation of the prehistoric past. To those who may wish to occupy themselves with this problem these explorations have furnished, as we have just seen, a vast collection of objects made of stone, bone, horn, wood, bronze, iron, and gold.
Among the stone objects are—querns, hammer-stones, whetstones, so-called sling-stones, a few cup-marked stones (one surrounded by concentric circles), spindle-whorls, flint flakes, and scrapers, a polished celt, a perforated axe-hammer head, portions of two polished circular discs, and some oval implements with a wrought hollowed surface on each side.
Bones and horns of deer were utilised in various ways and manufactured into pins, needles, bodkins, awls, picks, toilet-combs, knife-handles, etc. The combs are neatly formed of three or four flat pieces kept in position by two transverse slips, one on each side, and riveted together by iron rivets. They are frequently ornamented by a series of incised circles, which are sometimes connected by a running scroll, as in [Fig. 174].
The wooden articles consist of bowls, ladles, mallets, hoes, clubs, etc., together with a variety of other objects apparently intended for agricultural purposes.
Implements and weapons of iron are numerous. Amongst the former are gouges, chisels, knives, shears, saws, hatchets, awls, hammers, a bridle-bit, the bolt of a padlock, and other objects of unknown use. The weapons consist of leaf-shaped spear-heads, both socketed and tanged, daggers, and arrow-heads resembling those of the crossbow bolt.
The objects made of bronze are mostly of an ornamental character, comprising:—harp-shaped fibulæ, circular and penannular brooches, finger-rings, a spiral ornament, ornamented pins, one with a ring top and another with a glass setting, a small key, and some other articles of an indeterminate character. From Dowalton there are basins or cauldrons of beaten bronze, some clouted and riveted; one, presumably a Roman saucepan, has the name of the maker on the handle.
On the Buston crannog were found two handsome and massive spiral finger-rings made of gold. One is plain with five and a half twists; the other, besides an additional twist, has both ends ornamented by a series of circular grooves. From the same place there is a curious gold coin, of Saxon origin, and a forgery of the sixth or seventh century.
Pottery is represented by numerous fragments, some of which are of so-called Samian ware, but the most of them are of vessels of a glazed ware, while a few are of an archaic type. Several neatly formed crucibles, containing traces of gold and slag, are also in the collection.
Among miscellaneous objects are bracelets and beads made of coloured and of variegated glass or vitreous paste; also some jet ornaments, one of which is a handsome pendant in the form of an equal-armed cross, inscribed in a circle and having one surface ornamented by a series of incised circles which contained the remains of a yellow enamel. Dr. Joseph Anderson considers this a Christian relic of a very early type. A smooth and flat piece of ashwood, with peculiar spiral carvings on both sides, and a fringe-like apparatus made of the long stems of a moss, are among the objects which have excited the greatest curiosity. Regarding a finely polished conical object made of rock-crystal found at Lochspouts, a reviewer in the Academy, October 14th, writes:—"Is it a charm or can it have formed the centre knob or boss in the binding of some richly decorated breviary or gospel book? Crystals very similar, but oblong in form—like a Brazil nut—may be seen in some of the rich covers of books of early date, and a few that have been detached are preserved in collections. One such object forms part of a crystal necklace in the Ashmolean Museum, and another in private hands was employed, not so very many years ago, in the West Riding of Yorkshire, for the purpose of seeing spirits. If this relic be, indeed, a book-boss, it makes it probable that the crannog was at one time inhabited, or at least visited, by Christian missionaries." Dr. Joseph Anderson has also pointed out that this object is extremely like a "large circular rock crystal which forms the central ornament on the inferior surface of the foot of the famous silver chalice, dug up at the Rath of Reerasta, near Ardagh, county Limerick, Ireland, in 1868, and now in the Museum of the Royal Irish Academy, Dublin. According to the Earl of Dunraven, this most beautiful example of our ancient art was executed either in the ninth or tenth century." (See Proc. Soc. Antiq. Scot., December 4th, 1882.)
From the respective reports of Professors Owen, Rolleston, and Cleland, on a selection of osseous remains taken from the lake-dwellings at Dowalton, Lochlee, and Buston, we can form a fair idea of the food of the occupiers. The Celtic shorthorn ox, the so-called goat-horned sheep, and a domestic breed of pigs were largely consumed. The horse was only scantily used. The number of bones and horns of the red-deer and roebuck showed that venison was by no means a rare addition to the list of their dietary. Among birds, only the goose has been identified, but this is no criterion of the extent of their encroachment on the feathered tribe, as only the larger bones were collected and reported on. To this bill of fare the occupiers of Lochspouts crannog, being comparatively near the sea, added several kinds of shell-fish. In all the lake-dwellings that have come under my own observation the broken shells of hazel-nuts were in profuse abundance.
From the number of querns, and the great preponderance of the bones of domestic over those of wild animals, it may be inferred that, for subsistence, they depended more on the cultivation of the soil and the rearing of cattle, sheep, and pigs, than on the ordinary produce of the chase.
Proofs of a prolonged but occasionally interrupted occupancy are also manifested by the great accumulation of débris over the wooden pavements, the size and contents of the kitchen-middens, and the superimposed hearths.
Let us now look at the remarkable series of implements, weapons, ornaments, and nondescript objects here presented to us, with the view of abstracting from them some scraps of information regarding their original owners. The fragments of Samian ware, bronze dishes, harp-shaped fibulæ, and the large assortment of beads, bronze and bone pins, bone combs, jet ornaments, etc., are so similar to the class of remains found on the excavated sites of Romano-British towns, that there can hardly be any doubt that Roman civilisation had come in contact with the lake-dwellers. The Celtic element is, however, strongly developed, not only in the general character of many of the industrial implements of stone, bone, and iron, but also in the style of art manifested in some of the ornamental objects included in the collection. Thus the piece of ashwood with its carved spiral patterns ([Figs. 144] and [145]), the combs, especially the one showing a series of concentric circles connected by a running scroll design ([Fig. 174]), and some of the bronze brooches and ornaments ([Fig. 130]) present a style of ornamentation which is considered peculiar to Celtic art. The spiral finger-rings seem also to have been of native origin, and the probability is that they were manufactured where they were found, as several crucibles are amongst the relics from the same lake-dwelling, one of which, from the fact that it still contains particles of gold, proves that it had been used in melting this metal. (B. 373, p. 236.)
On the other hand, the forged gold coin is the only relic that can with certainty be said to have emanated from a Saxon source—at least, that cannot otherwise be accounted for.
But if from internal evidence a presumptive case is made out in favour of the Celtic origin and occupation of these lake-dwellings, it is greatly strengthened when we consider that the neighbouring Celtic races, especially in Ireland, were in the habit of erecting similar island abodes, while there is not a particle of evidence in favour of the idea that such structures originated with the Roman conquerors of Britain or its Saxon invaders.
 |  |
| Comb from the Roman City of Uriconium (2⁄3). | Comb from the Knowe of Saverough, Orkney (1⁄2). |
 | |
| Two Combs from the Broch of Burrian, Orkney (1⁄2). | |
Fig. 176.—Bone Combs, for comparison with those from the Lake-Dwellings.
The resemblance between the remains found in the Scottish and Irish lake-dwellings, as well as other antiquarian finds of Celtic character, must also not be overlooked. Combs, similar in structure and ornamentation to those from Buston, have been found in several of the Irish crannogs, in the brochs and other antiquities of the north of Scotland, and in many of the ruins of the Romano-British towns in England. (See [Figs. 105], [108], and [176].) Iron knives and shears, variegated beads of impure glass with grooves and spiral marks, ornaments of jet and bronze, implements of stone, bone, and horn, besides querns, whetstones, etc., are all common to Celtic antiquities, wherever found.
That many of these relics were the products of a refined civilisation is not more remarkable than the unexpected and strangely discordant circumstances in which they have been found. For this reason it might be supposed that the crannogs were the headquarters of thieves and robbers, where the proceeds of their marauding excursions among the surrounding Roman provincials were stored up. The inferences derived from a careful consideration of all the facts do not appear to me to support this view, nor do they uphold another view, sometimes propounded, viz. that they were fortified islands occupied by the guardian soldiers of the people. Indeed, amongst the relics military remains are only feebly represented by a few iron daggers and spear-heads, one or two doubtful arrow-points, and a quantity of round pebbles and so-called sling-stones. On the other hand, a very large percentage of the articles consists of querns, implements and tools, crucibles, various domestic utensils, etc., from which, not to mention the great variety of ornaments, there can be no ambiguity as to the testimony they afford of the peaceful prosecution of various arts and industries by the lake-dwellers.
There is, in my opinion, only one hypothesis that can satisfactorily account for all the facts and phenomena here adduced, viz. that the lake-dwellings in the south-west of Scotland were resorted to by the Celtic inhabitants as a means of protecting their lives and movable property when, upon the frequent withdrawal of the Roman soldiers from the district, they were left, single-handed, to contend against the Angles on the east and the Picts and Scots on the north. It is not likely that these provincials, so long accustomed to the luxury and comforts of Roman civilisation, or their descendants in the subsequent kingdom of Strathclyde, would become the assailants of such fierce and lawless enemies, from whom, even if conquered, they could derive no benefit. Hence their military tactics and operations would assume more the character of defence than aggression, and in order to defeat the object of the frequent and sudden inroads of the northern tribes, which was to plunder the inhabitants rather than to conquer the country, experience taught them the necessity of being prepared for emergencies by having certain places of more than ordinary security where they could deposit their wealth, or to which they could retire as a last resource when hard pressed. These retreats might be caves, fortified camps, or inaccessible islands, but in localities where no such natural strongholds existed the military genius of the Celtic inhabitants, prompted perhaps by inherited notions, led them to construct these wooden islands. From the final departure of the Romans to the conquest of the kingdom of Strathclyde by the Northumbrian Angles, a period of several centuries, this unfortunate people had few intervals of peace, and with their complete subjugation ended the special functions of the lake-dwellings as a national system of protection. No doubt some of them, as well as caves and such hiding-places, would continue to afford refuge to straggling remnants of natives, rendered desperate by the relentless persecution of their enemies; but ultimately all of them would fall into the hands of their Saxon conquerors, when henceforth they would be allowed to subside into mud or crumble into decay.