Broxy Kennels Fort, Souterrain and Surrounding Landscape, Perth

Excavation of Broxy Kennels Fort revealed a 6th‑century BC multivallate hilltop settlement later modified with a souterrain and new ditches in the 5th–4th centuries BC. After a brief hiatus, an unenclosed settlement continued until the late 1st century AD, with only sporadic later activity before the site was lost to ploughing.

Archaeological excavation of almost the entirety of Broxy Kennels Fort to the north of Perth, was undertaken in advance of a new road development. It revealed a multivallate fortified settlement on a hill overlooking the River Tay. The fort constructed in the 6th century BC initially comprised two ditches that encircled the hill with a north-east entranceway that led to the interior.

Around the late 5th-early 4th centuries BC, parts of the settlement’s defences were altered to accommodate a souterrain constructed into one of the silted-up ditches. The alteration necessitated a further short ditch either side of the entrance, followed by a final outer ditch that encircled the hill. Other changes within the enclosure may also have occurred at this time with material from clearance of structures being dumped in the ditches.

After a short hiatus, an unenclosed settlement within the interior of the fort persisted from the 4th century BC until around the late 1st century AD. Other than traces of sporadic activity from the early medieval period to the post-medieval era, the site was to all intents and purposes lost to the plough.

Summary – Kenneth Green

Acknowledgements

Contributors to the volume

PART 1: Introduction and Results – Kenneth Green with John-James Atkinson, Christina Mollie Dogherty, Charlotte Hunter, Maureen Kilpatrick and Alun Woodward

Introduction  

Broxy Kennels

Archaeological Background  

Results of the Investigations at Broxy Kennels  

Metal Detecting and Significant Finds (Figure 4)  

The Main Ditch Excavations  

Machine Excavated Slot Trenches  

The Souterrain – John James Atkinson  

Other Features around the Fort – Christina Mollie Dogherty

The ‘Palisade’ – John James Atkinson  

Investigations at Scone 1 and 2 – Charlotte Hunter and Maureen Kilpatrick

Archaeological Evaluation of Temporary Works Area 5 – Alun Woodward

PART 2: Dating and the Environment  

Radiocarbon dating and Chronological modelling – Derek Hamilto

Archaeobotany – Susan Ramsay  

Micromorphology – Carol Laing

Multi-element analysis of souterrain deposits – Clare Wilson  

Animal Bone – Catherine Smith

PART 3: Material Culture  

The Lithic Assemblages – Torben Bjarke Ballin  

Stone Artefacts – Beverley Ballin Smith  

The Prehistoric Pottery – Beverley Ballin Smith

Clay and Fired Clay – Beverley Ballin Smith  

Metalwork  – Gemma Cruickshanks and Leanne Demay

Vitrified Material – Gemma Cruickshanks

PART 4: Discussion – Kenneth Green

Environmental and archaeological evidence earlier than the fort – Beverley Ballin Smith

The establishment of the fort – Kenneth Green

Bibliography

Appendices

Index

• By (author) Kenneth Green
• With John-James Atkinson
• With Christina Mollie Dogherty
• With Charlotte Hunter
• With Maureen Kilpatrick
• With Alun Woodward