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Badnagoach shieling group is a seasonal settlement group located in Aberdeenshire, Scotland, approximately one kilometre south-south-east of Badnagoach. The site consists of the low stone structures characteristic of shielings—temporary bothies used by pastoral communities during summer months for dairy farming and livestock management. Built upon bedrock formed from a mafic igneous intrusion of Ordovician to Silurian age, the site sits within a landscape shaped by ancient geological forces, with the dark, heavy igneous rock providing the raw material for its dry-stone construction.
Shielings represent a distinctive form of upland economy that flourished across the Scottish Highlands and southern uplands, with communities driving cattle to higher pastures during the warmer months whilst maintaining permanent settlements in the valleys below. The remains at Badnagoach preserve evidence of this transhumance system, demonstrating how communities adapted to the distinctive seasonal patterns and topography of the northeast Scottish landscape.
The site is protected as a scheduled monument by Historic Environment Scotland under reference SM11661, recognising its importance to understanding the social and economic organisation of rural Aberdeenshire in the early modern period and beyond.
Badnagoach, shieling group 1km SSE of is a scheduled monument protected by Historic Environment Scotland under reference SM11661. View the official record →
Badnagoach shieling group is a seasonal settlement group located in Aberdeenshire, Scotland, approximately one kilometre south-south-east of Badnagoach. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by Historic Environment Scotland under reference SM11661.
Badnagoach, shieling group 1km SSE of is a Scheduled Ancient Monument, legally protected by Historic Environment Scotland — the body responsible for designating and safeguarding heritage sites in Scotland. The official designation reference is SM11661.
Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Ardan Breac, shielings 2780m WNW of Balgrennie (1.8 km), Groddie Cottage, shielings 2520m, 2630m and 2700m WNW of (2 km), Clais Garbh, shieling group 1660m W of Groddie Cottage (2.3 km).
This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 14 strands of Badnagoach, shieling group 1km SSE of's history, each drawn from the record and mapped to the exact spot:
Every location is different. Not every section appears for every place, only what the historical record actually holds turns up in a report.
Badnagoach, shieling group 1km SSE of stands on Unnamed Igneous Intrusion, Ordovician To Silurian, bedrock that formed in the Silurian. The rock here is mafic igneous-rock.