© Mapbox · © OpenStreetMap contributors · Boundary data © Historic Environment Scotland
Bents Quarry, lime kilns and quarry is a lime production site in Peeblesshire, Scotland, protected as a scheduled monument by Historic Environment Scotland under reference SM6065. The site exploits the Clackmannan Group sedimentary rocks that underlie this area, formed during the Westphalian period of the Carboniferous era. These limestone-bearing strata provided the raw material essential for lime burning, a process fundamental to Scottish agriculture and construction from the medieval period onwards.
The quarry workings at Bents extracted stone from the naturally fractured Clackmannan Group deposits, exposing the rock face to allow systematic removal of usable blocks. The associated lime kilns would have processed this stone through high-temperature burning, converting the limestone into quicklime and slaked lime. These products were distributed widely across the surrounding agricultural landscape to improve soil fertility and across building projects.
The survival of both quarry and kiln structures at Bents Quarry provides evidence of a once-common industrial practice that shaped the Peeblesshire economy. The site's protected status reflects its importance in understanding how rural communities accessed and processed lime, demonstrating the integration of local geology with practical resource extraction and regional commerce.
Bents Quarry, lime kilns and quarry is a scheduled monument protected by Historic Environment Scotland under reference SM6065. View the official record →
Bents Quarry, lime kilns and quarry is a lime production site in Peeblesshire, Scotland, protected as a scheduled monument by Historic Environment Scotland under reference SM6065.
Bents Quarry, lime kilns and quarry 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 SM6065.
Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Green Knowe,platform settlement (9.1 km), White Meldon,platform settlement 640m NW of (9.2 km), Upper Kidston,fort & settlement NNW of (9.6 km).
This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 14 strands of Bents Quarry, lime kilns and quarry'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.
Bents Quarry, lime kilns and quarry stands on Clackmannan Group, bedrock that formed in the Westphalian. The rock here is sedimentary rock cycles, clackmannan group type.