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Castlehill is a broch situated 400 metres north-north-west of Kylerhea in Caithness. This Iron Age roundhouse represents the distinctive architectural tradition of northern Scotland, where such fortified circular towers were built as prominent settlements between roughly the 1st century BC and 1st century AD. The broch stands on bedrock of Middle Old Red Sandstone, a formation dating to the Middle Devonian period comprising conglomerate, sandstone, siltstone and mudstone that would have provided ready stone for construction.
The site occupies a significant position within the dense distribution of brochs found across Caithness and the far north, reflecting the region's concentrated Iron Age settlement pattern. The underlying geology of mixed sedimentary rocks would have offered variable working qualities for the dry-stone masonry characteristic of broch building. The monument sits within a landscape shaped by these ancient deposits, which determined both the practical possibilities and the visual character of Iron Age occupation in this area.
Castlehill broch is protected by Historic Environment Scotland as a scheduled monument under reference SM2189, recognising its archaeological importance as evidence of Iron Age settlement strategies and building practices in the extreme north of mainland Scotland.
Castlehill, broch 400m NNW of Kylerhea is a scheduled monument protected by Historic Environment Scotland under reference SM2189. View the official record →
Castlehill is a broch situated 400 metres north-north-west of Kylerhea in Caithness. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by Historic Environment Scotland under reference SM2189.
Castlehill, broch 400m NNW of Kylerhea dates from the iron age period, and is classified as a broch 400m nnw of kylerhea. It is one of over 32,000 scheduled monuments protected across the UK.
Castlehill, broch 400m NNW of Kylerhea 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 SM2189.
Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Ring Hillock, cairn 280m S of Breezy Brae (2.8 km), Earney Hillock, chambered cairn 720m NE of Granton Mains, Bowermadden (5.6 km), Stemster Hill, chambered cairn 1180m ENE of (6 km).
This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 14 strands of Castlehill, broch 400m NNW of Kylerhea'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.
Castlehill, broch 400m NNW of Kylerhea stands on Middle Old Red Sandstone (Undifferentiated), bedrock that formed in the Middle Devonian. The rock here is conglomerate, sandstone, siltstone and mudstone.