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Dirlot stone rows is a Bronze Age monument located in Caithness, northern Scotland, comprising aligned standing stones set into landscape formed from Middle Old Red Sandstone bedrock. The underlying geology of conglomerate, sandstone and siltstone from the Middle Devonian period provides the local stone source. The monument lies approximately 550 metres south-west of Dirlot itself, positioned within the distinctive rolling moorland and peat-covered terrain characteristic of Caithness.
Stone rows of this type were constructed during the Bronze Age, typically between 2000 and 1000 BCE, and represent significant ritual or territorial markers within the prehistoric landscape. Their precise original function remains debated, though alignments towards celestial events and associations with burial practices are widely recognised. The rows would have been highly visible monuments within the open terrain of Bronze Age Caithness.
The monument is protected by Historic Environment Scotland and forms part of the broader archaeological heritage of the Far North, where numerous Bronze Age ceremonial sites survive. The upland location reflects the Bronze Age settlement pattern of northern Scotland, where communities exploited both moorland and coastal resources across the region.
Dirlot, stone rows 550m SW of is a scheduled monument protected by Historic Environment Scotland under reference SM446. View the official record →
Dirlot stone rows is a Bronze Age monument located in Caithness, northern Scotland, comprising aligned standing stones set into landscape formed from Middle Old Red Sandstone bedrock. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by Historic Environment Scotland under reference SM446.
Dirlot, stone rows 550m SW 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 SM446.
Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Dirlot Castle (0.3 km), Cairn Merk,broch 800m SSE of Bridge of Westerdale (2.7 km), Tulach Mor,broch,E bank of River Thurso (2.7 km).
This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 14 strands of Dirlot, stone rows 550m SW 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.
Dirlot, stone rows 550m SW of stands on Middle Old Red Sandstone (Undifferentiated), bedrock that formed in the Middle Devonian. The rock here is conglomerate, sandstone, siltstone and mudstone.