Scheduled Monuments›Scotland›Dun Cruinn,fort,Kensaleyre
Iron Age · Fort,kensaleyre

Dun Cruinn,fort,Kensaleyre

Scotland
HES SM910
Period
Iron Age
Site type
Fort,kensaleyre
Nation
Scotland
Boundary

Scheduled area

© Mapbox · © OpenStreetMap contributors · Boundary data © Historic Environment Scotland

Overview

History & significance

Dun Cruinn is a Iron Age fort located at Kensaleyre in Inverness-shire, Scotland. The site comprises a substantial circular or sub-circular defensive structure characteristic of Iron Age settlement patterns in the Scottish Highlands. The fort's earthwork fortifications reflect the defensive requirements and architectural conventions of its period, representing an important example of Iron Age settlement hierarchy and territorial control in the region. Such duns were typically occupied during the later Iron Age, serving as strongholds for local communities and elite families across the Hebridean and Highland landscape.

Dun Cruinn,fort,Kensaleyre is a scheduled monument protected by Historic Environment Scotland under reference SM910. View the official record →

About this monument

Questions & answers

What is Dun Cruinn,fort,Kensaleyre?

Dun Cruinn is a Iron Age fort located at Kensaleyre in Inverness-shire, Scotland. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by Historic Environment Scotland under reference SM910.

What period does Dun Cruinn,fort,Kensaleyre date from?

Dun Cruinn,fort,Kensaleyre dates from the iron age period, and is classified as a fort,kensaleyre. It is one of over 32,000 scheduled monuments protected across the UK.

Who is responsible for protecting Dun Cruinn,fort,Kensaleyre?

Dun Cruinn,fort,Kensaleyre 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 SM910.

What other scheduled monuments are near Dun Cruinn,fort,Kensaleyre?

Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Sornaichean Coir Fhinn,standing stones,Eyre (0.7 km), Eyre Manse,two cairns 490m W & WSW of (0.8 km), Kensaleyre Church,two cairns 320m & 180m SW of (0.9 km).

Unlimited access

Everything a full report reveals about Dun Cruinn,fort,Kensaleyre

This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 14 strands of Dun Cruinn,fort,Kensaleyre's history, each drawn from the record and mapped to the exact spot:

Overview
An interactive map of the location with every monument and battle plotted, and a plain-language history built only from what the record holds.
Monuments
The legally protected scheduled monuments around the location, each with its period, type and significance.
Battlefields
The battles and sieges fought on this ground, mapped and set on a timeline of the wider conflict.
Roman Britain
The Roman roads, forts and towns near here, and the Iron Age people who held the land before Rome arrived.
Stat Accounts
The parish Statistical Accounts of the 1790s and 1830s, describing life, work and population here.
Civil War
The Civil War fighting, garrisons and recorded militaria in this area, woven into the arc of 1642 to 1651.
Geology
The bedrock beneath the site, its age and rock type, reaching back hundreds of millions of years.
Local Names
What the street and field names around here actually mean, and the history buried inside them.
Historical Maps
Ordnance Survey maps from the 1800s, layered over the location as it stands today.
Literature
The books, county histories, charters and archives that mention this place, quoted with their sources.
Legal
The protected sites nearby and the metal-detecting, access and treasure laws that apply to this ground.
Spotlight
A deep dive into the most remarkable, lesser-known history of the place, traced back to the record.
Target Zones
For detectorists: the most promising ground to search nearby, ranked by confidence, with what to expect.
Timeline
The whole story of the location told era by era, from prehistory to the present day.
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Every location is different. Not every section appears for every place, only what the historical record actually holds turns up in a report.

Start your Dun Cruinn,fort,Kensaleyre report
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Nearby

Other scheduled monuments within 10 km

Sornaichean Coir Fhinn,standing stones,Eyre
Bronze Age · Standing stones,eyre0.7 km
Eyre Manse,two cairns 490m W & WSW of
Two cairns 490m w &0.8 km
Kensaleyre Church,two cairns 320m & 180m SW of
Two cairns 320m &0.9 km
Carn Liath,chambered cairn 380m SW of Kensaleyre Church
Neolithic · Chambered cairn 380m sw of kensaleyre church1 km
Romesdal Bridge,cairn 460m SW of
Cairn1.4 km
Kensaleyre Church, cairns and standing stones 1200m SSE of
Bronze Age · Cairns and standing stones2 km
Clach Ard,symbol stone,Tote,Carbost
Symbol stone,tote,carbost2.9 km
Skeabost Island,St Columba's Church & other ecclesiastical remains
Medieval · St columba's church & other ecclesiastical remains3.4 km
The ground beneath

The bedrock under Dun Cruinn,fort,Kensaleyre

Dun Cruinn,fort,Kensaleyre stands on Palaeocene basalt, bedrock that formed in the Paleocene. The rock here is basalt group.

All Scheduled Monuments