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Dunagoil is a multi-period settlement site on the Isle of Bute comprising an Iron Age burial chamber, defensive forts, caves, a cupmarked stone and longhouses. The monument sits on bedrock of Dinantian mafic lava and tuff, ancient volcanic material formed in the Mississippian period that shapes the character of this Bute landscape. The site is protected by Historic Environment Scotland under reference SM409.
The burial chamber represents Iron Age funerary practice on the island, whilst the fortifications suggest the strategic importance of this location during the Iron Age. The presence of longhouses indicates sustained domestic occupation, with structures aligned to the natural topography and underlying geology. The cupmarked stone, decorated with cup-shaped depressions typical of prehistoric rock art, provides evidence of earlier ritual or territorial activity at this significant place.
The combination of burial, defence, habitation and ceremonial monuments demonstrates that Dunagoil was a major settlement through the Iron Age period. Its location on volcanic bedrock and proximity to the sea made it a natural stronghold on Bute, with the caves offering additional shelter and storage possibilities for its inhabitants. The variety of monument types clustered at this site illustrates the complexity of Iron Age settlement patterns in western Scotland.
Dunagoil,burial chamber,forts,caves,cupmarked stone and longhouses is a scheduled monument protected by Historic Environment Scotland under reference SM409. View the official record →
Dunagoil is a multi-period settlement site on the Isle of Bute comprising an Iron Age burial chamber, defensive forts, caves, a cupmarked stone and longhouses. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by Historic Environment Scotland under reference SM409.
Dunagoil,burial chamber,forts,caves,cupmarked stone and longhouses dates from the iron age period, and is classified as a burial chamber,forts,caves,cupmarked stone and longhouses. It is one of over 32,000 scheduled monuments protected across the UK.
Dunagoil,burial chamber,forts,caves,cupmarked stone and longhouses 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 SM409.
Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including St Blane's church,monastery and 'the cauldron',Bute (0.9 km), Kingavin,deserted village 650m ENE of Dunagoil (1.1 km), Kingarth,standing stones (2.2 km).
This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 14 strands of Dunagoil,burial chamber,forts,caves,cupmarked stone and longhouses'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.
Dunagoil,burial chamber,forts,caves,cupmarked stone and longhouses stands on Unnamed Extrusive Rocks, Dinantian, bedrock that formed in the Mississippian. The rock here is mafic lava and mafic tuff.