© Mapbox · © OpenStreetMap contributors · Boundary data © Historic Environment Scotland
Gala Braes is a Bronze Age standing stone located in Linlithgowshire, Scotland. The monument rises from bedrock composed of Dinantian extrusive rocks, mafic lavas and tuffs formed during the Mississippian period. This geological setting, where volcanic stone meets upright stone, would have been familiar to Bronze Age communities who quarried and worked the local geology. The standing stone itself represents a monumental tradition that flourished across Scotland during the second millennium BCE, often marking territorial boundaries, ceremonial sites, or burials within the landscape.
The positioning of Gala Braes upon mafic volcanic bedrock characteristic of the region connects it to the broader geological framework of the Midland Valley. Bronze Age people would have recognised and utilised these visible stone outcrops in determining suitable locations for permanent monuments. Standing stones required careful placement to achieve stability whilst remaining visually prominent within the surrounding terrain.
Gala Braes is protected as a scheduled monument by Historic Environment Scotland under reference SM6184, ensuring the preservation of this Bronze Age landmark and its immediate setting. The monument survives as physical evidence of ritual and social practice in second-millennium Scotland.
Gala Braes,standing stone is a scheduled monument protected by Historic Environment Scotland under reference SM6184. View the official record →
Gala Braes is a Bronze Age standing stone located in Linlithgowshire, Scotland. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by Historic Environment Scotland under reference SM6184.
Gala Braes,standing stone dates from the bronze age period, and is classified as a standing stone. It is one of over 32,000 scheduled monuments protected across the UK.
Gala Braes,standing stone 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 SM6184.
Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Raven Craig, cairn (0.8 km), Kirkton,old parish church 400m ESE of Kirkton Mains,Bathgate (1.7 km), Windywa's Silvermine, silvermine 300m SW of Wester Tartraven (1.7 km).
This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 14 strands of Gala Braes,standing stone'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.
Gala Braes,standing stone stands on Unnamed Extrusive Rocks, Dinantian, bedrock that formed in the Mississippian. The rock here is mafic lava and mafic tuff.