Scheduled MonumentsScotlandMithergarth, ring-ditch houses 280m SSE of
Ring-ditch houses

Mithergarth, ring-ditch houses 280m SSE of

Scotland
HES SM12018
Site type
Ring-ditch houses
Nation
Scotland
Boundary

Scheduled area

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

Overview

History & significance

Mithergarth is a ring-ditch house settlement located in Aberdeenshire, north-east Scotland. Ring-ditch houses are Bronze Age domestic structures defined by a circular ditch that surrounded a timber-framed dwelling, typically dating between 2000 and 1000 BC. The ditch served both practical and symbolic purposes, providing drainage around the house whilst defining the domestic space. At Mithergarth, the houses sit upon bedrock composed of Late Silurian to Early Devonian igneous intrusion, a felsic rock formed during the Early Devonian period. This substantial geological foundation, laid down some 400 million years ago, would have influenced the settlement's drainage and the character of the landscape available for cultivation.

The monument is protected by Historic Environment Scotland under designation SM12018, reflecting its significance as evidence of Bronze Age settlement patterns in the north-east of Scotland. Ring-ditch settlements such as Mithergarth provide valuable insight into domestic life, social organisation and land use during the later prehistoric period in this region.

Mithergarth, ring-ditch houses 280m SSE of is a scheduled monument protected by Historic Environment Scotland under reference SM12018. View the official record →

About this monument

Questions & answers

What is Mithergarth, ring-ditch houses 280m SSE of?

Mithergarth is a ring-ditch house settlement located in Aberdeenshire, north-east Scotland. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by Historic Environment Scotland under reference SM12018.

Who is responsible for protecting Mithergarth, ring-ditch houses 280m SSE of?

Mithergarth, ring-ditch houses 280m SSE 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 SM12018.

What other scheduled monuments are near Mithergarth, ring-ditch houses 280m SSE of?

Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Newton of Braco, ring-cairn 740m W of (0.6 km), Chapel o' Sink Cairn, cairn (2.2 km), East Aquhorthies, stone circle (3.2 km).

Unlimited access

Everything a full report reveals about Mithergarth, ring-ditch houses 280m SSE of

This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 14 strands of Mithergarth, ring-ditch houses 280m SSE of'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.

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The ground beneath

The bedrock under Mithergarth, ring-ditch houses 280m SSE of

Mithergarth, ring-ditch houses 280m SSE of stands on Unnamed Igneous Intrusion, Late Silurian To Early Devonian, bedrock that formed in the Early Devonian. The rock here is felsic-rock.