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Powis cursus, barrows and enclosures is a post-medieval monument complex located in Angus, Scotland, protected by Historic Environment Scotland under reference SM6117. The site comprises a cursus—a linear earthwork of prehistoric form—alongside barrows and associated enclosures, though its post-medieval date distinguishes it from the Neolithic and Bronze Age cursus monuments more commonly found across Britain. The landscape here rests upon bedrock of the Arbuthnott-Garvock Group, formed during the Pragian period, comprising sandstone interspersed with conglomerate, siltstone and mudstone that has shaped the local terrain and drainage patterns.
The monument's post-medieval construction reflects a period when earlier prehistoric forms were sometimes revisited or reimagined in the landscape, perhaps as expressions of land management or territorial marking. The combination of cursus, barrows and enclosures suggests a complex site of prolonged use and significance. The underlying geology of the Arbuthnott-Garvock sandstones and associated rocks would have influenced where inhabitants chose to establish their structures and how they modified the local topography to create these substantial earthworks.
Powis,cursus,barrows and enclosures is a scheduled monument protected by Historic Environment Scotland under reference SM6117. View the official record →
Powis cursus, barrows and enclosures is a post-medieval monument complex located in Angus, Scotland, protected by Historic Environment Scotland under reference SM6117.
Powis,cursus,barrows and enclosures dates from the post-medieval period, and is classified as a cursus,barrows and enclosures. It is one of over 32,000 scheduled monuments protected across the UK.
Powis,cursus,barrows and enclosures 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 SM6117.
Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Newbarns, unenclosed settlements 190m SSE of and 245m ESE of (8.5 km), Newbarns, enclosure and ring ditch 345m SSW of (8.5 km), Bryanton,enclosure 200m N of (8.6 km).
This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 14 strands of Powis,cursus,barrows and enclosures'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.
Powis,cursus,barrows and enclosures stands on Arbuthnott-Garvock Group, bedrock that formed in the Pragian. The rock here is sandstone with subordinate conglomerate, siltstone and mudstone.