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Russell's Cairn is a cairn located in Roxburghshire, Scotland. The monument stands upon bedrock formed from Silurian to Devonian extrusive rocks, specifically mafic lava and mafic tuff laid down during the Devonian period. This volcanic geology is characteristic of the upland terrain of the Scottish Borders.
Cairns of this type served multiple purposes in prehistoric and early historic Scotland, functioning as burial monuments, territorial markers, or ritual sites. The construction of such stone heaps was labour-intensive, requiring the gathering and stacking of local materials, and their prominence on the landscape would have made them significant communal landmarks.
The monument is protected by Historic Environment Scotland under the reference SM4460, reflecting its archaeological importance and designation as a scheduled monument. This protection status recognises Russell's Cairn as part of Scotland's broader heritage of prehistoric stone construction and its value to understanding settlement patterns and land use in the Scottish Borders region.
Russell's Cairn, cairn is a scheduled monument protected by Historic Environment Scotland under reference SM4460. View the official record →
Russell's Cairn is a cairn located in Roxburghshire, Scotland. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by Historic Environment Scotland under reference SM4460.
Russell's Cairn, cairn 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 SM4460.
Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Ring cairn and round cairn on Turf Hill (7.9 km), Ring cairn 240m north east of Old Quickening Cote (8.8 km), Medieval and later dispersed settlement, 730m north and 860m north of Linbriggs (8.9 km).
This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 14 strands of Russell's Cairn, cairn'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.
Russell's Cairn, cairn stands on Unnamed Extrusive Rocks, Silurian To Devonian, bedrock that formed in the Devonian. The rock here is mafic lava and mafic tuff.