Scheduled MonumentsScotlandScotstarvit Tower

Scotstarvit Tower

Scotland
HES SM90274
Nation
Scotland
Boundary

Scheduled area

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

Overview

History & significance

Scotstarvit Tower is a five-storey square tower house situated near Cupar in Fife, dating to the early seventeenth century. Built around 1604-1611 by Sir John Scott of Scotstarvit, the tower exemplifies the fortified domestic architecture of early modern Scotland, featuring thick stone walls and corner turrets characteristic of the period. The tower was constructed adjacent to an earlier castle complex and served as both a residence and defensive structure for the Scott family, prominent landowners in Fife. Today the tower remains substantially intact, standing as a well-preserved example of Scottish Renaissance architecture and providing evidence of the social status and building practices of the Lowland gentry during the early Stuart period.

Scotstarvit Tower is a scheduled monument protected by Historic Environment Scotland under reference SM90274. View the official record →

About this monument

Questions & answers

What is Scotstarvit Tower?

Scotstarvit Tower is a five-storey square tower house situated near Cupar in Fife, dating to the early seventeenth century. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by Historic Environment Scotland under reference SM90274.

Who is responsible for protecting Scotstarvit Tower?

Scotstarvit Tower 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 SM90274.

What other scheduled monuments are near Scotstarvit Tower?

Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Struthers Castle, castle, park and doocot (1.7 km), Ramornie Mains, roundhouse 650m ENE of (4.5 km), Down Law,fort 350m S of Downfield,Coaltown of Burnturk (4.9 km).

Unlimited access

Everything a full report reveals about Scotstarvit Tower

This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 14 strands of Scotstarvit Tower'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.
First month just £4.99, then £9.99 a month. Unlimited locations, cancel anytime.

Every location is different. Not every section appears for every place, only what the historical record actually holds turns up in a report.

Start your Scotstarvit Tower report
Or see a real report first
The ground beneath

The bedrock under Scotstarvit Tower

Scotstarvit Tower stands on Unnamed Igneous Intrusion, Carboniferous To Permian, bedrock that formed in the Permian. The rock here is dolerite and tholeiitic basalt.