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Scouthal Burn chapel and the Clow is a medieval chapel site located in Caithness, northern Scotland, protected as a scheduled monument by Historic Environment Scotland. The chapel stands on bedrock of Middle Old Red Sandstone, a geological formation dating to the Middle Devonian period, which comprises conglomerate, sandstone, siltstone and mudstone. This ancient bedrock, weathered by millennia of exposure to the Highland climate, would have presented local builders with readily available stone for the chapel's construction.
The site comprises both a chapel and a structure known as the Clow, a term referring to a narrow glen or ravine, indicating the monument's setting within a distinctive landscape feature. The chapel represents the religious infrastructure of medieval Caithness, a period when the far north of Scotland was developing its ecclesiastical institutions. The proximity of the Clow to the chapel suggests the two elements formed part of a unified settlement or sacred landscape.
The monument survives as a testament to medieval Christian settlement in one of Scotland's most remote regions. The particular geological composition of the site—with its Old Red Sandstone foundation—reflects the building traditions of northern Scotland, where local stone sources dictated both the availability and character of medieval construction. The scheduled monument status ensures protection of this significant historical landscape.
Scouthal Burn,chapel & The Clow is a scheduled monument protected by Historic Environment Scotland under reference SM721. View the official record →
Scouthal Burn chapel and the Clow is a medieval chapel site located in Caithness, northern Scotland, protected as a scheduled monument by Historic Environment Scotland. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by Historic Environment Scotland under reference SM721.
Scouthal Burn,chapel & The Clow dates from the medieval period, and is classified as a chapel & the clow. It is one of over 32,000 scheduled monuments protected across the UK.
Scouthal Burn,chapel & The Clow 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 SM721.
Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Carn A' Chladha, broch (0.2 km), Bail A' Chairn, broch (0.8 km), Nether Banks, broch 220m NNE of (1.8 km).
This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 14 strands of Scouthal Burn,chapel & The Clow'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.
Scouthal Burn,chapel & The Clow stands on Middle Old Red Sandstone (Undifferentiated), bedrock that formed in the Middle Devonian. The rock here is conglomerate, sandstone, siltstone and mudstone.