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Unenclosed settlement, 1180m SE of Mark is a prehistoric domestic site in Wigtownshire, south-west Scotland, protected as a scheduled monument by Historic Environment Scotland. The settlement sits on bedrock of the Stewartry Group, a geological formation of sandstone, breccia and conglomerate laid down during the Early Permian period. This solid foundation of mixed stone would have provided firm, well-drained ground suitable for habitation.
Unenclosed settlements of this type typically date to the Bronze Age or Iron Age and represent communities that lived without the defensive ramparts or ditches characteristic of contemporary hillforts. The absence of substantial earthwork fortifications suggests a settlement of people who lived by pastoral or mixed subsistence strategies, relying on the natural landscape for both resources and security. Such sites are common across south-west Scotland, indicating sustained settlement patterns across the region during later prehistory.
The monument's survival to the present day, despite centuries of agricultural and pastoral use of the Wigtownshire landscape, makes it an important record of early settlement in the area. Its protection reflects the significance of understanding how communities organised their domestic spaces and exploited the local environment in ancient times.
Unenclosed settlement, 1180m SE of Mark is a scheduled monument protected by Historic Environment Scotland under reference SM7409. View the official record →
Unenclosed settlement, 1180m SE of Mark is a prehistoric domestic site in Wigtownshire, south-west Scotland, protected as a scheduled monument by Historic Environment Scotland. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by Historic Environment Scotland under reference SM7409.
Unenclosed settlement, 1180m SE of Mark 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 SM7409.
Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including East Galdenoch, fort 450m SSW of (2 km), Mye Plantation,pitfall (3.9 km), Garthland Cottages, palisaded enclosure 120m NNW of (4.1 km).
This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 14 strands of Unenclosed settlement, 1180m SE of Mark'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.
Unenclosed settlement, 1180m SE of Mark stands on Stewartry Group, bedrock that formed in the Early Permian. The rock here is sandstone, breccia and conglomerate.