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Watenan is a cairn and stone setting located 400 metres west of Ulbster in Caithness, north-east Scotland. The monument stands on bedrock composed of Middle Old Red Sandstone, a conglomerate of sandstone, siltstone and mudstone formed during the Middle Devonian period, which gives the surrounding landscape its distinctive reddish tone. This geological foundation would have been partially visible to the builders, with outcrops of stone readily available for cairn construction.
The site comprises two distinct elements: a burial cairn and an associated stone setting. Cairns of this type in Caithness typically date to the Bronze Age, though some may have earlier origins in the Neolithic period. The stone setting may have functioned as a marker, ritual feature or part of a broader ceremonial complex associated with the burial monument.
The cairn and stone setting at Watenan form part of the rich archaeological heritage of Caithness, a region notable for its concentration of prehistoric monuments. The site is protected by Historic Environment Scotland under reference SM504, ensuring the preservation of this important record of early Scottish settlement and burial practices.
Watenan,cairn & stone setting 400m W of,Ulbster is a scheduled monument protected by Historic Environment Scotland under reference SM504. View the official record →
Watenan is a cairn and stone setting located 400 metres west of Ulbster in Caithness, north-east Scotland. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by Historic Environment Scotland under reference SM504.
Watenan,cairn & stone setting 400m W of,Ulbster 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 SM504.
Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Cairn of Get, chambered cairn, cairns and cists (0.2 km), Broughwhin, cairn and stone row 190m NW of Groat's Loch (0.4 km), Groat's Loch, cairn 225m WSW of (0.6 km).
This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 14 strands of Watenan,cairn & stone setting 400m W of,Ulbster'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.
Watenan,cairn & stone setting 400m W of,Ulbster stands on Middle Old Red Sandstone (Undifferentiated), bedrock that formed in the Middle Devonian. The rock here is conglomerate, sandstone, siltstone and mudstone.