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Westpans Potteries is a pottery manufacturing site in Midlothian, Scotland, protected as a scheduled monument by Historic Environment Scotland. The site exploits the clay resources of the local Clackmannan Group bedrock, a Westphalian-age sedimentary sequence that provided abundant raw material for ceramic production. This geological foundation made the location strategically valuable for pottery manufacture, as potters could access suitable clay deposits directly beneath the site.
The potteries represent a significant phase of Scottish ceramic production, utilising the natural advantages of the local geology. The Clackmannan Group's sedimentary cycles created variable clay deposits ideally suited to pottery work, and the site's geology directly shaped its industrial development and longevity. The presence of these workable clay strata meant potters could sustain operations through access to consistent supplies without requiring distant material transport.
Today, Westpans Potteries survives as an archaeological record of Scotland's ceramic manufacturing heritage. Its scheduled monument status reflects the historical importance of the site and its role in demonstrating how medieval and later potters exploited local geological resources. The landscape and underlying bedrock remain central to understanding why pottery production became established here and how geological circumstances enabled sustained industrial activity in Midlothian.
Westpans,potteries is a scheduled monument protected by Historic Environment Scotland under reference SM5116. View the official record →
Westpans Potteries is a pottery manufacturing site in Midlothian, Scotland, protected as a scheduled monument by Historic Environment Scotland. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by Historic Environment Scotland under reference SM5116.
Westpans,potteries 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 SM5116.
Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Fordel Mains,fort 350m SW of (6.9 km), Fuffet Wood,enclosure and cropmarks 100m E of (7 km), Lawfield Wood,fort (7.7 km).
This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 14 strands of Westpans,potteries'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.
Westpans,potteries stands on Clackmannan Group, bedrock that formed in the Westphalian. The rock here is sedimentary rock cycles, clackmannan group type.