Cardean (tentatively identified with the Ptolemaic toponym Tameia) was a Flavian auxiliary fort situated at the confluence of the Dean Water and the River Isla in Strathmore, Angus. Established around AD 83–84 as part of Agricola's campaigns into northern Scotland, it was occupied only briefly before being abandoned during the Roman withdrawal from Scotland c. AD 86–87.
Source: Pleiades — A Community-Built Gazetteer and Graph of Ancient Places. View the Pleiades record →
The fort formed part of the Strathmore line of garrisons (alongside Inverquharity, Stracathro, and Cargill) supporting the legionary fortress at Inchtuthil and consolidating control of the fertile glens north of the Tay. Its size (c. 2.6 ha) suggests it housed a mixed cohors equitata or a large infantry cohort, likely guarding the approach to the Highland glens.
Excavations by J.K. St Joseph in the 1960s–70s revealed substantial timber buildings including a principia, granaries, and barrack blocks within a turf rampart and double-ditch system, with finds of Flavian samian, coarse wares, and ironwork consistent with a short single-phase occupation. The deliberate demolition and burning of structures at abandonment, paralleling Inchtuthil, confirms a planned Roman withdrawal rather than hostile destruction.
Cardean (tentatively identified with the Ptolemaic toponym Tameia) was a Flavian auxiliary fort situated at the confluence of the Dean Water and the River Isla in Strathmore, Angus. It is recorded in the Pleiades gazetteer of ancient places as a fort site from the Roman period in Britain.
Tameia? is classified as a Roman fort — a military site in the Pleiades ancient world gazetteer. Roman Britain's archaeology encompasses thousands of sites ranging from legionary fortresses and marching camps to villas, temples and towns.
Several Roman sites lie within a short distance, including Cargill (19 km), Victoria? (19.4 km), Pinnata Castra (19.7 km). Aubrey Research maps over 2,200 Roman sites across Britain, drawn from the Pleiades ancient world gazetteer.
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