Leckie Broch is an iron-age

broch A broch is an Iron Age drystone hollow-walled structure found in Scotland. Brochs belong to the classification "complex Atlantic roundhouse" devised by Scottish archaeologists in the 1980s. Their origin is a matter of some controversy. Origin ...

located in Stirlingshire, Scotland.

Location

Just above the confluence of two streams with deep gulleys on the southern foothills of the

Forth Valley The River Forth is a major river in central Scotland, long, which drains into the North Sea on the east coast of the country. Its drainage basin covers much of Stirlingshire in Scotland's Central Belt. The Gaelic name for the upper reach of t ...

.Mackie (1982) The Leckie broch, Stirlingshire: an interim report, Euan W MacKie, Glasgow Archaeological Journal. Volume 9, Page 60-72 DOI 10.3366/gas.1982.9.9.60, ISSN 1471-5767, 1982. West of Gargunnock, it can be accessed from the track to Knock-o-Ronald by following the path up the East side of Leckie burn. Recent visitors to the site have stated that it is very overgrown with rhododendrons. On a recent visit (July 2018) the site was found (by B Wilson, University of New England) to be almost entirely inaccessible due to the dense stand of rhododendron.Megalithic Portal (2014
Leckie Broch - Broch or Nuraghe in Scotland in Stirling
Last Accessed 21 June 2014 Clearance of rhododendron in 2020 now makes access much easier. Take the path just east of Saw mill cottage, to the east side of Leckie Burn. Follow the path til you cross the "1878" bridge. Turn right along the "ridge" and the Broch can be seen about 100m ahead.

History

The broch became known to

archaeologists Archaeology or archeology is the scientific study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of artifacts, architecture, biofacts or ecofacts, sites, and cultural landscap ...

in the 1960s. Until the beginning of the 19th century the area was covered in impassible swamps and

bogs A bog or bogland is a wetland that accumulates peat as a deposit of dead plant materials often mosses, typically sphagnum moss. It is one of the four main Wetland#Types, types of wetlands. Other names for bogs include mire, mosses, quagmire, ...

that prohibited the detailed exploration of the area.Mackie (1987
Impact on the Scottish Iron Age of the discoveries at Leckie broch
Euan W. MacKie, Glasgow Archaeological Journal. Volume 14, Page 1-18 DOI 10.3366/gas.1987.14.14.1, ISSN 1471-5767, Last Accessed 25 June 2014. The broch was excavated between 1970 and 1978 by archaeologists.

Description

The broch is one of only a handful of brochs found in southern Scotland. Due to the destruction of the walls, it is unknown how high the original broch was. The archaeologists who excavated it believed that it was a hollowed tower type broch with an internal wood structure. The site has several phases and has been dated from the Roman period; this is known because the excavations found several kinds of dating evidence including Roman pottery, glass, coins, and radiocarbon measurements. # The first phase appears to be a hut under the later broch. A group of sheep bones in a post hole gave a C-14 date of AD 80 ± 70. # Construction: The broch was built next and Roman Samian pottery, with stamps, puts the construction after AD 79 or 80. # Inhabitation of the tower for roughly 60 years. # Destruction of Broch: There was evidence of a fire and sudden collapse of the broch. # Re-occupation of the broch occurs after the fire and some repairs are undertaken and a roundhouse created. # The site is fortified but then abandoned. # A medieval coin was found but it is not thought that anything significant occurred after the site was abandoned in the 2nd century AD. It has been hypothesized that it was originally a broch but after that was destroyed it was rebuilt as a

promontory fort A promontory fort is a defensive structure located above a steep cliff, often only connected to the mainland by a small neck of land, thus using the topography to reduce the ramparts needed. Although their dating is problematic, most seem to da ...

. However, some have questioned if the second phase is in fact a promontory fort.

Archaeological finds

The eight years of archaeological excavations resulted in multiple finds like broochs and armlets. These finds are currently held by The Hunterian Museum and Art Gallery at the University of Glasgow. Pictures of some of these finds can be viewed at th
Hunterian website
The Hunterian Museum and Art Gallery
(2014) Leckie. Last Accessed 23 June 2014

References

External links