Monument record MHG11002 - Chambered Cairn, Allt a' Mhuilinn

NC81SW 19 8275 1150.

(NC 8272 1150) Chambered Cairn (NR)
OS 6"map, Sutherland, 1st ed., (1879)
Brough (NR) OS 6"map, Sutherland, 2nd ed., (1907)
(NC 8275 1150) Cairn (NR) OS 6" map, (1969)
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Chambered Cairn, NC 82769 11532.
Centre of a curving walled recess, the only remaining structural element to this chambered cairn which is deeply overgrown with bracken and heather (see Plate 15). The feature has been subjected to much human interference, probably during the two phases of track construction. It is set on a wide, level shoulder trending N-S on the W-sloping valley-side, and has, since the construction of the two tracks, been left as an island in between.

The built remains form a W-opening, E half of a 3m diameter, semi-circular stone wall, dug below ground level and is 1m deep, and is now 1m to the W of the old, disused track (of Feature 018 above). There is a jumble of large boulders on its NW and SW sides, at the ends of the semi-circular wall. A 1m high and 3m diameter, bracken-covered cairn is located 13m to the SW of the wall, another is 7m to the W and another is 12m to the NW. These may be recent piles of boulders, put together during track construction, or even during early archaeological investigations into the cairn itself. Further spread jumbles of boulders and cobbles cover the ground surface to the W, apparently making little sense. What appear to be ‘recent’ small pits, have also been dug into the area covered by the extent of the chambered cairn.

(N.B. A hut circle marked on current OS Landline map was not found, although could possibly form part of the boulder jumble at this location).

Info supplied by Dr N Lindsay, 27/01/03
See Report Library No. 1075/feature 66
J Aitken : 31/03/03
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Allt a' Mhuilinn; Round Cairn.
When seen by RCAHMS (1909) the cairn still stood up to 6ft high undisturbed but it has been further robbed (Davidson 1948) and is now reduced to irregular heaps of cairn material 2-3ft high. The edge is fairly easily traced and suggests a diameter of 70-75ft, but the cairn may have been spread in the process of demolition as Curle records a diameter of only 66ft.
In the interior there are three large upright slabs all about 3ft high, and set facing N and S. The slab on the S side is 20ft within the apparent edge of the cairn (and there is a prone slab lying on either side of it). Sixteen feet further N is the second slab with the third slab 4ft 6ins behind it. These three stones might represent the back, division and portal stones of a chamber orientated N-S and entered from the S side which fades the foot of the small side valley in which the cairn lies.
RCAHMS 1911; J M Davidson 1948; A S Henshall 1963, visited 1957.

Generally as described and planned by Henshall. The cairn is 19.0m in diameter, but apart from the large upright stones it has been reduced to nearly ground level.
Surveyed at 1:10,560.
Alongside on the NW is an oval enclosure (see NC81SW 20).
Visited by OS (N K B) 11 May 1964.

No change since report of 11 April 1964.
Visited by OS (J B) 30 December 1975.