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Bronze Age Bressay!
(Cruester Burnt Mound)
This exciting project to save Cruester burnt mound from destruction, led by the Bressay History Group, is now underway on Shetland, funded by the Heritage Lottery fund, Shetland Islands Council, Highlands and Islands Enterprise and Shetland Amenity Trust.
An excavation at Cruester in 2000, funded by Historic Scotland, revealed a series of beautifully constructed stone-built cells surrounding a sloping passageway leading from a hearth cell (where stones were heated in a fire) to a large stone tank, all revetted into a surrounding mound of burnt stone and ash.The mound built up around the structures as fire was used to heat the stones which were then used to heat the water contained within the tank.
Burnt Mounds generally date to the Bronze Age (around 1500BC) and a number of theories exist about their function. Were they used for cooking food, or for bathing, or perhaps for industrial processes such as fulling cloth or tanning leather? Burnt mounds in the northern isles tend to display complex architecture, and Cruester is another example of this distinct building tradition.
Archaeologists are currently on site working with specialist stonemasons to label and dismanle the structures. The site will be reconstructed outside the heritage centre where it will be used as a centre for experimentation into the function of these enigmatic sites.
This is a partnership project between tthe Bressay History Group, Archaeology Scotland and The SCAPE Trust and draws on the expertise of Shetland Amenity Trust.
Volunteers are welcome at all stages of the project and training is being offered in archaeological recording skills and drystone walling techniques. Visit the official project website at www.shorewatch.co.uk/cruester for information about public lectures, open days and how to get involved.