Neolithic Timber Halls and a Bronze Age Settlement with Hoard at Carnoustie, Angus

Beverley Ballin Smith is the Publications Manager for GUARD Archaeology and editor of ARO (Archaeology Reports Online). She also specialises in the analysis of prehistoric pottery and coarse stone tools. She has published widely: the Howe Broch and the Crantit Tomb, both on Orkney; the Neolithic and Bronze Age aspects of Iain Crawford’s work on the Udal, North Uist; and with Barbara Crawford on the Norse site of the Biggings at Papa Stour, Shetland.Alan Hunter Blair has over 20 years experience working on and directing a wide range of rural and urban archaeological projects in Scotland and England, including major projects such as the prehistoric Carnoustie excavation in Angus and the medieval to post-medieval Tram Scheme in Edinburgh. He has co-authored several published reports on these excavations.Warren Bailie is the Managing Director for GUARD Archaeology and has more than 20 years’ experience in commercial archaeology. During this time, he has directed a wide range of archaeological excavations dating from the Mesolithic to the post-medieval across Ireland and Scotland, and has managed major archaeological works including at St Kilda and the Antonine Wall.

• Summary Foreword Acknowledgements Contributors  Part 1: The Background to the Project – Warren Bailie, Alan Hunter Blair and Beverley Ballin SmithIntroduction Site location, topography and geology Archaeological background Aims and objectives - Warren Bailie Methodologies used Archives and finds disposal The main research questions of the project  Part 2: The Excavation Results – Alan Hunter Blair and Beverley Ballin Smith Topsoil and plough marks Mesolithic traces Early Neolithic timber structures Evidence of the Bronze Age The Bronze Age hoard Later structures  Part 3: Dating The radiocarbon dates – Beverley Ballin Smith Archaeomagnetic studies of two fired features from Carnoustie – Samuel E Harris and Cathy M BattPart 4: Environmental Evidence Introduction – Beverley Ballin Smith Archaeobotany – Susan Ramsay Animal bone – Catherine Smith Soil micromorphology – Carol Lang Multi-element analysis – Dorothy McLaughlin  Part 5: Material Culture Evidence Introduction – Beverley Ballin Smith Lithic assemblage – Torben Bjarke Ballin Use-ware analysis on stone tools – Peter Bye Jensen Stone artefacts – Beverley Ballin Smith and Alison Sheridan Pottery – Beverley Ballin Smith Clay and fired clay – Beverley Ballin Smith  Part 6: The Late Bronze Age Metal Hoard – Warren Bailie, Alan Hunter Blair, Jordan Barbour, Esther Cameron, Trevor Cowie, Jane Evans, Susanna Harris, Raphael Hermann, Will Murray, Peter Northover, Brendan O’Connor, Vanessa Pashley, Ernst Pernicka, Susan Ramsay, Alison Sheridan, Beth Spence and Lore TroalenIntroduction – Warren Bailie and Alan Hunter Blair The initial assessment – Beth Spence and Will Murray Specialist study and analysis – Warren Bailie, Esther Cameron, Jane Evans, Susanna Harris, Raphael Hermann, Will Murray, Peter Northover, Brendan O’Connor, Vanessa Pashley, Susan Ramsay, Alison Sheridan and Lore TroalenThe radiocarbon date Metallurgical analysis – Peter Northover Discussion – Alison Sheridan Post-depositional processes affecting the hoard – Jordan Barbour  Part 7: General Discussion – Beverley Ballin SmithThe changing landscape and environment The early Neolithic The Bronze Age Early medieval and later uses of the site  Part 8: General Conclusions – Beverley Ballin SmithThe changing patterns of life at Carnoustie  Part 9: Afterword Answering the research questions – Beverley Ballin Smith Community involvement and outreach – Warren Bailie  Bibliography Index

'In this site report, the desk-based assessment, excavation, and post-excavation analysis are clearly and precisely documented, allowing the results of an important project to be fully appreciated.' – Dr Kathryn Krakowka (2026): Current Archaeology, issue 433