A Bronze Age hoard of around 3,000 years old has been discovered during excavations for a development of homes in the Highlands.

Investigations into the discovery by GUARD Archaelogy have revealed that rare organic plant remains intertwined with bronze bracelets and necklaces that were buried at sometime around 1000 BC.

The hoard was discovered during excavations for the development of new three and four bed homes by local developers, Pat Munro Holmes, at Greenside, Rosemarkie in Ross-shire.

The hoard is being regarded as extremely significant because it isn’t an isolated find with next to no context to explain the history of it. It was discovered in the middle of a prehistoric Bronze age settlement village that compromised of at least six roundhouses and a Bronze Age cist grave.

GUARD Archaeology’s analysis of these will allow people to understand the lives they lived, their beliefs and the how they the Bronze Age highlanders died. It will also add to what they have learned from another hoard that was excavated in Carnoustie from a Bronze Age village and reveals aspects of their culture that were apparent across all of Scotland.

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The nine bronze artefacts included one complete neck ring, one partial neck ring, six penannular and one cup-ended penannular bracelet. Remains of plant material was also discovered, comprising fibrous cords tied and knotted around some of the bronze objects.

Rachel Buckley led the laboratory excavation and said: “The recovery of the artefacts was successfully carried out under the controlled conditions necessary to preserve these highly significant objects, particularly the very delicate organic cords that tether some of the objects together.

“Where bracelets were held together with organic material, these were recovered as a group to allow further detailed study. While there are other examples of hoards where it has been postulated that items were bound together due to their positioning, the vegetation in the Rosemarkie hoard has survived for approximately 3000 years, proving that these artefacts were held together.”

A Bronze Age hoardA Bronze Age hoard (Image: GUARD) The hoard was discovered in the HighlandThe hoard was discovered in the Highland (Image: GUARD)

The survival of the plants is likely to be in part due to the anti-microbial properties of copper in the bronze, where the corrosion products adhere to the organics and preserve them.

Over the coming months, a team of specialists who have been brought together by GUARD Archaeology will be examining the various strands of evidence that made explains why the hoard was buried here.

Iraia Arabaolaza is managing the analyses for GUARD and said: “That the hoard was buried under a single homogenous fill within a shallow pit with little extra room for anything other than what was found within, indicates that this was no accidental loss.

“It would seem that the shallow pit was dug to the required length and depth to accommodate the items, before then being quickly backfilled.

It may be that it was intended as temporary storage with the intention of recovering the hoard at some stage. The evidence from the surrounding settlement may reveal whether it was not just the hoard that was abandoned but the settlement as well.”

The archaeological work was funded by Pat Munro Ltd and was required as a condition of planning consent by Highland Council. They had been advised by the council’s Historic  Environment Team that there was potential for unknown archaeology to be buried at the site.

Hamish Little, Senior Manager, Pat Munro Homes said: “It’s been a great experience for the team at Pat Munro Homes to work with the archaeologists at our development at Greenside, Rosemarkie and also be part of the team that uncovered the Bronze Age artefacts.

“We are hoping to work together with the archaeologists, and other partners in the coming months to involve the local secondary school, Fortrose Academy in learning more about its historical significance and getting pupils involved in helping to design a permanent feature on/near the site that will tell the story and can be shared with the local community and visitors to the area.”