Cults Loch, at Castle Kennedy in Dumfries & Galloway, Scotland, lies within a landscape rich in prehistoric cropmark sites and within the loch itself are two crannogs, one of which has been the focus of this study. A palisaded enclosure and a promontory fort on the shores of the loch have also been excavated. The Cults Loch crannog is only the second prehistoric site in Scotland to be dated by dendrochronology and analysis has revealed the very short duration of activity on the crannog in the middle of the 5th century BC. Bayesian analysis of the dating evidence from all the excavated sites has yielded a chronological sequence which suggests a dynamic and sequential settlement pattern across the landscape. The implications of this sequence for later prehistoric settlement throughout south-west Scotland are explored. The Cults Loch Landscape Project arose out of the Scottish Wetland Archaeology Programme (SWAP), the objective of which is to fully integrate the wetland archaeological resource of Scotland into the more mainstream narratives of ‘dryland’ archaeology. The Cults Loch project has sought to bridge this apparent divide between ‘wetland’ and ‘dryland’ by focusing on a wetland site, the crannog, which lies at the centre of a prehistoric landscape, rather than being peripheral to it. Thus, the wealth of well-preserved evidence from the crannog, particularly the rich ecofactual assemblages, as well as the higher chronological resolution possible through the dendro-dating of waterlogged timbers, are brought to bear on our understanding of the evidence from the cropmark sites around the loch. The role and function of crannogs are also explored via the relationship between the crannog in Cults Loch and its social and physical landscape.

Table of Contents:
1 introduction  The research framework  The landscape setting; geology and hydrology  A history of previous archaeological investigations at cults loch  Methodology  The community initiative  Note on site labels   2 Cults Loch 3; the promontory crannog 2a The structural sequence  Phase 1; construction of the crannog mound  Phase 2; structure 1  Phase 3; structure 2  Phase 3; deposits and structures in the n quadrant  Phase 4; structure 3  Phase 5; the decay horizon  Access onto the crannog 2b Chronology, by Anne Crone  Introduction  Radiocarbon dating  Dendrochronological studies  14C wiggle-match dating and the structural sequence at Cults Loch 3, by Piotr Jacobsson, Derek Hamilton & Gordon Cook  Summary 2c ecofact analyses  Introduction  Phase 1; the crannog mound  Phase 2; structure 1  Phase 3; structure 2  Phase 3; deposits and structures in the n quadrant  Phase 4; structure 3  Phase 5; the decay horizon  Deposits off the crannog mound  The macroplant assemblage, by Jackaline Robertson  Insect remains, by Enid Allison  Micromorphology, by Lynne Roy 2d the artefact assemblage  The wooden artefacts, by Anne Crone  The shale, by Fraser Hunter  The glass bead, by Fraser Hunter  The coarse stone, by Dawn McClaren  The chipped stone assemblage, by Rob Engl  The burnt clay, by Dawn McClaren  Synthesis of the material culture from Cults Loch 3, by Dawn McClaren 2e the structural timbers 2f summary of evidence for construction and occupation on Cults Loch 3   3 Cults Loch 4; the promontory fort  Introduction  Aerial photography  Geophysical survey, by Tessa Poller  Excavation results  Environmental remains, by jackaline roberton  The form and function of the enclosure  Inland promontory forts   4 Cults Loch 5; the palisaded enclosure  Introduction  Geophysical survey, by Tessa Poller & Graeme Cavers  Excavation results  Chronology  Material culture, by Dawn McClaren  Environmental remains, by Jackaline Roberton  Cults loch 5; discussion   5 Cults Loch 2 and Cults Loch 6  Cults Loch 2; the knoll  Cults Loch 6; the pits   6 Radiocarbon dating and Bayesian modelling of Cults Loch 3, 4 and 5  Methodological approach, by Derek Hamilton & Tony Krus  Cults Loch 3; the crannog  Cults Loch 4; the promontory fort  Cults Loch 5; the palisaded enclosure  Discussion   7 The material world of Iron Age Wigtownshire  Introduction, by Fraser Hunter, Dawn Mclaren & Gemma Cruickshanks  Luce sands  Material patterns  Stone  Iron and iron-working  Copper alloys and their manufacture  Decoration and adornment  Contacts  Artefacts and society  The Roman world  Conclusions   8 The environment in and around Cults Loch 8a The offsite palaeoenvironmental programme, by Thierry Fonville, Tony Brown & Ciara Clarke 8b The on-site evidence for the environment around Cults Loch   9 Discussion  Cults Loch 3; chronology, form & functionality  The sites in their local and national context; the later prehistoric settlement record of Wigtownshire  Settlement development in the 1st millennium bc in southern scotland  The earlier Iron Age settlement landscape in SW Scotland  The Cults Loch landscape: settlement, duration and evolution 500–0 BC  Evidence for domestic architecture at Cults Loch   10 Conclusions    Appendices  Acknowledgements  References  Index