Laigh Sinniness

Today's the day ...................... to dig

First day today of the Whithorn Trust archaeological dig, to investigate a site at Laigh Sinniness, Wigtownshire - and it really could not have been a more gloriously sunny day on which to start.  We met at the Trust's headquarters in Whithorn and had a brief run through of what we might expect to find over the course of the week.  

This area is very rich in Iron Age hillforts and settlements and a LiDAR survey back in 2021 had identified the possibility of something at the Sinniness site.  The boggy, marshy condition of the land in this part of Galloway is the perfect medium to preserve the wooden timbers and other plant materials that were used in the construction of these Iron Age dwellings.  A previous dig at another site nearby, Black Loch of Myrton, had revealed an incredible amount of information - enough to make a present-day reconstruction of a Round House (see extras), which we were able to see before we set off.

The JCB digger had already removed the turf and top-soil from the marked out site by the time we arrived.  The day was spent tidying things up and taking the soil level down by 6 inches or so.  I won't be there tomorrow - but I'll be back for the remainder of the week on Thursday, when hopefully, there will be something exciting to report ...................