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ARO3: Soutra Hill: Prehistoric and Medieval Activity on the Edge of the Lothian Plain

ARO3: Soutra Hill: Prehistoric and Medieval Activity on the Edge of the Lothian Plain

By Bob Will
with contributions by Iraia Arabaolaza, Torben Ballin, Beverley Ballin Smith, Susan Ramsay & Beth Spence

Between November 2010 and June 2011, archaeological investigations were carried out on the summit of Soutra Hill in advance of a proposed extension to the existing Soutra quarry. The investigations revealed an Early Bronze Age burial cairn at the summit with the remains of a small timber circle nearby. The cairn contained a cremation burial, fragments of two Beaker pots and evidence of at least two phases of use over a prolonged period of time. The newly emerging archaeological context for Soutra Hill suggests that this was a significant place overlooking the Lothian plain in the Early Bronze Age landscape of south-east Scotland.

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