LASER technology has revealed around 1000 previously unknown archaeological sites on the Isle of Arran.
The project by archaeologists at Historic Environment Scotland (HES), used airborne laser scanning, also known as “lidar”, to document the island’s surface in 3D.
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The survey is the largest of its type so far in Scotland and has detected many previously unknown ancient archaeological sites, including nearly 100 prehistoric settlements and medieval farmsteads, as well as a Neolithic cursus monument – an exceptionally rare find on the west coast of Scotland.
Dave Cowley, rapid archaeological mapping manager at HES, said: “This survey has shown us that there are double the number of ancient monuments on Arran than we previously knew about.
“This new 3D technology has allowed us to undertake a rapid archaeological survey, over weeks rather than months or years, and allowed us to discover sites that might even have been impossible to find otherwise.
“We have been able to see how densely settled parts of Arran were, and the medieval and post-medieval shieling sites that were discovered have told us how upland areas were used by shepherds.
“This is an exciting time to be involved in the development of remote sensing and archaeological mapping. We are exploring the benefits of new technology and new datasets to record Scotland’s historic environment and inform our knowledge of the past. As a result, we are enriching the information through which we tell Scotland’s story.
“Arran is just a first step. As this technology becomes more widely available, we expect to find tens of thousands more ancient sites across the rest of Scotland – working at a pace that was unimaginable a few years ago.”
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The survey results can be found online at Canmore – Scotland’s National Record of the Historic Environment.
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