We specialize in hard to find items
All Categories
The Lost Dark Age Kingdom of Rheged: the Discovery of a Royal Stronghold at Trusty’s Hill, Galloway
Share Tweet
*Price and Stocks may change without prior notice
*Packaging of actual item may differ from photo shown
- Electrical items MAY be 110 volts.
- 7 Day Return Policy
- All products are genuine and original
About The Lost Dark Age Kingdom Of Rheged: The Discovery
Product description Trusty's Hill is an early medieval fort at Gatehouse of Fleet, Dumfries and Galloway. The hillfort comprises a fortified citadel defined by a vitrified rampart around its summit, with a number of enclosures looping out along lower-lying terraces and crags. The approach to its summit is flanked on one side by a circular rock-cut basin and on the other side by Pictish Symbols carved on to the face of a natural outcrop of bedrock. This Pictish inscribed stone is unique in Dumfries and Galloway, and southern Scotland, and has long puzzled scholars as to why the symbols were carved so far from Pictland and even if they are genuine. The Galloway Picts Project, launched in 2012, aimed to recover evidence for the archaeological context of the inscribed stone, but far from validating the existence of Picts in this southerly region of Scotland, the archaeological context instead suggests that the carvings relate to a royal stronghold and place of inauguration for the local Britons of Galloway around AD 600. Examined in the context of contemporary sites across southern Scotland and northern England, the archaeological evidence from Galloway suggests that this region may have been the heart of the lost Dark Age kingdom of Rheged, a kingdom that was in the late sixth century pre-eminent amongst the kingdoms of the north. The new archaeological evidence from Trusty's Hill enhances our perception of power, politics, economy and culture at a time when the foundations for the kingdoms of Scotland, England and Wales were being laid. Table of Contents Chapter 1 Introduction Chapter 2 Fieldwork Results Chapter 3 Dating and Phasing Chapter 4 The Artefacts Ceramics Metalwork Metalworking Lithics Coarse Stones and Stone Tools Glass Chapter 5 Environmental Evidence Animal Bone Soil Micromorphology Archaeobotanical Remains Chapter 6 The Rock Carvings Chapter 7 Discussion The Stratigraphy and Chronology of Trusty's Hill The Layout of the Hillfort Trusty's Hill: A Nuclear Fort The Hillfort Economy and Culture The Vitrified Rampart: Conquest and Destruction A Royal Stronghold Chapter 8 Conclusions Acknowledgements Bibliography Review “… a fascinating site and the authors work hard to draw out the history, role, setting and end of what was no doubt a prominent seat in the region’s early medieval landscapes.” Neil Christie “Toolis and Bowles have confirmed that Trusty’s Hill deserves a place on the settlement maps of early medieval Britain… The resulting finely illustrated report has drawn on the key specialists and a range of up-to date techniques and finds analysis.” Alan Lane “…the volume is well written and an essential contribution to early medieval studies in northern Britain.” About the Author Ronan Toolis is a Director of GUARD Archaeology Ltd, specialising in the management of archaeology and cultural heritage. He has over 20 years experience working on and leading a wide range of rural and urban archaeological projects in Scotland, UK and Germany including significant involvement in archaeological assessments, fieldwork and post-excavation analysis. Christopher Bowles is the Archaeology Officer for the Scottish Borders Council where he is responsible for providing archaeological mitigation advice on planning issues for the protection and management of the region’s heritage, management of the local Historic Environment Record and all aspects of public engagement on heritage matters.
