Posted on 05/28/2004 12:51:10 PM PDT by blam
Macbeth's castle unearthed in Inverness garden?
LOCAL history enthusiasts believe they have unearthed positive evidence that a former King of Scotland maintained a castle in Inverness.
Tradition has persisted that Macbeth had a stronghold at Auldcastle Road in the Crown area of the city - hence the name.
Now an archaeological dig by members of the Inverness Local History Forum in the garden of the appropriately-named house Dun Macbeth has uncovered what could be the most important finds to date.
Some artefacts, including pieces of medieval glass and what are thought to be whalebone and porpoise or dolphin bones have been sent away for examination.
But what has really excited the Forum is the discovery of a dressed stone wall underneath what was a raised feature in the garden.
"We don't know for certain if it was Macbeth's castle but certainly everything points to it, " chairman George Christie declared.
"We thought at first it might be just part of a Victorian terraced garden so we cut through that and came upon various layers of archaeological evidence dating beyond the Victorian era back to medieval times."
He described how, at the bottom of the trench, they found a wall over two metres thick.
"Everyone thought that if there was a castle there it would have been a wooden fort. But it is now our belief it had a stone curtain wall with wooden buildings inside."
Evidence was found in the area of a medieval well and Forum members unearthed a silver coin dating back to the 12th Century.
"It was obvious they had been eating either porpoises or dolphins but we can't distinguish between the bones so they have been sent off for examination, " Mr Christie added. "Seafood was obviously an important part of their diet because we also found mussels and oyster shells."
Whalebone was found in another pit and a large post hole which could have supported a roof.
There were also signs of destructive burning, which ties in with the belief that Malcolm Canmore burned down the castle in 1056 in revenge for the death of his father King Duncan at the hands of Macbeth in 1040.
The dig was the first archaeological excavation of the site and the Forum was assisted by freelance consultant archaeologist Stuart Farrell, along with Patricia Weeks and Jon Watt from Inverness Museum.
Mr Christie is now sure there was a defensive wall on the site.
"Some people have questioned the suitability of the area as a site for a castle, " he commented.
"But we have conclusive evidence that the sea came right up to Millburn Road below the hill on which Auld Castle road sits.
"So the site was above the coastline with views right out across the Moray Firth."
Dun Macbeth is owned by Dr Timothy Palmer, a pathologist at Raigmore Hospital, and his wife Rhona. They have been aware of the history of the site since they moved into the house 14 years ago.
Mrs Palmer said the team were very considerate and restored her garden after their work was finished.
"I'll be interested to hear the results of the test, " she said.
28/05/2004
Now, if they can just find Burham Wood over there in Dunsenane ...
BTTT
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