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According to a study published in the journal Antiquity, researchers analysed grains recovered from the 6,000-year-old Neolithic site at Balbridie in Aberdeenshire, Scotland.Balbridie is the site of a Neolithic long house situated on the south bank of the River Dee. The site is one of the earliest known permanent Neolithic settlements in Scotland, dating from 3400 to 4000 BC.Balbridie was first excavated between 1977 and 1981 following aerial photography carried out by the Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Scotland that identified cropmarks during a dry summer in 1976.A large quantity of ancient grain was also recovered,...

A hillfort in Aberdeenshire is one of the largest ancient settlements ever discovered in Scotland, researchers have said. University of Aberdeen archaeologists say 4,000 people may have lived in more than 800 huts perched high on the Tap O' Noth near Rhynie. Many had thought it dated from the Bronze or Iron Age. The team said carbon dating suggested it was likely to be Pictish, dating back as far as the third century AD. They believe at its height it may have rivalled the largest known post-Roman settlements in Europe. Archaeologists from the university have conducted extensive fieldwork in the...

A medieval gaming board has been found by archaeologists working to find a lost Pictish-era monastery in Aberdeenshire. Archaeologist Ali Cameron said the board found near Old Deer was a "very rare" find with it used to play the Norse strategy game of Hnefatafl. A date for the board has yet to be established but a similar piece found in Birsay, Orkney, in 1989 was dated to the Late Iron Age/Pictish period from the 5th to 9th Century AD. Ms Cameron said: "It is a very rare object and only a few have been found in Scotland, mainly on monastic...

Excavations in the Cairngorms have revealed evidence of a human settlement as long ago as 8,000 BC which is 3,000 years earlier than previously thought. Archaeologists have been examining a scattering of stone tools around a fire setting at Glen Geldie on the Mar Lodge Estate, Aberdeenshire.

A hoard of Roman and Pictish silver has been unearthed by archaeologists working in a field in Aberdeenshire. The find, which contains more than 100 pieces including coins and jewellery, has been hailed as the most northern of its kind in Europe. The discovery was made earlier this year by archaeologists from National Museums Scotland and the University of Aberdeen's Northern Picts project at an undisclosed location. It will now become the subject of a programme of research involving detailed analysis and cataloguing through the Glenmorangie Research Project - a three-year sponsorship of National Museums Scotland to support the study...

Archaeologists uncover Aberdeenshire’s hidden history on slopes of Bennachie Archaeologists have uncovered ancient traces, from tiny bead ornaments to massive walls, of a forgotten prince’s palace on the slopes of Bennachie in Aberdeenshire. Only yards from a busy car park used by walkers visiting the landmark hill, a 15-strong team rediscovered remains of Maiden Castle just below the surface of a wooded hillside mound. A stone’s throw from the Rowantree car park, near Pitcaple, and also close to one of the most important Pictish carved monuments in the country, the two-week dig confirmed the importance of the 2,000-year-old fort area....

The remains of what it is thought could be a member of early Pictish royalty have been discovered during an archaeological dig in Aberdeenshire. The discovery at Rhynie was made by teams from the universities of Aberdeen and Chester. The remains were found in a carefully made sandstone grave, which the experts believe suggests the person was of high status. It is the first time remains of a body have been uncovered at the site. Project leader Dr Gordon Noble, of the University of Aberdeen, said: "We found elements of the legs, pelvis and jaw bone which we recovered and...

Romans went to war on diet of pizza, dig shows John Innes ROMAN soldiers went to war on egg and pizza according to archaeological analysis of Roman army toilets in Scotland. Scientists also have discovered that the soldiers also appear to have gone to the lavatory in pairs. Further analysis of the 2,000-year old remains of the legionnaires’ breakfasts may produce more clues to the diet and eating habits of the troops led by Gnaeus Agricola. They forced their way to the north of Scotland and victory over Caledonian tribesmen at the battle of Mons Graupius in 84 AD. But...

Their stone tools may have been simple and their dwellings made from simple straw huts, but ancient Britons were in fact ahead of the times - literally - when it came to the world's first ever calendar. That's the claim of archaeologists who believe they have found evidence of a giant 'year clock' capable of tracking lunar months and the changing seasons in a field near Banchory in Aberdeenshire. Dating back 10,000 years, it is twice the age of time-keeping systems created by the ancient Mesopotamians, which were thought to be the world's oldest.....