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WATCH: Video created showing Burghead in Pictish times


By Alistair Whitfield

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A video has been created showing how Burghead would probably have looked more than 1000 years ago.

It's long been known that the village was a major Pictish settlement during an era spanning the years 500AD to 1000AD

Boasting 20ft-high and 25ft-thick defensive walls, it was once potentially the home to as many as 4000 people.

But then the settlement was subsequently hit by a devastating fire and declined in importance.

Much of the ancient site was later cleared when the modern village of Burghead was built in the 19th Century.

However, despite the level of development, a series of digs begun in 2015 by the University of Aberdeen's archaeology department have succeed in uncovering a surprising amount of fresh finds.

The ancient site of Burghead with his massive defensive walls.
The ancient site of Burghead with his massive defensive walls.

Professor Gordon Noble heads up the team which has kept returning to Burghead to continue digging on the headland.

He said: "The scale of houses and buildings we have discovered evidence of show that this was a densely populated and important Pictish site.

"We have found many objects which have helped us to learn more about the everyday lives of Burghead’s inhabitants.

"From metalworking to weaponry and even hair and dress pins, with each new dig we are finding out more about our ancestors who lived here.

"The foundations of the huge ramparts have survived far better than anyone anticipated, despite their wilful destruction over the centuries.

"The midden layers, which is effectively where the Picts threw their rubbish, have provided startling insights into the lives of the Picts to the archaeologists.

"It wonderful to see the work of our excavations spanning more than five years brought together in these stunning reconstructions which offer an amazing insight into how Burghead may have looked."

The video reconstruction has been co-ordinated by Dr Alice Watterson of the University of Dundee with members of the 3DVisLab research group.

It shows how Burghead Well, which can still be seen today, would have looked in its pomp.

It also reverses centuries of erosion from wind and waves to rebuild the cliffs on the edge of the village.

The archaeological digs are being funded by Historic Environment Scotland and the Leverhulme Trust.

Dr Kevin Grant, archaeology manager of HES, said: "Burghead fort was one of the most important places in Early Medieval Scotland, and was built to be dramatic and imposing.

"These reconstructions help us imagine experiencing this spectacular site in its heyday."

Related article: Expert uncovering Burghead's Pictish past


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