A stranger in the dunes? Rescue excavation of a Viking Age burial at Cnoc nan Gall, Colonsay

Abstract

The rescue excavation of a Viking Age burial from an eroding sand dune at Cnoc nan Gall, near Machrins on the island of Colonsay, has provided further insights into a cemetery that has long been known to exist in this area. The burial comprised a middle-aged male with associated grave goods, including a Hiberno-Norse copper alloy ringed pin, and an Anglo-Saxon type strap-end, and also included small areas of organic preservation including cloth and botanical evidence. The artefacts and botanical evidence, along with a radiocarbon date obtained from a sample of the in-situ skeleton, suggest that the individual was buried in autumn or winter during the second half of the 10th century AD. Remains of either a stone setting, or cairn, along with the partial organic preservation in the grave, has also provided an insight into the burial customs employed. The grave may have been lined with grasses and the body wrapped in coarse linen cloth and placed on a birch bier or coffin.