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 Sand Bay and the Inner Sound | |
  Sand location in Scotland Show map of Scotland Sand Sand (the United Kingdom) Show map of the United Kingdom | |
| Location | Applecross Peninsula |
|---|---|
| Region | Wester Ross,Scotland |
| Coordinates | 57°28′13″N5°52′0″W / 57.47028°N 5.86667°W /57.47028; -5.86667 |
| Type | rock shelter |
| Site notes | |
| Excavation dates | 1999, 2000 |
| Archaeologists | Scotland’s First Settlers project (SFS) |
Sand is anarchaeological site on theApplecross Peninsula inWester Ross,Scotland.[1]
Sand is the site of a major archaeological excavation on theInner Sound coast of theApplecross Peninsula in WesternScotland, to the north of the small town of Applecross.
A small number of shellmiddens were known as rare traces ofMesolithic settlement when a rock shelter and shell midden at Sand, Applecross on the coast ofWester Ross,Scotland, was selected for detailed excavation as part of a study of shell middens in the area around theInner Sound between theSkye and the mainland.
TheScotland’s First Settlers project (SFS) investigating the relationship of early inhabitants with the western seaboard chose this area which had known sites atAn Corran inStaffin,Skye, and atRedpoint andShieldaig inTorridon. Their surveys in 1999 and 2000 found 104 previously unknown sites, mostly caves and rock shelters with 21 "lithic scatters" and 9 openshell middens. A proportion of these sites will be more recent, but test pits at 4 sites foundLoch a Sguirr onRaasay andSand inApplecross to beMesolithic. The indication is that there are many more surviving sites than had been expected.
The rock shelter site at Sand on the Applecross peninsula, just to the north of Applecross itself, faces out across the Inner Sound westwards towardsSkye andRaasay. Around 7,500 years BCE the first users of the rock shelter had worked antler and stone to make tools. As well as using local stone for their tools they had obtained distinctive stone from the island ofRùm, 30 km (19 mi) to the south, and Staffin on Skye, 10 km (6.2 mi) to the west, showing that they were able to cross open sea.
Gradually a large pile of shells, mainly limpets, built up into a large midden. Abundant fragments of stone "pot-boilers" and bevel ended bone tools indicate that the shellfish were being cooked and the contents scooped out. There were also bones fromred deer and birds and an antler harpoon for catching a wide range of fish, includingcod,mackerel,haddock, herring and salmon.
Fine beads had been made fromseashells, whileochre pigment and a particular species of dog whelk that may have been used for the extraction of purple dye suggest concern with decoration.
There is a British Naval Base at Sand that monitors underwater activity around this part of the west coast. TheBUTEC establishment tests marine weapons. Submarines can often be seen in the waters betweenApplecross Peninsula andRaasay.
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