Property in Care (PIC) ID: PIC172 Designations: Scheduled Monument (SM90017); Taken into State care: 1960 (Guardianship) Last reviewed: 2018 HISTORIC ENVIRONMENT SCOTLAND STATEMENT OF SIGNIFICANCE ANTONINE WALL - DULLATUR We continually revise our Statements of Significance, so they may vary in length, format and level of detail. While every effort is made to keep them up to date, they should not be considered a definitive or final assessment of our properties. Historic Environment Scotland Scottish Charity No. SC045925 Principal Office:Longmore House, Salisbury Place, Edinburgh EH9 1SH
Historic Environment Scotland Scottish Charity No. SC045925 Principal Office:Longmore House, Salisbury Place, Edinburgh EH9 1SH
ANTONINE WALL - DULLATUR BRIEF DESCRIPTION The property is part of the Antonine Wall and comprises a 550m long stretch of ditch, upcast bank and Military Way (the latter not visible). It is set on a southsloping hill on the fringes of a golf course and lies between the Roman forts of Croy (2km to the west) and Westerwood (500m to the east) The Antonine Wall is a linear Roman frontier system of wall and ditch accompanied at stages by forts and fortlets, linked by a road system termed the Military Way, stretching 60km from Bo ness on the Forth to Old Kilpatrick on the Clyde. It is one of only three linear barriers along the 2000km European frontier of the Roman Empire. These systems are unique to Britain and Germany. CHARACTER OF THE MONUMENT Historical Overview Antonine Wall construction initiated by Emperor Antoninus Pius (AD 138 161) after a successful campaign in AD 139/142 by the Governor of Britain, Lollius Urbicus This section of Antonine Wall built by legio XX Valeria Victrix. Antonine Wall system abandoned, possibly after AD 165, and the line of frontier shifted again to Hadrian s Wall Brought into Guardianship in 1960 Archaeological Overview 1583: Pont s map of the The East Central Lowlands depicts the course of the Antonine Wall passing through Dulettyr [Dullatur] 1755: General Roy surveys the Antonine Wall, his map, published as Military Antiquties of the Romans in North Britain (1793), depicts the Wall and Roman [Military] Way passing through Dillater [Dullatur] 1861: The 1 st Edition Ordnance Survey map notes the visible extent of the Military way at Dullatur 1934: George Macdonald undertakes a survey of the Antonine Wall and Military Way
1957: Line of Wall and Military Way undertaken by Ordnance Survey Archaeology Division. 1980: Line of Wall and Military Way undertaken by Ordnance Survey Archaeology Division. 1987: Two trenches were excavated 250m to the east of the PIC area across the Military Way and stone-base of the rampart. The stone base was located in good preservation at a depth of 0.23m below the present day grassy surface. The base was 4.38m wide, made of large sandstone cobbles. Its position and alignment conform to OS maps. The superstructure was of turf, of which two courses were visible above the base, to a height of 0.3m The property has provided evidence of the line and construction of the Antonine Wall. To the best of our knowledge, no archaeological excavation has been carried out at the site and thus it retains a high archaeological potential to inform us further on the line and construction of the Antonine Wall, and remains archaeologically sensitive. Artistic/Architectural Overview The part of the Antonine Wall at Dullatur has some of the better defined sections of the ditch, especially at the western end of the PIC. Here it averages from 11m to 14m in width and is between 2.5m and 3m in depth. There are no extant remains of the rampart, and only occasional sections of the upcast bank. Within the PIC area, at NS 755 773, a slight alignment angle can be determined. The course of the Military Way is known to run within the PIC area to the south of the wall, although it is not visible. Social Overview The property is used by walkers along what is, combined with other sections, a long 9km stretch of Wall. In 2003 the Scottish Executive announced that the Antonine Wall (including this stretch) would be nominated as World Heritage Site. In 2008 it was inscribed as part of the Frontiers of the Roman Empire World Heritage Site. Such a designation brings enhanced social significance to the monument and its setting. Spiritual Overview Currently the site has no known spiritual role.
Aesthetic Overview The property has a dramatic stretch of the ditch, which is flanked with trees creating a picturesque view of the wall, and shielding it from the railway line to the north. Because of the trees the area is not as open as others, but from its elevated position views to the north can be appreciated amongst the trees. What are the major gaps in understanding of the property? N/A ASSESSMENT OF SIGNIFICANCE Key Points Part of 9km long stretch of extant Antonine Wall. Good survival of ditch and upcast bank. Part of second best preserved Roman frontier after Hadrian s Wall Associated Properties Bar Hill; Hillhead; Bearsden Bathhouse; Castlecary; Croy Hill Rough Castle; Seabegs Wood; Tamfourhill; Tollpark; Westerwood; Wyndford Road Keywords Roman frontier; limes; Antonine Wall; Hadrian's Wall; World Heritage Site