Auld Bourtreebush

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Auld Bourtreebush
Bourtreebush stones 2020.jpg
Stones in 2020
Aberdeenshire UK location map.svg
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Shown within Aberdeenshire
Alternative nameOld Bourtree Bush, Old Bourtreebush [1]
LocationScotland
Region Aberdeenshire
Coordinates 57°05′58″N2°16′06″W / 57.09944°N 2.26833°W / 57.09944; -2.26833
Type stone circle
Diameter25 metres
Identifiers
Historic Environment Scotland SM980

Auld Bourtreebush is a large Neolithic stone circle near Portlethen in Aberdeenshire, Scotland. It is also known as Old Bourtree Bush or Old Bourtreebush. This megalithic construction is situated near the Aquhorthies recumbent stone circle and the Causey Mounth, an ancient trackway which connects the Scottish Lowlands to the highlands. It is a scheduled monument.

Contents

Stone circle

Auld Bourtreebush stone circle lies 200 metres to the west of Old Bourtreebush in Aberdeenshire and within sight of the Aquhorthies recumbent stone circle. [2] It is a scheduled monument. [3] It is 25 metres in diameter and is thought to have been composed of up to 15 orthostats, of which only four remain standing, although several others are lying fallen. Inside the circle was a ring cairn which has been destroyed over time. Whilst it was thought in the past to have been a recumbent stone circle, current archaeological opinion refutes this. [2]

Area history

Subsequent to the prehistory related to the construction of this stone circle, there is considerable medieval history associated with this monument's position along the ancient Causey Mounth trackway. Auld Bourtreebush is situated quite near to this old drovers' road, which was constructed on high ground to make passable this only available medieval route from coastal points south from Stonehaven to Aberdeen. This trackway specifically connected the River Dee crossing (where the present Bridge of Dee is situated) via Portlethen Moss, Muchalls Castle and Stonehaven to the south. [4] The route was that taken by William Keith, 7th Earl Marischal and the Marquess of Montrose when they led a Covenanter army of 9000 men in the battle of the Civil War in 1639. [5]

See also

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Causey Mounth

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Cowie Castle

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Cookney

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Banchory-Devenick

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Grim Brigs

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Cookney Church

Cookney Parish Church, now business premises within a converted listed building, was a Christian place of worship in the village of Cookney, Aberdeenshire, Scotland.

Cammachmore Bay

Cammachmore Bay is an embayment of the North Sea between Stonehaven and Aberdeen in Aberdeenshire, Scotland. The fishing village of Downies is situated on Cammachmore Bay. Cammachmore is noted for its bouldering and rock climbing opportunities.

May Craig is a rocky island situated along the North Sea coast of Aberdeenshire, Scotland. May Craig lies about one half mile south of Newtonhill and a mile northeast of the village of Muchalls. A small islet of the same name lies three miles to the north-northeast.

Craigmaroinn

Craigmaroinn is a skerry in the North Sea near the Aberdeenshire coastline in Scotland. Craigmaroinn is situated midway between the coastal villages of Portlethen Village and Downies. Historical points of interest in the local area are Elsick House, Gillybrands and Muchalls Castle.

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Hare Ness

Hare Ness is a headland landform along the North Sea coastline a few miles south of Aberdeen, Scotland.

Aquhorthies stone circle

Aquhorthies is a Neolithic stone circle near Portlethen in Aberdeenshire, Scotland. The site is composed of a ring cairn and a recumbent stone circle which unusually has two rings. It stands one field away from Auld Bourtreebush stone circle, near to the Causey Mounth. It is a scheduled monument.

References

  1. "Old Bourtreebush | Canmore". canmore.org.uk. Retrieved 10 July 2021.
  2. 1 2 Welfare, Adam (2011). Great crowns of stone: The recumbent stone circles of Scotland. Edinburgh: Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Momuments of Scotland. ISBN   9781902419558.
  3. Historic Environment Scotland. "Old Bourtreebush,stone circle and cairn 250m W of (SM980)" . Retrieved 8 March 2019.
  4. C.Michael Hogan, Causey Mounth, Megalithic Portal, ed. by A. Burnham, Nov 3, 2007
  5. Watt, Archibald, Highways and Byways around Kincardineshire, Stonehaven Heritage Society (1985)

Coordinates: 57°03′21″N2°09′38″W / 57.0558°N 2.1606°W / 57.0558; -2.1606