Watching Brief at Cortes, Manse Road, Inverurie, Aberdeenshire, AB51 3QW

Moyra Simon of Cameron Archaeology carried out a watching brief between 20 March and 13 April 2023 during excavation of foundation trenches for a garage and house extension at Cortes, Manse Road, Inverurie. The site lay within close proximity of Conyng Hillock, a Scheduled Monument. Sections of a large silt-filled ditch were observed in several trenches. This is believed to be a continuation of the ditch surrounding the hillock, which was observed during an evaluation in 1994. The full extent of the ditch could not be ascertained during this watching brief but it seems likely that it extends under most of the garden of Cortes.Three soil samples were recovered from the fill of the ditch. Analysis of two of these samples returned radiocarbon dates of 1029-1160calAD and 1423-1496calAD suggesting the prehistoric ditch surrounding Conyng Hillock remained open for a prolonged period before being filled during the medieval period.