Neolithic Scotland: Balfarg Henge
In the last article, I defined a henge as a circular area defined by a bank and a ditch, with one or two entrances. I would now like to look at one of these in detail
Balfarg Henge is situated on the north side of Glenrothes in Fife. It is now completely encircled by a modern housing complex. It is one of the few henges in Scotland to be extensively excavated and has provided much valuable information. At the time of the archaeological dig, in 1977 and 1978, there were two stones still standing. Aerial photographs revealed a ditch (then almost completely filled in) which ran in a true arc around the stones on the western, northern and eastern sides. There had been a natural gully on the southern side but that had been filled by soil erosion.
Investigation showed that the site was first built around 2900 B.C. and it fell into disuse around 1400 B.C. Nearby, at Balbirnie, there is a stone circle of 15 metres in diameter which surround a rectangular feature. It seems probable that both monuments were constructed at about the same time but Balbirnie appears to have been in use after activity had ceased at Balfarg.
The henge at Balfarg was constructed over a long period of time and this may reflect a change in the use of the site. There appears to have been a level platform about 60 metres in diameter within the circle formed by the ditch and the gully and the earliest known activity took place there. This involved the burning of wood and bone and fragments of a number of large pots have been found. The ditch may not yet have been built. Soon after this activity, sixteen timber posts were erected in the centre of the platform. It has been estimated (from the depth of the sockets where the ends of the posts were buried) that their weights ranged from ½ ton to 5 tons. Each tree had to be cut down with stone axes and dragged to the site.
It appears that the posts varied in height with the shortest being on the eastern side and the tallest on the western side of the circle. The two largest posts seem to have been positioned apart from the others, almost like an entrance. Other smaller rings of wooden posts may have stood, one inside, and the rest outside this structure. Radiocarbon dating indicates that this construction took place between 2900 to 2700 B.C.
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