King's Seat

A craggy hill on the left bank of the River Tay, King's Seat (also known as The Fort of the Caledonians) rises within woodland to just beyond 160m (525 feet) a mile (1.7 km) west of Dunkeld in Perth and Kinross. There is a substantial and complex hill-fort on its rocky summit, comprising a central oval citadel with a series of ramparts below. The citadel measures around 35m by 22m (115 feet by 72 feet) while the ramparts comprise banks constructed of earth, stone and timber that still stand up to 1.2m (4 feet) in height and are 5m (16 feet) thick. Rhododendron brush was cleared from the summit prior to a detailed excavation in 2017-19 led by professional archaeologists but making extensive use of local volunteers, including members of the Dunkeld and Birnam Historical Society and local school pupils. Finds include coloured glass and stone gaming pieces, pottery which was perhaps made in France, and parts of a glass vessel which may have originated in Germany. This evidence suggests the site was of high-status, associated with royalty, and occupied between the 7th and 9th Centuries.

There is another King's Seat to the south of Birnam, just 2¼ miles (3.5 km) to the southeast.


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